a less whimsical illustration that encapsulates the fun of searching an archive of over 15

The Archive...

Have a wander through the Fireside folktale archive below, and see what you stumble into. Use the filters to narrow the world down, or fling the doors wide and browse by country, region, theme, collector, or whatever takes your fancy, then let the table do the rest. A few clicks can carry you from storm-tossed coasts to mountain villages, from clever tricksters to quiet miracles, and you will often find that the story you meant to read is not the one that chooses you.

Archive under construction...

Structured Filters

Use these drop down lists to choose one or more filters to select groups of tales to investigate in more detail

Other than my own versions of tales (as indicated), the stories in this archive are in the public domain

Stories in this view:

3988

Title	Book	Author / Collector	Country	Subject	Year
The Turtle Who Couldn't Stop Talking	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Turtle Who Couldn’t Stop Talking: loose speech leads straight to downfall.	1912
The Crab And The Crane	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Crab And The Crane: cunning defeats treachery, justice comes through intelligence.	1912
The Sandy Road	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Sandy Road: endurance and wisdom carry travellers through hardship.	1912
Grannie's Blackie	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	Grannie’s Blackie: affection and grief show love’s quiet depth.	1912
The Wise And The Foolish Merchant	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Wise And The Foolish Merchant: prudence prospers, recklessness courts disaster.	1912
The King's White Elephant	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The King’s White Elephant: gratitude, loyalty, and generosity outweigh royal possession.	1912
The Princes And The Water-Sprite	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Princes And The Water-Sprite: wisdom solves dangers that force cannot master.	1912
The Ox Who Envied The Pig	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Ox Who Envied The Pig: envy blinds judgment and leads to needless suffering.	1912
How The Turtle Saved His Own Life	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	How The Turtle Saved His Own Life: quick wit rescues the vulnerable from danger.	1912
Why The Owl Is Not King Of The Birds	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	Why The Owl Is Not King Of The Birds: bad temper ruins fitness for leadership.	1912
The Measure Of Rice	Jataka Tales	Ellen C. Babbitt	India	The Measure Of Rice: fairness and discernment expose trickery and injustice.	1912
The Princess Of The Tower	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	imprisonment, courage, enchantment, rescue, true love	1919
The Magic Palace	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	magic, ingenuity, generosity, social justice, transformation	1919
The Pope's Game Of Chess	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	wisdom, religious tolerance, diplomacy, intellectual skill, communal protection	1919
The Slave's Fortune	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	oppression, perseverance, unexpected fortune, freedom, justice	1919
The Paradise In The Sea	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	underwater wonder, spiritual longing, temptation, discovery, paradise	1919
The Story Of Bostanai	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	Jewish identity, leadership, persecution, courage, royal destiny	1919
The Water-Babe	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	mystery, compassion, transformation, family bonds, supernatural intervention	1919
From Shepherd-Boy To King	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	humility, bravery, providence, royal identity, justice	1919
Abi Fressah's Feast	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	hospitality, poverty, generosity, disguise, moral reward	1919
The Higgledy-Piggledy Palace	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	confusion, enchantment, perseverance, cleverness, order restored	1919
The Palace Of The Eagles	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	loyalty, rescue, gratitude, supernatural guardianship, triumph over danger	1919
The Outcast Prince	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	exile, identity, endurance, loyalty, restoration	1919
The Quarrel Of The Cat And Dog	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	rivalry, misunderstanding, betrayal, reconciliation, animal origins	1919
The Beggar King	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	disguise, humility, wisdom, kingship, moral testing	1919
The Red Slipper	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	poverty, perseverance, romance, transformation, social mobility	1919
The Palace In The Clouds	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	ambition, enchantment, perseverance, loyalty, heavenly reward	1919
Sinbad Of The Talmud	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	adventure, faith, endurance, supernatural encounters, wisdom	1919
The Sleep Of One Hundred Years	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	suspended time, grief, mortality, renewal, changed society	1919
The Giant Of The Flood	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	catastrophe, survival, divine judgment, courage, renewal	1919
King Alexander's Adventures	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	conquest, exploration, wisdom, cultural encounter, marvels of the world	1919
King For Three Days	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	power, humility, responsibility, leadership, impermanence	1919
The Rabbi's Bogey-Man	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	fear, superstition, humour, rabbinic wisdom, confronting the supernatural	1919
The Star Child	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	abandonment, innocence, destiny, compassion, transformation	1919
The Fairy Frog	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	enchantment, patience, loyalty, transformation, true love	1919
The Fairy Princess Of Ergetz - I	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	exile, hidden identity, magic, courage, restoration	1919
The Fairy Princess Of Ergetz - II	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	exile, hidden identity, magic, courage, restoration	1919
The Fairy Princess Of Ergetz - III	Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends	Gertrude Landa	Israel	exile, hidden identity, magic, courage, restoration	1919
The Story Of Lludd And Llevelys (1)	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	The Story Of Lludd And Llevelys: Wise counsel, kingship, plague-breaking, and brotherly aid.	1881
Branwen The Daughter Of Llyr (1)	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	Branwen The Daughter Of Llyr: Family loyalty, betrayal, war, sorrow, and tragic reconciliation.	1881
Manawyddan And The Mice	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	Manawyddan And The Mice: Patience, wit, enchantment, justice, and humble resilience.	1881
The Dream Of Maxen Wledig (1)	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	The Dream Of Maxen Wledig: Vision, destiny, empire, love, and rightful conquest.	1881
Taliesin (2)	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	Taliesin: Transformation, poetic inspiration, rebirth, pursuit, and magical wisdom.	1881
The Dream Of Rhonabwy (1)	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	The Dream Of Rhonabwy: Satire, dream-vision, heroism, absurdity, and lost grandeur.	1881
The Origin Of The Owl	Knightly Legends of Wales; or, The Boy's Mabinogion	Sidney Lanier	Wales	The Origin Of The Owl: Shame, transformation, pride, and lasting punishment.	1881
The Visit Of The Man Of God	Korean Folk Tales - Imps, Ghosts And Fairies	Im Bang	Korea	The Visit Of The Man Of God: a visionary account of divine wrath, intercession, and catastrophic flood.	1913
Charan	Korean Folk Tales - Imps, Ghosts And Fairies	Im Bang	Korea	Charan: a love story about devotion, social risk, endurance, and the faithful support of a gifted dancing-girl.	1913
The Old Woman Who Became A Goblin	Korean Folk Tales - Imps, Ghosts And Fairies	Im Bang	Korea	The Old Woman Who Became A Goblin: a household horror story about a seemingly useful old servant revealed as a goblin.	1913
The Grateful Ghost	Korean Folk Tales - Imps, Ghosts And Fairies	Im Bang	Korea	The Grateful Ghost: a tale of kindness to the dead repaid by a spirit’s help to a living scholar.	1913
The Mysterious Hoi Tree	Korean Folk Tales - Imps, Ghosts And Fairies	Yi Ryuk	Korea	The Mysterious Hoi Tree: a story of tree-spirits and ghostly martial retainers attached to a great household.	1913

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