Collection of Folktales and Myths
This page serves as a navigator to an extensive collection of folktales gathered for our readers. Each section leads to a library of stories organized according to cultural origin, regional tradition, and historical context. The tales and myths presented here reflect the remarkable cultural diversity of the world in which humanity lives and develops. These narratives may be appreciated as engaging reading, educational material, or valuable sources for cultural and historical research. We sincerely wish you a pleasant and inspiring time exploring this unique heritage of humanity.
The World Folktales and Myths Presentation
Here we discuss the concept of oral heritage as a local expression of socio-cultural development.
The Myths of the North American Indians
Here you will find a collection of tales and myths of the American Indians. In many Indian myths we read how the shamans, singly or in companies, seek the Spirit-land, either to search for the souls of those who are ill, but not yet dead, or to seek advice from supernatural beings. These thaumaturgical practices were usually undertaken by three medicine-men acting in concert. Falling into a trance, in which their souls were supposed to become temporarily disunited from their bodies, they would follow the track of the sick man’s spirit into the spirit-world. The order in which they travelled was determined by the relative strength of their guardian spirits, those with the strongest being first and last, and he who had the weakest being placed in the middle. If the sick man’s track turned to the left they said he would die, but if to the right, he would recover. From the trail they could also divine whether any supernatural danger was near, and the foremost priest would utter a magic chant to avert such evils if they came from the front, while if the danger came from the rear the incantation was sung by the priest who came last. Generally their sojourn occupied one or two nights, and, having rescued the soul of the patient, they returned to place it in his body.
The Heritage of Australian Tribes
Here you will find an astonishing collection of folk tales from the Australian tribes. Dive into this rarely presented collection of unique cultural stories.
Chinese Myths and Legends
The seventy-three stories here presented, drawn from original sources and embracing Nursery Fairy Tales, Legends of the Gods, Tales of Saints and Magicians, Nature and Animal Tales, Ghost Stories, Historic Fairy Tales, and Literary Fairy Tales, probably represent the most comprehensive and varied collection of Oriental fairy tales ever made available for our honourable reader.
Indian Folktales: Let Us Give Them Their Due Respect
From the extreme West of the Indo-European world we turn this year to the extreme East. From the soft rain and green turf of Gaeldom we pass to the garish sun and arid soil of the Hindoo. In the Land of Ire the belief in fairies, gnomes, ogres, and monsters is all but dead; in the Land of Ind it still flourishes in the full vigour of animism. And this library shall reveal the full diversity of the cultural heritage of Ind. Here we shall learn to know and to respect it, and we shall never tire of the expression and emotional force which these tales carry within them.
Japanese Folklore Tales
The Japanese islands were for many centuries sufficiently isolated to preserve their traditional tales, which we now recognise as folklore. Under these rare circumstances a well-developed literary tradition acted as their guardian, preserving many of them almost intact and free from the distortions so often introduced by collectors of folk narratives. Let us therefore approach the rich culture of Japan through these tales of a once-isolated world, which only in recent times we have begun to discover through the widening horizons of modern global exchange...
Korean Myths and Legends
What do we know of Korea, beyond the sorrowful division that has long weighed upon its people? Yet beneath the existence of two states there endures a single cultural foundation, shared by one nation. Perhaps that common heritage will one day become the means through which the Korean people are reunited into one soul—a democratic, powerful, and honourable nation whose prosperity the world awaits with hope. Let us therefore turn to the ancient heritage the Koreans have left us—the wisdom of their history, their myths, and their legends.
Polish Folklore Tales
What do we know about Eastern European mythology? Some may firmly say, “Oh, I know a great deal,” but when we ask them to tell us something, the silence that follows will be as astonishing as their claim. To avoid such a confusing scene, we recommend our honourable reader to visit this collection of Polish folktales.
Czech Folklore Tales
Who are they, the Czechs? Are they more like the Germans, or closer to the Slavic world? Are their traditions nearer to Eastern Europe, to the West, or are they something entirely unique? To understand the Czech soul, their tales may reveal the secret. Here we collect their myths and legends, carefully adapted both for leisure reading and for ethnographic exploration. Follow the link to discover more.
Italian Folklore Stories
We know Italy well as a country, as a state, and for its historical place within our civilisation. But what do we truly know about the oral cultural traditions of its people? Personally, until recent times, I knew almost nothing. Now is the right moment to fill this gap in our knowledge. Or, if you are already well acquainted with these stories, simply spend a little time with pleasure refreshing your memory with the brightest examples of Italian folk art.
The Collection of French Folktales
No further preface is required, nor any extended explanation. Here the reader shall find a collection of French tales, stories, and myths, handed down through the ages, wherein is preserved the ancient wisdom of the oral traditions that arose within the lands now known as modern France.
English Folklore Stories
England, known to us for its imperial impact upon the wider world, incorporated much from its colonies; and, as every empire becomes in some measure a vast stomach that digests the traditions it gathers, so too did it absorb many customs and influences. Yet, as islanders, the English have preserved their own principal cultural treasures; and through their folkloric tales we may easily discern who the Englishman truly is. Here we have collected for you many examples of original English folk tales; therefore do not hesitate, but hasten to read this kaleidoscope of folk wisdom.
The West African Folk-Tales
The folk-stories of the Gold Coast may readily be divided into two principal classes: the Anansi tales and those which are not concerned with that figure. Anansi, as is well known, is the Spider, and with him there is commonly associated his son, Kweku Tsin (or Tsi). The foregoing observation is drawn from the explanatory note of W. H. Barker, whose considerable labour in collecting the tribal folklore of the region has rendered a most valuable service to readers. From the fruits of this diligent work we now venture to present several narratives for the attention of our honoured reader.
Finnish Folklore Tales
This library presents to our honoured reader a collection of Finnish folk tales. Though their number is not extensive, they nevertheless permit us to sketch the national character and cultural portrait of the Finnish people. At the same time, these narratives are most engaging and may be read with simple delight for the pleasure of the stories themselves.
The Nordic (Sweden) Folk-Tales
What do we know about Swedish mythology and its oral folk culture? Most of us at once remember Loki, Thor, Odin, Hel, and other famous mythological figures; but I may assure you that these are not the only elements presented within the Nordic cultural heritage. Here you will find many more genuine Nordic folk tales, well illustrated and well suited both for bedtime reading for your children and for your personal pleasure, while spending time enriching your knowledge about the culture of the Nordic peoples.