I20. Underground dwarfs, F451. 11.13.14.16.19.22.-.29.31.32.35.50.-.52.55.-.57.59.60.62.65.67.
The inhabitants of the lower world or a country on the horizon where the sky is adjacent to the earth are dwarfs. See motive I14A.
Luba, Lamba, Shilluk, Berbers of Morocco (Reef), Ancient Egypt, French, Germans (Hessen, Upper Palatinate, Swabia), Friezes, Dutch, Nicobars, Karen, Bondo, Saisha, Bunun, Chuan Miao, Fox, Ancient Greece, Greeks, Kashubians, Western Ukrainians, Russians (Arkhangelsk), Abkhazians, Ingush, Nogais, Kumyks, Scandinavians, Finns, Faroese, Icelanders, Swedes, Estonians, Lutsi, Komi, Udmurts, Nenets, Zunyas, Tarahumara, Otomi, Mountain Totonaki, Popoluca, Veracruza Nahuatl, Mazateki, Tsotzil, Tseltal, Mestizos Soconusco, Nonama, Yupa, Guambia, Guayabero (?) , sanema, yanomami, lokono, colorado, kayapa, puinawa, maku, chikuna, dep. Cusco, tacana, guarazu.
Bantu-speaking Africa. Luba [in the evening The sun sinks into the waters of Lake Endelende far to the west; on its shores, empty termite mounds are inhabited by little big-headed people with large beards; their name is Tumandwa twa maseba ("little ones defeated from a bare plateau")]: Colle 1913:715; a lamp [where the dome of heaven touches the ground, dwarfs ("little cloud eaters" cut off pieces of clouds, bring them home cooking and eating them, this is their basic food; or pieces of clouds fall off by themselves when clouds rub against the sharp edge of the earth, and dwarfs pick them up, dry them in the sun, crush them and make porridge]: Dome 1931:222- 223.
Sudan - East Africa. Shilluk [at night, the Sun runs from west to east along the bottom of the Nile; whoever is lucky enough to be where it emerges from the waters in the morning will see little red people; to enlist them favourably, it's good for them to bury beads and a burnt smoking pipe (gebrannter Pfeifenkopf) by the river]: Hofmayr 1925:364.
North Africa. The Berbers of Morocco (Reef) [dwarfs as tall as two years old, old from birth, naked, humpback live underground; every day they dig access to earth to destroy people and live on land instead them; every night they say that there is not much left, we need to rest; during the night, the move is covered with earth; this is because they don't say In sh'a Allah; if they guess to say, they'll finish the work, they'll destroy people]: Coon 1931:155-156: Ancient Egypt [Hufhor's autobiography (circa 23rd century BC) sets forth the circumstances of four expeditions to the country of Iam. The main achievement of the fourth expedition was the delivery of the pygmy to the court "for the dances of God, for entertainment, for the entertainment of the king of Upper and Lower Egypt Neferkar". There are textual correspondences between Pepi II's letter to Hufhor and the saying 517 "Pyramid Texts". Since mythological ideas about the structure of the world and its inhabitants could influence the perception and interpretation of real events, stable descriptions of pygmies as "divine dancers" and the indication of their origin from the "land of the inhabitants of the horizon" can be considered as a reflection of mythological ideas. The few monuments of the late 3rd and early 2nd millennia BC conveyed to us the ancient Egyptian perception of "border zones", where expeditions were sent from time to time to extract special valuables. Hufhor's delivery of a pygmy from the "land of the inhabitants of the horizon" can be considered the earliest fixation of the "underground dwarfs" motif and an example of how mythological ideas can be preserved in mostly historical source]: Aleksandrova 2019.
Western Europe. The French [in caves and in the depths of the earth live little men no more than a foot in height; they have long hair and beards, they walk in shaggy hats, red suits and silver shoes; they will live to the end of the world, after which they will die and will not be resurrected on the Day of Judgment; they are kind but purple with anger when they see or hear geese; geese, if they envy little men, rush to pinch them; now little men do not dare to go to earth for fear of evil people and geese who offend them; once a year on Christmas Eve, from dusk to midnight, the earth will give birth to various fruits and cattle for dwarfs; at this time they they must collect everything and put it underground; then they must carry piles of gold coins to the ground for a short time; if this is not done, the gold will turn red and the dwarfs throw it away]: Carlin 1991:247- 248; Irish [The aos sí, a supernatural race of faerie people who live in their own magical underworld hidden away from the prying eyes of humans. The daoine sídhe (meaning people of the mound) can be both helpful friends and terrible foes to their human neighbors. The entrance to their world is often marked by mounds of grass, rings of mushrooms or special trees to protect their existence from being discovered. If you see such an occurrence, bestowing a small gift of milk, fruit or baked goods is said to please the creatures, while attempts to damage or enter their homes will incur the full wrath of the "Fair Folk"]: The Faerie Folk of Ireland by Mary Moore, 02.09.2020 (https://irish-at-heart.com/blogs/news/the-faerie-folk-of-ireland); Germans (Hessen) [show a deep cave near Paschenburg, in where dwarfs lived; the wife of an official suspected her husband of infidelity and began to watch him; followed him into the cave and saw her husband next to the dwarf; took him back and made him promise more to the cave do not go in; shortly after that, the dwarf climbed to the top of the mountain and shouted: the dwarf was dead; after that, the beer in the local village went bad; it was brewed by dwarfs, entering the brewery under an underground passage; and the dwarfs didn't hear anymore]: Lyncker 1854:55-56; the Germans (Hanover) [drummer, corporal and sergeant spent the night in the forest in a tree; the sergeant saw light in the distance; they came to the castle; the table was set there; in midnight rumble, then silence again; they stayed there to live; take turns cooking; a bearded dwarf appears, asks for food, beats the cook; when it is the sergeant's turn, he rips out part of the dwarf's beard, depriving him of his beard strength; came on a bloody trail to the hole; they were the first to lower the drummer - the rope was short; they took a longer one, the corporal climbed - the same; the sergeant, the long rope, went down, there was an old woman; sent to the eldest kidnapped the princess; she gave strong water, and the giant who came sleepy; the sergeant cut off his head, the princess gave her handkerchief with a silver star; the same for the second princess (gave a golden apple); with the youngest seven-headed dragon; the battle is three days, the princess gives strong water to everything; the sergeant cut off all 7 heads, took his tongues, the princess gave a handkerchief with diamond stars; the companions picked up only the princesses; the sergeant descended to a world below this, where dwarfs live; they are ready to make the sergeant their king, but they cannot raise her to the ground; they advised to contact an old woman, she has a vulture bird; the sergeant feeds her in flight; on the ground he came to the wedding of two older princesses; their companions told them to call them saviors; the soldier talks about everything, shows his tongues, scarves, an apple; marries a younger princess; forgave his companions and married his elders] : Wolf 1845, No. 21:93-105; Germans (Bavaria: Upper Palatinate) [dwarfs live inside the mountain; often go out to help people; this is what God commanded them]: Schönwerth 1858, No. 16:291; Germans (Swabia): Meier 1852b, No. 8.1 [a man came to pick up the midwife, quickly brought him to the mountain in a carriage; after giving birth and a feast, he gave a box, ordering him to open only at home; the box is light; the midwife could not resist shining a flashlight, opened it; there were three straws, she dropped one; the same again; in the morning, instead of the last straw, there was gold inside], 8.2 [the underground dwarf came for the midwife; the priest allowed me to agree; the dwarf blindfolded her and brought her; the newborn was immediately baptized in an underground church; the midwife was given a drei Briefchen, let her open only houses; she opened two on the street, there were straws; the last one was opened in the house - ducats; later the dwarf invited her again, reproached her for not following his instructions, rewarded her again], 67 [an underground dwarf came to the midwife, asked his wife to give birth; allowed her to take it with him husband; they went underground into the mountain; the dwarf ordered not to drink or eat anything; he gave coals as a reward; on the way back, the woman slowly threw them on the ground, but her husband brought them into the house; coals turned out to be gold]: 16, 17-18, 59-61; friezes (Western): Clement 1846:166 [underground (dwarfs) not above the table, red hat on their heads; strive to replace newborns; can take revenge if they accidentally offended], 331 [Jesus went to the woman; she showed him 5 of her beautiful children, and hid 5 ugly ones in the cellar; said that there were no other children; Jesus cursed the hidden ones: what was below, let she will stay below; when she goes down to the cellar, the woman found no one else there; they descend from them a small underground people]; the Dutch [returning home, the blacksmith sees dwarves dancing; they they throw up their caps and catch them with their feet; at time they disappeared into the crevice, but one has a cap caught on a branch and cannot reach it; the blacksmith gave him a cap; the gnome offers a diamond, but the blacksmith refuses, because gifts from gnomes do not bring happiness; the dwarf promises to thank the blacksmith in a different way (his service was important, because after losing his cap, the dwarf is deprived of the right for five years go to earth); when no one is there, the gnomes work in the forge; the blacksmith decided to order a green caftan, pants and hat from the tailor, gave him a gnome; after that, gnomes did not appear in the forge again]: https://skazkufentazu.ru/gollandskie-narodnie-skazki/kuznec-i-gnomy.html.
Melanesia. Bartle Bay [Yoyo dwarfs support the earth; seismic events occur when they rest or shift their burdens]: Seligmann 1910:649.
Burma - Indochina. Karen [Cha Than Pho's widow's son saw a buffalo mole eating rice in the field; chased him with a stick, he disappeared into the hole, the whirlwind sucked C. into it; when he woke up, he saw that he was tied in thin threads, around a finger-sized little man; C. tore his threads easily; the local king said that the mole was on duty and only he could get upstairs, overcoming the wind; the little men fed C. and he helped them in their work; he was given a staff that gave life to the dead at one end and killed at the other; thanks to the staff, they did not die, and the mole, after each revival, grew larger; the mole pushed C. to the ground, and to prevent him from being sucked back, C. told his dog, who was waiting for him, to bring his flute; when C. began to play, the birds flew to listen, sat on the bamboo stalks, they bent, C. grabbed them and got out; the king's daughter died, C. revived her with his staff, received the princess and then the throne]: Kasevich, Osipov 1976, No. 171:457-460.
South Asia. Bondo [Gulong Sisa fell ill; Jam Raja came to him in the guise of a simple old woman, invited him to visit the lower world, where the dead are; if he doesn't like it, he can return; they went down, there are houses along streets separate for bondo, house and gadab; all people are only two feet tall; HS recognized his deceased parents; the young man brought the head of a goat, it was a goat sacrificed on the ground; the boy is sitting away from the others - he died recently and has not yet been accepted into society; (apparently HS has returned home)]: Elwin 1950:204-205.
Malaysia-Indonesia. Nicobars [Malacca's people found a hole in the ground, lit torches, went down, came to a village of underground dwarfs, found many eggs from birds that dwarfs raised, and began to steal eggs; the dwarfs found the thieves, began to resent; the Malaccans offered a dance competition, if they won, they would retain the right to take eggs; they lost to the ground; the dwarfs planted a tree in front of their world, they filled the entrance with stones, the Malaccans did not find this entrance again]: Roy 2001, 8:20-21.
Taiwan - Philippines. Saisya [haven spirits live in the underworld, feed on toads; a hunter who comes to haven tasted wine, learned how to make it with grass, or; tries unsuccessfully carry it in your ear, between your toes; when he hides it behind the extreme cloth, haven is not found or, given food on the way, let it go]: Riftin 1998:54; bunun [the man went down the hole in the lower world; there is a dwarf's belly 2-3 feet tall; they treated the man to boiled rice, millet and beans, refused to give them with them; he hid the bean in his penis, brought it to the ground]: Mabuchi 1969:28; maranao [there are six levels of land, including our upper one; the first is inhabited by long-haired dwarfs, usually invisible]: Eugenio 1994, No. 89.
China - Korea. Chuan Miao: Graham 1954:166 [a man descended through a cave into the underworld; there's a different earth and a different sky; the houses of the locals are 1 foot high; people are small but there are many more than people on earth; the man returned to earth], 245-246 [the young man married the emperor's daughter; stepping on the forbidden carpet, he fell into the lower world; there are dwarfs as tall as a broom (2 feet); their egg-sized vessels shells; they cut the grass stem all day long with axes the size of a fingernail; a young man helps them dig up the ground, accidentally blows them between them, sends soldiers against him, he easily kills them; three years later he leaves to the ground over a crack formed during the drought]; 1961 [dwarfs called broom people live underground because they are as tall as a Chinese broom (2 feet)]: 74; Schotter 1911 [the sky was low, beyond he was touched by a burden of brushwood, a pestle of rice; his great-grandfather picked it up, placing fragrant wood supports in the four corners; stretched out colored canvases, which made multicolored clouds and multicolored stones; made the sun out of gold, the moon out of silver, stars from colored stones; dwarfs live underground, whose egg shells serve as vessels; giants live in the sky]: 326; miao (claiming that their ancestors lived in Jiangxi Province) [at the very bottom of the earth is a country of dwarfs]: Truax 1991.
China. The fox [the astrologer helps everyone; his two sons want to kill him, so they have no help; the astrologer tells them to go to a crossroads at dawn; a yellow horseman on a yellow horse galloped by, then white, then black; they killed black - he and the horse were made of iron; they realized that they were made of gold and silver; they became blacksmiths; the dragon is unhappy that they were building a forge near his lake; sent fish (they they grabbed her tail with ticks, since then the fish tail is flat), a frog (their tail was torn off); the dragon went by himself, they grabbed him by the nostrils, began to beat him; he was forced to give up the knife that separates everything, and the crossbow, an arrow from which hits everything; the youngest accidentally pointed the knife wrong, was separated from the elder; came to a country where huge snakes and a falcon killed everyone; killed one with a knife, the other with an arrow, took two girls; brought them to his brother; the youngest was smeared with soot on the face with soot, the elder brother chose the eldest; realizing the deception, decided to get rid of the younger one; disguised the hole from which the wind was blowing, led his brother there to hunt; the brother fell into the lower world, where little dwarfs ("ant people"); the frog for them is an elephant, a marmot is a bear, a bamboo rat is a tiger; the younger brother easily kills such animals gets a wife, but she is too young for him; the last rat asks her not to kill, tells her to hold on to her tail and not laugh, then she will bring her to the ground; seeing the rat's ass, the younger brother laughs, the end of the tail comes off, they fall; so 8 times; on the ninth they reach the ground; the younger brother gave the rat sharp teeth (cutter") and a flute; the pigeon borrowed it and did not return it, now he plays it; the younger brother was all over girl, realized that she was his daughter and that his older brother took his wife; hacked the elder, told his daughter and women the whole story]: Dessaint, Ngwâma 1994:329-346.
The Balkans. Ancient Greece [Paintings by Philostratus of Lemnos (c. 190-230 AD): "When Hercules was sleeping in Libya after his victory over Antheus, he was attacked by pygmies, saying they wanted revenge for Antheus; they claim that they are Anthea's siblings, of the same birth as him; they are not athletes, they are not equal in the fight against him, but just like him, they are born on earth and in general they are strong creatures: when they come out of the ground, like the waves are stirring from the bottom of the sand. Pygmies live in the ground like ants, where they prepare food for themselves; they eat not something imported, but local and what they produce; they sow, reap and ride the same "Pygmy" harnesses; it is said that they use axes to cut ears of ears, considering them trees. But what courage they have! They decided to attack Hercules and kill him while he sleeps, and they should be afraid of him even when he is not awake. Hercules sleeps on the soft sand, as fatigue has engulfed him, and he breathes with his mouth open while sleeping, full of sleep. Son himself stands beside him as a human being, honoring himself to have knocked down Hercules. Antey also lies here, but the artist's art managed to portray Hercules alive and warm, while Antheus dead and frozen, showing that he was given to the earth in this form" (trans. S.P. Kondratyeva)]: Philostr. Maj. Im. II. 22; Greeks: El-Shamy 1980 (written by a 20-year-old student in Egypt who heard this from his Greek mother on Fr. Leros; there is no such story in Egypt) [the earth rests on a huge tree trunk; small evil creatures Kalikanzaroi try to cut it down all year to laugh at how the earth will fall; but every year before Christmas they go out to the ground to have fun, at which time the felling overgrows]: 273; Krappe 1938 [callicantzari demons chew on a pole or tree; by the end of the year, the pole is almost ready to fall, but demons are summoned to the ground for 12 days (from Christmas to King's Day); during which time the trunk is restored]: 267.
Central Europe. Kashubs [dwarfs live underground - fractional, they are also crumbled; ancient burials with corpse burials belong to them; they live under the floor of a hut, barn or shed; among them are people both sexes and all ages; they celebrate weddings under the floor of the tavern; they wear a red riding hood, they sort out money, spin them, love to be shown milk in a nutshell; if you tear the hat off their heads, they will bring ransom money; they replace newborn unbaptized children; stolen children become priests, and children are dwarfs from people]: Hilferding 1862:67-69; Western Ukrainians [{basic data from Kindl 2003:105-106}; the Rahmans are blessed people somewhere underground, near the great waters into which all rivers flow, or beyond the seas; they are relatives of the living; Christians fasting all year round; they don't have time, they learn about Easter from people; on Good Saturday or the first day of Easter, Christians throw eggshells along the river; when it reaches Rakhmanov, they start celebrate Easter; by this time the shell is filled again with an egg, each is enough for 12 Rahmans; if you put your ear to the ground on Rahman Easter (Fomino Sunday or Pentecost), a righteous person may hear the bell ringing; if they work on the land at this time, the Rahmans will harvest from this place for seven years, but people will not get it; analogies in northern Ukraine; in the Kyiv region they threw a red shell into the water, it will come to the Navas living overseas, they will learn about Easter; in northern Romania and Moldova, Rochmans, blessings, are residents of the afterlife, they were lowered their shells in 4 weeks or 40 days, the egg has gained integrity; terms from Alexandria and from the apocrypha, the descent of the shell has no literary prototypes]: Agapkina 2002:281-283; Russians (Arkhangelskaya) (Shengursky y.) [the earth rests on seven large and six small whales; when they move their tail or ridge, they make an earthquake; on the east side of the earth there is a warm side where they live closer to us Orthodox Christians, followed by Arabs, followed by small (dwarfs) and one-legged people, and in the west, the cold side is the same as in the north, where all non-chryst lives - Germans, British, French]: Yefimenko 1874:185.
Caucasus - Asia Minor. Abkhazians [dwarfs Atsans were smarter than God; urinated towards the sky; let gases into sour milk, wiped themselves with cheese; imitating thunder, hit dried cow skin; to find out their weak place, he lowered the child from the sky in a golden cradle; the Atsans raised him; they answered him that they would die if the cotton snow caught fire; the old man noticed that the goat's beard shook; cotton snow fell, caught fire from lightning, the Atsans died; those who threw themselves into the water turned into lizards and frogs; those who hid in caves and tree hollows turned into devils and snakes; (var.: the Atsans died from frost, from floods); in the underworld, the Atsans drill the ground to get back, but what they drill in a day collapses again]: Inal-ipa 1977:164-169 (retelling in Stahl 1989:204-207); Ingush [on the edge of the earth under The black people of Ajuji and Majuji live on the ground; they are so short that they milk their cows while standing; they strive to come to the surface and dig the ground with their long claws from morning to night; when there is very little time left, they go to bed and the earth is restored; if they said God's name, they would dig it right away; one day they would guess to say it, they would fill the universe, drink all the water, and eat all living things to the last bylinka]: Dakhkilgov 2006:315-32; Nogais [in the lower world there were habitats of Eslmauys, Daus and a country of dwarfs (Ergezheili)]: Kapaev 2012:32; Kumyks [where the sky meets the ground beyond Mount Kaf dwarfs live hanging their guns on wormwood; from morning to evening from the creation of the world, they dig a passage through the mountain; when it is almost ready, evening falls and dwarfs go to rest, and during the night the mountain recovers; if they say "Insha Allah" when they leave, they prophesy a through passage and the world will end]: Khalidova 2012, No. 34:54.
Baltoscandia. Scandinavians [Bohr's sons made earth out of Ymir's body, sea and water out of blood; earth - flesh, mountains - bones, boulders - teeth and bone fragments; the ocean borders the earth with a ring; made from Ymir's skull the sky, its brain are clouds. A dwarf was planted under every corner of the sky (East, West, North, South)]: Younger Edda 1970:18; Faroese: Jiriczek 1882, No. 1 [dwarfs are small, beardless, live in large stones and in stone trees; benevolent, but do not like the presence of people in their habitats; then they can cause harm; they are the best blacksmiths, from them people have learned to harden steel in cold water; strength dwarfs in their belt; if the belt is taken away, the dwarf is ready to work for the kidnapper as a blacksmith or give him treasures just to return the belt; if ash is found under the stones, it is left by dwarf blacksmiths; one a man dug peat and saw a stone open and inside it a dwarf forge; when the man came closer, the dwarf threw him a knife that cuts everything], 2 [Huldern (aka dwarfs álvar) tall taller, live in the hills; ways to make themselves and everything they own invisible to people; they replace babies; their girls sometimes take earthly boys away]: 1, 2; Icelanders [the old man hunted and fished, the old woman was spinning; she had a golden top on the spinning wheel; one day it fell and could not be found; the old man thought it was taken by the elf Kidhus, who lives in the next hill; went to the hill, started knocking; an elf from the ground asks who is there and what she needs; gives a cow with 10 buckets of milk a day for the top; one day an old woman thought she was good for milk and flour; the elf gave it; they cooked the chatter, but did not finish eating and decided that the rest could be given to the Holy Virgin; the old man asked the elf to go to heaven; at first he did not want to give it (is it really not enough for the finial?) , but when he found out why the stairs were needed, he gave it; the old people climbed into heaven; the wind blew and they fell, breaking their heads; the yellow spots on the stones are their brains, and the white ones are that chatter]: Poestion 1884, No. 5:41-44; Icelanders [a king named Mani has a daughter Mjadveig; when her mother died, the king went to look for a new wife; on the island there is a woman with her daughter; says that she is the queen herself, and her husband is killed by enemies, she fled to the island; the king brought her home; the new queen, taking her daughter, invited M. to take a walk; then to change clothes with her daughter; witchcraft gave her daughter the appearance of M., knitted and abandoned her; In a dream, her mother came to M., untied it and gave her a handkerchief containing an inexhaustible supply of food; the Queen sent her daughter to check what had happened to M.; she began to tell M. that her mother was to blame for everything, snatched out a handkerchief , ran away; M.'s mother taught her in a dream how to find a house on the sea with everything she needed to live in; one day she saw ships approaching, rushed into the house and lost her golden shoe; the Queen was on the ship , who came to free M.; everyone began to try on the shoe; the stepmother cut off her daughter's fingers and heel, then the shoe fit on her leg; the Queen married her, but heard birds singing; birds: wearing a shoe blood, M., daughter of King Mani, here by the sea (not in the city); the Queen touched the imaginary M. with a magic rod, who turned into a monster; he was killed, salted with 40 barrels of meat; the Queen found the real M. The Queen does not want to eat anything, but when she was offered corned beef, she ate all 10 kegs of her daughter's meat in 10 days; she was blown up on a ship with barrels of meat; the Queen brought M. to his state; after the death of his father, he reigned; M. gave birth to a son; went to wash, but forgot the soap; sent a maid for him; a woman appeared (she was the sister of the monster queen) and offered to change clothes; then took on the form M., and sent her under water to her brother; everything in the kingdom began to wither; soon the shepherd accidentally saw a glass palace rise from under the water, and M. with a chain around his neck in it; the shepherd put on a ring on the finger of a dwarf's son; the dwarf came out of the stone and asked how he could thank him for it; the shepherd asked to explain what he saw; the dwarf: M. is bewitched, will appear above the water only once more; it is necessary to cut the chain; gave an ax; when M. appeared, the shepherd began to cut the chain; then the brother of the monster woman appeared; the dwarf threw something into his eye, he went blind and died; the imaginary M. was touched by magic with a rod, she became a monster, she was executed; the shepherd brought the real M.; everything is fine]: Poestion 1994, No. 9:62-74; Finns: Jauhiainen 1998, No. M301 [little underground people (maahiset) are Adam's children and Eva, whom Eve hid from God]: 271; Toivonen 1937 [according to Fellman, p.126; there is a huge whirlpool in the sea that draws ships into the lower world; for 7 years, water rushes into it, 7 years comes back; if you take For 7 years of food, you can visit that world; Ääreläiset ("living on the edge") live there, they only eat bird eggs; they are told the same story as lintukotolaiset ("residents") birdlands"); see motif K22A]: 95; Swedes: Hyltén-Cavallius, Stephens 1848:123-141 [long text in which little elves help a shepherdess], 255-274 {who are those coming out of the stone helper men, it is not explained, but the image of going to Icelandic and Faroese} [the king and queen are childless; the queen loved boat trips; the ship suddenly stopped; voice: give what is under with a belt; she agreed, not knowing that she was pregnant; the ship sailed again; when she found out what was going on, the king assured his wife that he would protect her from the siren (Meerweib); the prince grew up playing with two cousins - sons of a neighboring king; his horse carried him into the sea and they disappeared into the waves; the prince at the bottom of the sea walks along the path to the golden castle of the siren, the lady of the wind and waves; the siren designates him his page; if will serve well, return to her parents; first task: wash my daughter's white yarn and white black yarn; princess: my name is Messeria; if you promise to remain faithful to me, I will do everything; but don't tell anyone ; called her mother's little men, each took one hair and washed it properly; the second task was to separate two types of grain (wheat and Korn); the little men separated; the third task was to clean the barn, which had 20 oxen have been standing for years; now the young man must choose one of her daughters; they are all in the form of different animals; the princess warned that she will be a cat; the siren sent the young man to his sister to take her wedding dress for your daughter; M.: there will be a grille in the gate, grease it with ointment from this horn, you can open the gate; then two men will cut the oak with wooden axes, give them iron ones; then the other two they hammer with iron flails - give them wooden ones; give meat to two eagles; sister sirens do not eat anything; prince did everything; quietly hid the food offered; but the food responded to the siren's sister's question: I here under the bed; the next time the prince hid the food in the oven - the same; the third time he hid it under his clothes on his body; the siren's sister believed that the prince ate everything; gave me a box of wedding dresses; when the prince is gone, the siren's sister consistently ordered the guards (eagles, woodcutters, etc.) to detain him, but they say that he helped them and they would not detain him; on the way to the siren, the prince opened it a little the box, although M. did not tell me to do so; a sheaf of sparks broke out; the prince remembered the little men M. had called; knocked on the stone, asked them for help; they jumped out, each grabbed a sparkle and returned it to the box; the siren asked for the prince's luxurious wedding with M.; then the young went to the prince's homeland; when he arrived at the king's city, the prince insisted on going alone first; M. ordered nothing to eat; but he succumbed to persuasion and ate cookies (Pfefferkorn); immediately forgot M. and everything that happened to him; they decided to marry the princess next door; during the wedding feast, M. came in as a maid and released two doves; the dove tells the dove three times that he will forget her, as Prince forgot M.; the prince remembered everything, hugged M. and called her his only bride]; Estonians: ERA H I7, 497 (73),
Volga - Perm. Komi: Limerov 2005, No. 33 [wild Chuchkars lived on Cherdyn land before Perm; they were born in the ground, lived in the ground for a long time with moles; they prayed to a demon named Kul], 34 [formerly lived small Chudsky people; they had grain with their joints, ears of ears diverged from each joint; they reaped like this: they would pierce the lower joint with an awl, tie the sheaf with a rope, drag it along the ground; instead of bags, there were stockings] 36 [chud lived in small houses that looked like stoves in baths; they would make an ice-hole, oatmeal interferes with it; when a lot of people came, the chud hid in the baths, threw stones and smut from the stove], 36 [ chud were such savages that they mowed hay with chisels], 37 [chud like gypsies, they go, lie down for the night, the gullies turned at night - they go back; they pushed oatmeal into the ice-hole; they drink, sleep, slurp again; ax they did not have it, they cut it; in the summer they ate grass, but in winter I don't know what], 38 [the Chudsky were a sensible people, and miracles were small people; they lived in the forest, planted bread in the wastelands, reaped with awls], 44 [small people lived as tall as a child; they plowed a plough the size of a spoon, the horse was as tall as a sheep; their land was good, the ear started from the roots; one stung barley, tired, began to swear, let Chomor reap; C. asks which barley is needed - with a finger long; C. cut everything off, only left an ear at the tip], 43 [the small Chudlyans did not sow, the rye grew by itself; the ear was from the bottom to the top, reaped with an awl; Yong threw a sickle on the ground; one he put his head under him, pulled the other, cut off his head; the chudlyans rushed to run, some became water kul, others became forest kul, others huddled under decks, became lizards], 44 [chudi saw a sickle, stuck in the ground hump up; one climbed to look, the sickle fell, cut off the weird's head; evil spirits, various reptiles, the man was the last to come out], 45 [chud did not know how to reap bread, they tore it; one brought the sickle, others got scared, decided to drown the sickle in the river, the sickle caught on the edge of the boat, turned it over, drowned it], 46 [miracles tore the bread with their hands, someone brought them a sickle, they threw it into the water, the sickle caught for the boat, drowned it], 47 [12 miracles hid from the rain under the mushroom hat; they did not sow rye, grew by itself, reaped with an awl, threshed with a rolling pin and spindle, instead of bags there were bags (stockings); they will collect rye in a bag , they will lift it to the bed, the mouse will run, drop it, help the miracles gather to lift back; they found the sickle, were frightened, dragged to drown, swam in the lapta, the sickle caught on the bast, everyone drowned], 49 [the chud lived underground in log cabins, ate meat and fish; when they began to convert them to Christianity, they began to destroy themselves, bury themselves alive; they slept in a bathhouse, in ovines; they had a loom without a rear navoi - bushings were driven into the wall, ran from corner to corner]: 40-41, 41, 41, 42, 44, 46, 46, 47, 48, 49; Udmurts [there are people like us in the center of the earth, but as tall as children; there are also roosters - kilchin atas; when Kylchin atas will sing, then our roosters will sing; giants live in the sky]: Vladykin 1994:75.
Western Siberia. The Nenets [sihirtya (sirtya, siirtya) are small light-eyed (white-eyed) people living in sandy hills (the upper of the seven layers of the dungeon); they herd 'earth deer' ( mammoths), ride dogs, sew clothes with dog tendons, are known as codun blacksmiths; they used to live on land and hunt wild deer, but by will and their plague turned into sandy hills; the entrance to the dwelling with. is a mammoth 'horn' (tusk) sticking out of the ground]: Golovnev 2004:321-322.
The Great Southwest. Zunyi [twin brothers descend into the underworld; dwarfs who eat the smell of food live here; they are attacked first by jays, then by pots of soup; many dwarfs die; brothers are easy to catch birds into snare, they break pots, they eat soup; they pierce the anuses of dwarfs; children come to us from that world, so they only eat air until the umbilical cord is cut; old people return to the same place, with them indigestion is common]: Cushing 1901:400-410.
NW Mexico. Tarahumara [Ro'lichi dwarfs steal people's souls, take them underground; they live underground in their crowded villages; an informant explains how he got sick as a child, dwarfs took his soul, he visited their world but came back]: Olmos Aguilara 2005:260-261.
Mesoamerica Otomi [underground (?) dwarfs lock people in caves]: Manrique 1969:716; mountain totonaks [in the east and west of the world; hiding underground from the heat of the sun passing by]: Harvey, Kelly 1969:671; Kelly 1966:399; mountain farms [animal owners inside the mountain]: Foster 1945a, No. 8:200-201; Veracruz Nahuatl, popoluca [chaneke dwarfs live underground; Chane (co) has a snake hammock, crocodiles - boats, jaguars - bedding, battleships and turtles - benches, deer - cattle]: Münch 1983a: 173-177; Masatecs [little dark curly people live in the lower world at sunrise; their skin has darkened from the heat, because the sun goes close to them at night; they don't wear clothes and are rich because the Sun gives them gold]: Incháustegui 1977:34, 39; tsotsil: Guiteras-Holmes 1961 (San Pedro Chenalho) [under Dwarfs live on the ground; if a dwarf is born on earth, it is God who wants to show what underground people are]: 153; Köhler 1977b (San Pablo) [underground dwarfs are too weak to work; they feed the smell of food; protecting themselves from the heat of the Sun passing near them, they cover their heads and neck with clay]: 17; Laughlin 1977 (Chamula), No. 24 [dwarfs load luggage on the rabbit like a mule, it slides on his side from the back; if left on their backs, the world will turn upside down; when the sun passes by, they wear clay hats; they want to go out into our world], 80 [in the lower world The sun is very hot; when it passes there, dwarfs wear clay hats to escape]: 151, 254; Vogt 1969 [dwarfs live underground - former inhabitants of the earth who died during the flood; the sun is coming close to them and they are wearing clay hats protect against the heat of the head]: 298; 1970 [at noon the Sun stops to see how things are doing in Sinacantan; at sunset it passes close to the sea and the water in it boils; at night it follows between our world and the lower world; dwarfs are hot there, they cover their heads with clay hats]: 4; Celtal: Hermitte 1970 [black dwarfs live on the other side of the earth; wear clay hats to protect themselves from the heat of the passing suns near them]: 32; Ventur 1982 [dragging the sun cart]: xvi; Soconusco mestizos [a person wants to see the Sun, flies like an eagle to sunrise; there dwarfs invite him to their cave in the center lands; help to collect the gold of the Sun on the seashore; a greedy man coughs on them, they fall, he takes all the gold alone; the burden is too heavy, he turns into a vulture; dwarfs bring some gold to his poor wife and children; some of them are placed underground in the roots of corn; therefore, the cobs are golden]: Navarrete 1966, No. 5:426-427.
The Northern Andes. Nonama; yupa; guambia.
Llanos. Guayabero?.
Southern Venezuela. Sanema [Oineitib dwarfs without anuses and guts live in the underworld; constantly hungry; eat raw meat and women who hide their periods without chewing]: Wilbert, Simoneau 1990b, No. 275:500; yanomami (vaika) [when the girl was in her first period, a piece of sky fell; its inhabitants (this place on earth or sky?) found themselves in the underworld; these are Amahini yellow-haired dwarfs, a few cm tall; they only feed on pijiguao fruits]: Zerries 1958:282.
Guiana. Lokono [a person enters the lower world along the battleship's hole; red-haired dwarfs live there; their pregnant women rip their bellies open during childbirth, then sewn up; the person teaches them how to give birth; returns to earth]: Goeje 1943, No. d40:128-129; (cf. waiwai [cicadas live in the lower world; they look like waiwai, the same height, but their skin is light red]: Fock 1963:101).
Ecuador. Colorado: Calazacon, Orazona 1982 [underground residents feed on steam from cooked food; two people fall into the underworld, eat, relieve themselves; they are given wives to conceive children with anuses; one was given an old woman, his penis is pinched by her vagina, he dies; the other was given a young one; he returns to earth]: 274-276; Wavrin 1937 [in the lower world, where the Sun is at night, dwarfs live, there everything is small; giants live in the sky, everything is huge]: 515-516; kayapa [dwarfs without anuses live in the underworld; they can only have sex in moonlight]: Barrett 1925 (2): 376.
NW Amazon. Puinave [the first ancestors live in heaven; the monkey provokes a quarrel, the first ancestors kill each other; the surviving woman puts the bones of the dead on the roof to dry; from them Tupan emerges , his brother Kaitari, their sisters Maunuddua and Amarrundua; T. kills his adopted mother, creates dwarfs from her flesh - the inhabitants of the underworld; they feed on cassava, they are not in their rivers fish; when it's night on earth, they have a day; some of T.'s dwarfs are placed on the ground, blown through a leaf of tobacco, they turn into people; some plan to kill T.; he sends a flood, allows the good escape]: Waldegg 1942 in Wilbert 196:110; poppies [umari people live underground, yellow, their skin is covered in fat, and come out of the ground at night through holes in rivers to ensure umari fruits ripen; in their world, the Sun and rivers move from west to east; big animals on earth are small umari in the world and vice versa; when people eat umari fruits, those people's penises itch as if red pepper; Kuya and Idn Kamni descended into the umari world in a hollow; there is a lizard the size of a caiman; Kuya became an evil spirit, IK climbed a tree, K. left; IK married an umari girl; on earth his mother thinks he's dead; two umari fruits fell from the tree, became IK and his wife]: Silverwood-Cope 1972:258 -260; chikuna [hunter Choe loses prey; he watches, cuts off a jaguar reaching for meat a paw; brings it to the village, shows it to everyone; among the audience is the Royal Vulture, who was a thief; taking his paw, he puts it on his body, flies away, pulling out C.'s eyes; in his house in the sky hangs it a bundle with eyes to the ceiling beam; a grasshopper and one type of termites cannot gnaw through the vine; other termites gnaw, the bundle with the eyes falls to the ground, C. inserts his eyes back; The old vulture woman gives a boat to escape from the Royal Vulture; C. pushes off so hard that he falls into the ground; there he meets strange creatures; the Blind have a lot of food; C. steals it, the Blind can't catch him; dwarfs are incredibly strong, throwing C. like a ball; people without anuses feed on cooking steam; C. gets married, his wife eats with him, he cuts through her anus, she dies; C. returns to the ground]: Nimuendaju 1952:118-119.
The Central Andes. Prov. Paucartambo (dep. Cusco) [Ukhupacja's lower world is home to young people of fragile build; they are harmed by thunderstorms and earthquakes caused by disruption in the rituals of offering coca and lypta (quinoa stalk ash, used with coca)]: Núñez del Prado 1974:239.
Bolivia - Guaporé. Tacana [redheads]; guarazu [dwarfs live underground]: Riester 1970:472.