K37A. Identify a man.

.11.15.16.23.26.-.34.36.37.46.

The character must identify a son or husband among many identical people or animals.

Hungwe, Portuguese, Irish, French, Germans, Ancient India, Lisu, Gagauz, Moldovans, Slovaks, Poles, Luzhitans, Russians (Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Novgorod, Moscow) , Belarusians, Eastern and Northern Ukrainians, Kalmyks, Ossetians, Terek Cossacks, Megrelians, Georgians, Persians, Lithuanians, Lutsi, Estonians, Setu, Veps, Finns, Komi, Udmurts, Kazan Tatars, Mordovians, Mari, Chuvash, Kyrgyz, Altaians, Shors, Central Yakuts, Udege, Blackfoots, Crowe, Sheyens, Mandan, Santi, Omaha and Ponka, Omaha and Ponka, Oto, Arikara, Pawnee (Skidi), Wichita.

Bantu-speaking Africa. Hungwe [the youngest of nine sisters became pregnant, gave birth to a boy; others told her to throw him into the river; under water, the Lions put him in a vessel; the boy's father and the girls' parents are dissatisfied; the father the boy is an amulet horn; the boy's father and mother have both gone under water; Lions are ready to return the child if the father finds out which vessel he is in, show a series of identical ones; the horn tells you which one; Lions promise let the boy go later, go hunting; the father puts his wife, son, himself in his horn; Lions think people have run away, find the horn, throw it ashore; father, mother and boy come out of the horn]: Frobenius 1931:362-363.

Southern Europe. Portuguese (many texts) [After her husband is missing, the heroine gives alms (feeds free) to those who come, and for this she demands stories to be told; from one of them, she learns that her husband is was turned into different animals and is now fed with animals; she spells him, especially after she recognized him among several identical animals]: Cardigos 2006, No. 425D: 99.

Western Europe. The Irish [son among pigeons]; the French (Lower Loire; versions throughout France) [a poor man with many children does not know what to call another; three came and offered to pick up the newborn, let the father receive the money and come for him in 12 years; after 12 years he went; crows flew in, one called him father; after 8 days a pack of pigeons is the same; the son says that he will hide his leg under his wing; father recognized and received a son; (the narrator often forgets about the "three sorcerers", only one appears); the son offers to sell him as a dog, but not sell the collar; returns; but sold the horse with with a bridle; the sorcerer tells the servant to feed the horse, but not to give water; the servant felt sorry for the horse and took him to water; the horse turned into a frog, the sorcerer into a trout; then the swallow is a hawk; an orange, picked it up by the princess; the sorcerers promise to cure her father-king, but let him give them an orange; she threw it on the ground, it crumbled in grains; the sorcerers became roosters; the last seed was a fox, she turned the heads of the roosters; the young man returned to his father]: Delarue 1957, No. 325:279-283; Germans [Jan went to church to ask God what craft to teach his son; a clerk stood beside him repeating: stealing, stealing! Ian decided that his son would become a thief; he came to a house in the forest, there was an old woman; her son agreed to teach stealing for free, but in a year Ian must identify his son, otherwise he would pay dearly; a year later he ran out to meet him little man, warned that the son would be a bird, would look out of the cage; the son became a greyhound, the father sold him, the son returned; when the son became a horse, the father forgot to remove the bridle from him before selling it; in the stable the horse asks the maid to remove the bridle; turned into a sparrow, then a fish; the sorcerer is also a sparrow, a fish, they fight; the sorcerer has become a rooster, the young man is a fox, bit off the rooster's head]: Grimm, Grimm 2002, No. 68:246-248 (= Grimm, Grimm 1987:207-208).

South Asia. Ancient India [the ascetic of Chiavana stood by the lake for many years, an anthill grew above him, only his eyes could be seen; King Sharyati's daughter Sukanya, not knowing what it was, poked them with a branch; C. sent to the kingdom of S. strife and illness; removed the punishment in exchange for promising to give him S.; the Ashwins offered her to leave the old man for them, she refused; then they promised to make C. young and choose between three of them; all three sank into the lake and went out as the same young men; C. gave S. a symbol, she chose him; grateful C. gave A. a share in catfish libations, which they had previously been deprived of, offered them catfish first; for it was Indra who wanted to punish C., but he stopped his hand; created the monster Mada ("Intoxication") as punishment for Indra to punish Indra; his lower jaw touched the ground, his upper jaw reached the sky; C. He had mercy, dividing M. into four parts and distributing them between intoxicating drink, women, dice and hunting; whoever falls under these four temptations dies]: Erman, Temkin 1975, No. 22:57-59, 214 (note) [conditional signal episode in Jaiminiya-Brahman only].

China - Korea. The fox [one of the ancestors, who knew how to carve wood well, lived with his wife and daughter; he carved 12 figures on the site that were indistinguishable from himself, they came to life; the daughter came and could not understand who the father was, divided the lunch into 13 small portions; the wife came the next day; said that lunch was only for one; everyone stood still, but the thirteenth's nostril trembled slightly; the woman realized that it was her husband; the other 12 went to the mountains, becoming the ancestors of 12 fox clans; therefore, the fox lives in the forest, everything is made of wood and bamboo; when a child is born, a tree is planted, and when a person dies, this tree is cut down find out how many years he lived]: Dessaint, Ngwâma 1994:240-241.

The Balkans. Gagauz people: Moshkov 1904, No. 40 [the father takes his son to work, he says at the well, Oh! hell comes out, his name is Oh, takes his son to study; tells him to recognize among three bulls, three pigeons, the father finds out; the son has returned, became a dog, tells him to sell, but without a bridle; next time he is a horse; the father sold with a bridle, the buyer was hell, the bridle became a bird, a devil a falcon, a bird a hare, a devil a dog, a hare a fish, a dog a catfish, a fish a millet, catfish a chicken, I didn't find two grains, they became a fox, she bit a chicken; the guy returned to his father], 40b [the father takes his son to work, says at the well, Oh! hell comes out, his name is Oh, takes his son to study; in two years, the father must recognize his son among pigeons, the son warns that he will tie a thread over his leg; the father gets a son, he turns into a horse, tells him to sell the hell became a master, bought a horse, tied him up; another devil asked for a horse, he threw himself into the sea, swam away, and the imp drowned and now lives at the bottom of the sea]: 59-61, 62-63; Moldovans [childless old woman asks her husband to find her a baby; he brings a snake, the snake grows; gets the name Stan Polozan; tells him to study; the old man asks to save his goat from the wolf, SP killed the wolf; the old man indicates who teaches wisdom; when the father goes for his son a year later, let him go to him; but the old man forgot to go in; could not identify his son among three pigeons; dogs; in the third year he remembered; the old man teaches to identify his son among three horses - medium, will immediately turn into a young man; on the way home, he tells him to sell him to a boyar when he turns into a greyhound dog; next time he turned into a horse, ordered him to sell it without a bridle; the innkeeper's daughter, who was washed by the purchase, let the horse go, he flew away with a dove, the boyar chased the falcon; the dove turned into a wheat field, the falcon into a reaper; the wheat became a loaf, it was in the oven; the falcon became a poker, pulled out the loaf; the loaf crumbled with poppy seeds, the poker became a lark, began to bite the seeds; the poppy became a cat, swallowed the lark, one feather was left, became a wolf; the cat jumped gold with a ring on the finger of the innkeeper's daughter; she screamed, people with axes drove the wolf away; the ring turned into a boy; when he entered his parents' home, he became a snake again; the girl told me to throw off snakeskin, The SP did so; the skin thrown out of the window grew a palace; wedding]: Botezatu 1981:300-304.

Central Europe. A son among young men turned into animals or birds. Slovaks [among pigeons]; Poles [the father gives his son to teach a warlock; in a year or three he must recognize his son among the same animals or birds; the warlock gives the young man or that runs away in the form of an animal; the son orders to sell it as a hound, ox or horse, but not sell the bridle; however, the father sold it in bridle and bought it by a warlock; after running away (with the help of a girl), the young man accepts the appearance of a bird, hare, fish, etc., and the warlock chases, taking the form of a stronger bird (animal, fish); the young man turns into a princess's ring; the ring falls, crumbling in grains; a warlock becomes a rooster and bites grains; one grain turns into a bird of prey or fox and tears off the rooster's head]: Krzyżanowski 1962, No. 325:102-103; Poles [a poor woman leads a boy through the forest; she does not have money to feed and teach her children; a man under an oak tree asks why she cries; undertakes to teach the boy a craft, he is a tailor, but in fact a sorcerer; three years later, her son meets in the meadow mother; teaches him to distinguish him among pigeons: he will not peck peas, but will wave his wing; the sorcerer let the young man go; he promises his father to turn into a cow, an ox and a sheep - let him sell it, and he will return; but in He cannot turn a horse; but his father turned him into a horse, the sorcerer bought it, chained it, starved it and whipped it; the horse's maid let go; the young man flew away as a starling, the sorcerer chased, becoming a crow, the young man into the king, the sorcerer into the starling, the young man in the ring jumped on the princess's finger; her room became a young man again; the next day the sorcerer appeared prince, asked to show the ring; having agreed in advance with the young man, the princess dropped the ring and it crumbled into peas; the sorcerer became a flock of pigeons; one grain remained in the princess's palm, crumbled poppy seeds, the sorcerer summoned the starlings; the young man became a crown and killed the starling -sorcerer; wedding; flowed down his chin but didn't get into his mouth]: Woycicji 1820:64-67; Luzhitans [{sketchy retelling of 8 typical versions of fairy tales about a sorcerer named Krabat mentioning individual details and episodes}; parents deliberately teach their son to a wizard named Kravat; the young man spends 3 or 4 years with him; this is the devil's mill or school of black magic; 12 students; every year one disappears, but a new one appears; the father or mother must identify the son among the 12 crows; at his suggestion, they succeed; parents sell their son in the form of a bull or horse; (they should not give bridles, but give them away); K. takes possession of the horse and shoes; the young man frees himself, turning into birds and animals, and K. chases him, turning into others: a dove is a raven, a lark is a hawk, a mouse is a cat; a fish; or a random assistant removes the bridle from the horse; finally, the young man turns into a ring that hits the girl; after falling, the ring crumbles with grains, one of which becomes a fox and kills the rooster wizard ; in the 1880 version, a girl kills a rooster]: Troshkova 2019:1028-1034; Russians (Arkhangelskaya: Pechora) [the son advises his father not to cut firewood, but to give it to work, taking money from the owner; gave it away old man; he burns and revives a guy three times - this is learning; the guy chipped in as an ant, came to his parents, said that he would need to be recognized among 6 fellows: he would have one eyelash in his right eye longer; the next day the same (6 pigeons, one has a longer kitten); then 6 roosters (he will jump taller than the others); the father took his son, went to cut wood; the father asks what the raven is screaming? son: that you will wash my feet and drink this water; the father expelled my son; he tells me to sell him in the form of a bay horse, but for no reason; the old man (that sorcerer) bought it, but the horse ran away; next time the same (gray horse); on the third, a black horse, the old man sold it with a reason; the old man hits the horse with an iron whip; they reached the hut, the old man tells her to turn the gate to him, to the forest with windows; the old man hung the horse to beat him death; the old man's sister let him go; the guy turned into a loon, the old man became a teternik (i.e. a hawk); the ruff hit the princess's bucket, turned into a ring; at night he becomes a guy, sleeps with the princess; teaches : when the old man comes, drop the ring on the floor; it turned into 7 ducks {?} , the princess stepped on one; becoming a rooster, the old man pecked the rest, choked on the last one, burst, disappeared; the guy married the princess; one day they came to his parents, they were almost blind; the father got up at night drink water and drank the one in which her son washed his feet]: Karnaukhova 2008, No. 165:405-410; Russians (Arkhangelskaya, Pomors) [the widow took her son to study; sighed for her husband - Oh! Human: Why do you remember me? He took his son to study, tells him to come for him in three years; the widow cannot recognize her son among 12 rams; a year later, 12 pigs; a year later the son comes - he has become more cunning than the teacher; I will be the fourth on the edge a horse of 12; the widow received a son; he orders him to be sold as a horse, but without a bridle; the widow sold him twice, the son returned, and the third time the buyer snatched the bridle from her hands; the sorcerer chased the horse, tied it, went to the tavern; the horse asked the groom to let him go to the watering place; disappeared into the water with perch, the sorcerer followed the pike; the perch ashore in a ring, the princess put it on her finger, at night a young man next to her; warns that a man will come, call himself the owner of the ring; we must throw it on the ground, the ring will crumble with grains, let one press down with his foot; the sorcerer became a rooster, pecked the grains, the princess released the last one from under her foot, it became a hawk, he pecked a rooster, became a young man; wedding]: Razumova, Senkina 1987:216-222; Russians (Arkhangelskaya: Severnaya Dvina) []: Mitrofanova, Fedorova 1966, No. 5:112-113; Russians ( Arkhangelskaya) []: Efimenko 1874, No. 4:228-230; Russians (Vologodskaya) [the man sent his son to study in the forest; he has three daughters; tells each to heat the stove, throws a boy at it; after twice he replies that he knows nothing, after the third, that he knows more than the forest; Lesovoy told the man to come for his son; he warned: 12 guys would be taken out, everyone would take handkerchiefs out of their left pockets, and he would right; father got a son; on the way home he asks what the crow is screaming about; son: I will wash my feet and you will drink this water; the father is angry; the son tells me to sell him as a stallion, but without a bridle; for the second time the father sold him with a bridle, the forest man began to drive him; when he went to eat, the stallion asked the princess to pour a bucket of water on him; became a ruff and swam away; the forest chased the pike; the ruff became a ring, jumped into the princess's bucket; she wears a ring on her hand during the day, and sleeps with a good man at night; the forest told the king about it; the guy taught the princess to throw the ring on the floor, it fell into five parts, one under the princess's foot, the forest turned into a rooster, pecked four parts, but did not find the fifth; the guy married the princess; the father came, did not recognize his son, drank water in the hallway at night; son: I washed my feet with this water; opened up to my father, took him to live]: Gura 1965, No. 236-237; Russians (Vologda; 1880s) [father takes his son to study; the old man tells him to come for the guy in three years and get to know him; a pigeon arrives and becomes a son: it will be 40 a young man, a scarlet ribbon will come down from his sleeve; the old man gave his son to his father; he tells him to be sold in the form of a horse, but without a bridle; the police order to sell in bridle; on the way, the old man whips the horse with a whip, gives him instead eating a pot of hot coals; the sister freed the horse, brought her to the ice-hole for a drink, the horse left with a ruff, the sorcerer followed the pike; Princess Anastasia scooped up water, the ruff became a ring, ended up in a ladle; at night turns into a guy; the sorcerer made A. sick, asked the king for his daughter's ring for treatment; A. threw the ring on the floor, it became grains, the rooster began to bite, A. stepped on one, the grain jumped out as a guy, he stabbed a rooster; the tsar gave him his daughter and throne]: Smirnov 1917, No. 24:143-147; Russians (Vologda, Vologda Oblast) [the father took his son to study: if only he took an unclean spirit! an old man comes up: I take it for three years; when the father returns, let him recognize his son among 12 pigeons; son: I'll put out the right wing; the same: pigeons ("I'll fly along artily"); the same - well done (I'll drop my handkerchief); son at home advises to squeeze it in the form of a horse, but without a bridle; but the second time that old man snatched the bridle from the old man's hands and rode away; the sorcerer's sister untied the horse, brought him water; the horse became a ruff, the sorcerer chased pike; the ruff sailed to the Turkish state; the maid came for water, he was in the bucket with a golden ring, the maid gave it to the princess; at night the ring turns into a good job; the sorcerer came, demands a ring, otherwise the whole kingdom will burn; well done, tells you to throw the ring, crumble with wheat, the dove will bite, you need to hide a few grains under your foot; the dove flew away, deciding that he was done, and well done married that princess became tsar]: Burtsev 1895, No. 13:86-92; Russians (Novgorod, Cherepovets University) [the grandfather gave his son to the forest to science; he consistently tells three daughters to throw the guy into the oven; after the third time he knows more than the forest himself; teaches his father to recognize him among 12 snotty guys - he has there will be a handkerchief not in the left pocket, but in the right pocket; having received his son, the father asks what the crow is screaming about; son: that I will wash my feet and you will drink this water; tells me to sell him as a stallion, but without a bridle; the second time I bought a forest with a bridle; when he tied it and went to eat, the horse asked the princess to pour water on it, swam away with a ruff; the forest chases pike; the ruff is chasing a ring in a bucket to the princess; she walks with a ring during the day, and at night sleeps well done; the guy tells me to throw the ring on the ground, it crumbled in grains, the grandfather {must be: the sorcerer} became a rooster, the princess hid one grain under her leg; married the guy; not recognizing her son, the father came; I went out into the canopy at night, drank water, my son washed his feet with this water]: Smirnov 1917, No. 72:285-287; Russians (Moscow) [the father took his son to study; sat on a stump, sighed, Oh! old man: what do you need? takes to study with the condition of identifying his son in three years; three years later the dove knocks on the window; becomes a son; there will be 30 horses, he will beat him with a hoof; the man took his son; he orders him to be sold as a horse, but without a bridle; the third time the father gave it with a bridle, and bought Oh; the maid let go of the horse, he became a dove; Oh chases a kite; fish and pike; the fish became a ring, the royal daughter washed and picked it up; at her house the young man took his form: Oh, ask your father for me, throw the ring on the ground; it crumbled into millet, Oh became a rooster, it bites; one grain under the princess's heel became a fox, bitten to death a rooster; wedding]: Vedernikova, Samodelova 1998, No. 31:79-81; Belarusians; Eastern Ukrainians: Chubinsky 1878 (Poltavskaya, Pereyaslavsky District), No. 102 [the man decided to give his son to someone; on the way saw a grave above the road; went to rest; the man sat down and sighed: "Oh!" ; an evil spirit jumped out of the grave, asked why she was called; the old man replied that he did not call; the evil spirit said her name was Ohom; Oh asked where they were going, and when he found out, he said he wanted to hire a boy for a year; a year later, the man came for his son, called Och; he said he would give all the money, but if the old man did not recognize his son, the boy would stay for another year; brought the old man to the grave, there were three roosters; the old man did not recognized a son among them; a year later he came again; Oh said the same thing as the first time; they look - three drakes were walking; the old man did not identify his son this time; took the money, went home; a year later he began to gather go again; the son knew what time he would come; ran to meet him in a whirlwind; the father said that Oh warned: if he did not recognize his son a third time, he would take him away forever; the son said that Oh would make them pigeons; whoever has a right wing bulging is the son; the father came to the grave, called Okha, identified his son; Oh gave his son and the money; the father asked his son if he had learned anything; the son replied that even Okha will hold it; said he would become a horse during the fair, and told his father to sell it to the one with the most money (that would be Oh); warned him not to give the bridle; the fair began, the son turned into a stallion "sribna wool, gold wool, and who looked at his hair"; his father led him to other horses; came Oh, paid the most; the father gave the horse, but without a bridle; went to wash, Oh stole the bridle; the horse galloped fast to throw Och off; decided to run to the church; ran past two crosses - Oh held on; at the third church the horse stopped at the cross; Oh sensed frankincense, ran away; the horse turned back into a man, returned to his father; "here is the song and live"], 103 [the woman told his grandfather to take her son to school; the grandfather took him, climbed a big mountain and said: "Oh!" ; pan came out, asked why his grandfather called him; when he found out that he was taking his son to school, Oh offered to give his son to him; promised to learn, asked for a pile of spoons in a year; the grandfather did it, came to Och; he brought three hawks and let them eat; told the grandfather to recognize his son; he did not know; Oh said to make a pile of plates; the grandfather did, brought it; Oh took out three roosters, poured them to eat; told them to recognize the son, the grandfather could not; Oh said to do it again spoons; the grandfather brought him, Oh brought him to the stable, ordered him to recognize his son among the three horses; the grandfather said he would not know; Oh told him to make spoons; the grandfathers son cut firewood and told the Naimichka to give it to his grandfather: when he came , the son will stand on his right side and stomp his foot; the grandfather came, the namichka told me how to recognize his son; Oh called the grandfather to the stable, he identified and took his son; went home; began to think about how to make money; son turned into a hawk, said to sell himself for a hundred carbonavtsy; his grandfather sold him to his lord; the hawk brought him quails; one by one he flew to the yar and turned into a hare there; he ran to his father, took the form of a man; we found out about the fair, the son said that he would become such a horse that "one wool is short, and the other is gold"; told his father not to sell it until five bags were filled with gold, and forbade giving the bridle; Oh came, paid in gold, snatched out the bridle; tied the horse tightly to the stable; his grandfather's son's comrades were there; he asked them to loosen the rope, as a result he ran away; Oh rushed in pursuit, turning into a wolf; by the sea the horse turned into a perch and the wolf into a pike; they saw the royal daughter and the maid; the son turned into a ring, Oh into an old man; the princess said that she would give up the ring after seven years of service, Oh agreed; at night the young man He lay with the princess, and during the day he was a ring; said that when it was necessary to give it back, let it be sown with poppy seeds; one top would roll, the princess should step on her; they did so; the grandfather turned into a rooster, poppy began to bite; the top under his foot became a hawk; he killed the rooster; the young man and the princess got married; "live and chew, but they don't let us"]: 368-375; Eastern Ukrainians (Poltava, Gadyachsky y., ok. 1878) [The poor give birth to a lazy son (they will eat, they will not let them eat, they will not let them do, lies on the stove "without pants"). His mother offers to send him to work so that he can learn something, they give him to a tailor - he returns in 3 days, gives him to a Swedish man, and runs away to a blacksmith. Father wants to send him to another realm, believing he won't run away from there. The path lies through the forest, the father sighs down to rest on a stump - a wrinkled grandfather with a green beard knee-deep comes out, introduces himself as King of the Forest Och, asks why his father called him, said." Oh," when I sat down. Oh, he asks him to study for a year on condition that he stays in service for another year if his father can't recognize him. Oh takes the guy to the next world, to a hut where everything is green, including Okha's wife and children. Oh sends the guy to cut wood, he falls asleep, Oh ties him up and puts him on firewood, sets him on fire, the guy burns. Oh splashes live water, the guy comes to life and becomes handsome. A year later, Och's father comes to pick up his son, Oh scatters the measure of millet, the same roosters run, the father can't find his son, he stays for another year. A year later, Oh shows the sheep "one by one", but his father doesn't know again. In his third year on the way, he meets an old white man (clothes, white beard), tells his story, who suggests that his son can be distinguished among pigeons - everyone will eat millet, and he will be the only one who will sit down under a pear - with the help of a hint, the father recognizes his son and takes him home. Having turned from a bird to a person, the guy becomes even more beautiful. The father grieves that they are poor, the son turns into a greyhound, catches a fox, predicts that the pan will want to buy it for 300 rubles, but forbids his father to sell the chain. A dog is bought without for a hundred rubles, it turns into a human being and returns to its father. The guy turns into a falcon, his father sells it to gentlemen without a hat for 300 rubles. At the fair, the guy turns into a horse, his father forgets about the ban and sells Okha, who turned into a gypsy, halfway. He leads the horse into the steppe, leads to the hut, the horse becomes a perch, swims away, Oh becomes a pike. The perch swims to the shore, turns into a pomegranate ring, and is pulled out of the water by the princess. Oh turns into a merchant, asks the king to return the lost ring, the girl does not want to give it back, throws it "neither to you nor me", the ring hits the floor, crumbles with millet, the merchant wraps it in a rooster, pecks all grains except for the princess who has rolled under her leg. Millet turns into a guy, the princess falls in love with him, persuades her father and marries him]: Rudchenko 1870, No. 29:107-114; northern Ukrainians (Volyn, Novograd-Volynsky district) [the grandfather had no children; the woman asked God for a child; he gave them a boy; in a few years he grew up big; the woman told his grandfather that there was a lot of money, but the son could not do anything; the grandfather sent the boy for horses, he He did not find them; his grandfather took him to town, sat on the deck on the way and said: "Oh, moss"; a warlock jumped up and asked him what his grandfather wanted; he replied that he wanted to teach his son a craft; the warlock said that he would learn; a year later, the grandfather brought money; the warlock played the horn, two rams came running; the warlock asked if the grandfather recognized his son; the grandfather replied that he gave the man and he was shown cattle; warlock ordered to bring another hundred rubles a year later; when the grandfather returned, he played trumpet; two stallions with silver manes came running; the grandfather did not recognize his son again; returned a year later; on the way he walked through the city, there met a girl; she asked where he was going; said that his son's grandfather would not help him out and that she would teach him, but the owner would bake her in the oven; the grandfather replied that if she told me, he would go to the oven himself; the girl warned that the owner would put millet on the table and a pigeon that would not bite would be his son; the grandfather came to the warlock, who poured millet, clicked pigeons; the grandfather pointed to his son, the son became a man; the warlock let him go; at home, his son made a mill that had milled so much flour day and night that there was nowhere to go; the woman sent his grandfather to ask if her son wanted to marry; he replied that until he earned money; said that there would be a fair and he would become a silver ram; ordered to bring a lime branch; made a gold cord out of it; said sell it (i.e. a ram with a cord) for three hundred rubles; the grandfather sold to the lord; the ram turned into a pigeon, returned home; said that tomorrow there would be a fair again; ordered to bring a fake branch, made a bridle; said that he would become a stallion with a golden mane and tail; forbade selling the bridle, otherwise they would buy it forever; a warlock came up, bought a horse, stole a bridle; tied it to a cast-iron gutter at home; a girl was walking to help his grandfather; the horse asked him to untie; turned into a dove, flew away; the owner took the form of a starling, flew after him; the dove fell into the water, became a roach; the starling turned into a pike; the young man jumped ashore, became a ring; the royal girls washed there; one put a ring on her finger; the young man said, When the king orders to give it back, he would become a pea, let it step on one pea; they did so; the owner became a rooster, began to peck peas; from a pea under a kite appeared with his foot, killed a rooster]: Chubinsky 1878, No. 104:375-379.

Caucasus - Asia Minor. Kalmyks [son among young men turned into animals (birds); husband among three pigeons]; Ossetians [son among boys; husband among workers]; Terek Cossacks (v. Borozdinskaya) [the old man leads his son to send him to study; the sorcerer suggests: "Give me your son, I will teach him; give him away for three years and come here every year: if you know your son, it will be yours, and If you don't know, it will be mine"; the old man agrees; the sorcerer tells the boy to see his father off; the boy warns: "When you come to recognize me in a year, we will be pigeons: we will be twelve pigeons, and I I'll pinch my comrade"; the father returns, identifies his son among 12 pigeons; the sorcerer tells him to come again in a year; the son tells his father: "When you come, we will all sit on the lake in the cliffs: I will wake up - you will recognize me"; the father identifies his son among 12 ducks; he says: "When you come in a year, we will stand as suited stallions; I will lie down a friend, and you will recognize me"; the father identifies his son among 12 stallions, takes him home; the son says he will turn into a stallion and orders him to sell himself without giving a halter; the old man follows his instructions, receives money from the merchant; the son turns into a sparrow and returns to his father; he sells it again; the son returns home, turning into a dove; becomes a stallion; the old man sells it to the sorcerer, forgets to remove the halter; the sorcerer rides the stallion home, hangs him upside down from the matitsa in the stable; the sorcerer's wife unties the stallion; he turns into a pigeon and flies away; the sorcerer goes to look; the dove falls at the well and becomes a ring; the girl carries him to his home; he warns: "When a rooster comes to the yard, take me off, hit the ground - I will crumble with millet, and you step on one seed"; the girl does; the rooster bites the grain; from under the girl's foot a hawk flies out, kills a rooster; turns into a man, marries a girl]: Butova 1889, No. 2:125-128; Megrelia: Mingrelian Tales of 1890, No. 2 [the old man put his little son on his shoulders and carried him in learning; crossing the river, he staggered and exclaimed, "atu!" ("ah!") ; A man appeared on the shore: I'm Atu, what do you want? promised to learn his son, in a year his father should recognize him; a year later the old man went for his son; old woman: when you enter the house, your son will sit by the hearth; a mustachioed man by the hearth; the old man pointed to him, Atu I had to return my son; on the way back, the son ordered him to be sold as a boat (horse); bought him Ata, spurred him and galloped; the horse became a rooster, Atu a hawk, a rooster a fish, a hawk a fishing rod, a fish a needle, the fishing rod with a thread; the needle went through the fire and the thread burned; the boy returned to his father]: 322-324; Teptsov 1894, No. 10 [the old woman ate an apple, gave birth to a lazy son; the old man took him to study, crossing the river, fell, said, "Oh!" , an old man jumped out of the water, asked what his name was; a year later the father returned; must recognize his son among 500 boys (son: I will have a stick in my hands); when I return home, the son tells me to sell him in the form of a bull , but not a red-bearded ass without front teeth; then into boats {some pet}; into a horse; father sells a red-bearded toothless ass; he brought the horse to him; the horse to the mouse, the sorcerer to the cat, the mouse into the swallow, the sorcerer into the falcon, the swallow into the needle, the falcon into the thread, the needle into the stove, the thread burned; the boy returned to his father]: 23-26; Georgians [son among pigeons].

Iran - Central Asia. Persians [son among pigeons].

Baltoscandia. Lithuanians [husband among storks; horses; son among bulls; pikes]; Lutsi (1893; the informant heard a fairy tale from those who did not speak Estonian) [the man took his son to study; towards the Sax (in this case - hell): I'll learn; a year later my father came to the same place; old man: you're waiting in vain; gave a staff, go with it, ignoring the wolf, bear and the devil; knock, the door will open; hell (must) will offer identify the son among three pigeons; he will have a tear in his eyes; on the way back, the son turned into a horse, tells him to sell himself, but without a bridle; the first time he has copper in his skin, the second time he has silver ones, the third is golden hairs; the third time the devil pays in gold, the father gave the bridle; the devil hung the horse from the ceiling at home; his wife cut off the ropes, she feels sorry for the horse; the horse became a wolf, a hell a hound, a ruff a pike; the ruff jumped a golden ring on the princess's finger; in the room he turned into a young man; the princess wanted to marry him, told the king; he would give the devil the ring if he turned into a horse and served him for three years; after three years, the princess threw the ring on the floor, it crumbled into six grains, she pressed two with her heel, the devil became a rooster, two grains became a kite, killed the rooster; the young man stayed with the king, and sent bread to his father]: Annom et al. 2018:221-226; Estonians [his son grew up, his father took him to school; they met a black man, offered to take the boy to study for three years; asked for an extension of the term three years later; more Three years later, the father did not find anyone at this place; he went into the house, there are three pieces of bread; the first bread says that you should go to hell for his son and identify him among several identical ones; the son will have a handkerchief in pocket; second bread: identify among several fish, one will have a speck on its tail; third bread: identify from several black roosters, one will have a speck on the scallop; hell returned the old man's son to in the form of a rooster; he orders to sell it in the city, but without a basket; the son returned as a man; tells him to sell in the form of an ox; a stallion; the buyer was the devil himself, persuaded him to sell a stallion with a bridle; hell went into pub, tied the horse high under the roof, so that it remained on its hind legs; the man who came in saw the horse and freed him; the stallion ran to the sea, became a stickleback, the devil chased, became a whale; until now looking for a stickleback]: Dähnhard 1910:460-462; seto [son among chickens, horses, boys]; Finns [son among 98 chairs, tables, sofas]; Veps [poor woman and son went to work; on the way she gasped, a man appeared: why did you call me? takes her son to work, tells him to come for him in three years; when he came, the man showed her 12 birds, she could not choose; the same next year - 12 dogs; the third time the old man warns: man will show 12 horses, one will be with his head down; the mother found out that she has received a son; he tells me to sell him as a horse, but without a bridle; the mother sold it; the man who bought it tied the horse tight, went to the pub; then the mother passed, the horse asked him to untie; the man chased the wolf, and the horse turned into a dog; the dog became a lake, the wolf became a pike; the lake dried up, became a bird, flew to his mother; the pike remained on land, died ; mother and son got rich, son got married]: Onegina, Zaitseva 1996, No. 36:141-143.

Volga - Perm. A son. Komi [son among 12 pigeons, geese]; Udmurts [son among nine wolves]; Kazan Tatars [son among pigeons]: Zamaletdinov 2008b, No. 13:123-127; Chuvash [son among 12 pigeons, dogs, trotters, girls, boys]; Mordovians: Evseviev 1964, No. 34 (Erzya) [the father decided to teach his son languages: old man: come for him in three years; when the father comes for his son, he teaches how recognize him among 30 falcons (third on the right), stallions (moves his right ear), pigeons (third on the left side); the old man got a son; on the way home he asks what the raven was screaming about; son: what are you you will drink the water in which I wash my feet; the old man drove my son away; he began to live in the forest with two other young men; they turned into a falcon, a crow, a sparrow; when he met the princess; he leaves, agreeing that they are three will help each other; he and the enemy general compete to see who will be the first to deliver the letters; the princess snatched a passerine, falcon, crow feather from his head; he fell asleep on the way, the general killed him, took him away letters; his comrades found him, revived him; the king gave his daughter for him, the general was beheaded; his father became impoverished, came, at night he drank water from a silver basin in which his son washed his feet]: 243-248; Samorodov 1985 [y Vanya's father has no money to continue teaching him; the old man suggests sending V. to him for study; in three years, the father must recognize his son, otherwise he will not get him back; the wife drives the old man to look for his son; the sparrow has become a son, teaches how to identify him among rooks, then eagles, dogs; he will be third in the middle, third on the right, on the left; the old man recognized his son three times and returned him; V. found out that the sorceress princess sets tasks, not executes those who decide; the prince is going to marry, he will probably die; V. and 11 peers go to the princess; at night, when the others are sleeping, he sees two trees uproot, knock and so on again; this devils cannot share a purse with money, an invisible hat and a flying carpet; V. shot a copper button, no one can grab it, the devils give him wonderful items themselves; V. and his comrades they fly into the princess's kingdom; wearing an invisible hat, V. sees and hears how the princess tells the prince to make from the same material as her, the wedding dress is not sewn or knitted, but cast; V. follows the princess, clinging to her carriage; steals the matter she bought, she has to buy it again; then steals ready-made cast clothes from the workshop, planting uncut material; the craftsmen do everything again; the prince shows the princess the same clothes as she wears; the second task is the same (the same shoes); the third is the same wedding rings; the princess summoned a line from the lake: let her give her three hairs from his beard to make rings; while the princess pulls out three hairs, V. pulled out a piece of beard; now the princess demands 12 matchmakers from the prince's state; this is V. and his comrades; buabushka princess: the most the cunning one sleeps on the side, sharpen half his head at night; V. woke up and cut off everyone's heads; pin a pin to the collar (the same); let one of the 12 appliances and chairs be golden, their main one will sit on it; but that's it 12 are arguing over gold instruments; the groom took the bride, and V. and his comrades flew to the same city to play the role of matchmakers; princess: where is half of my scarf; the groom does not know, V. presented it, but refused to take it Princess, Tsarevich still married her]: 284-302; Yurtov 1883, No. 23 (Erzya) []: 191-219; Marie [among three soldiers, swans, pigeons].

Turkestan. The Kyrgyz [starved parents decided to send their son to foster care; the old man led him, sat on a rock, sighed "Oh!" ; a white-bearded old man appeared, asked why his name was; said that his name was Okyush; took the boy and told him to come for him a year later; O.'s daughter began to teach the boy to surpass O.; when his father came, O. ordered to identify his son among 7 black cats; the old man did not try, returned the following year; 7 red foxes - the same; 6 years old; seventh year - last chance; son in the form of a black horse suggested that would be third from the left; O. returned the young man; he told his father to sell him as a horse, but without a bridle; next time O. bought a horse for a lot of money with a bridle, told his daughter to tie it; she let the horse go; O. he became a horse himself, followed him; the young man became a leopard, O. became a tiger; the young man fell like a golden ring at the feet of two beauties, one put it on his finger; the old man said that the ring was his; the Baja daughter took it off, the ring crumbled into wheat grains; O. became a chicken, began to bite; the last grain turned into millet, O. turned into a sparrow; one millet grain became a hawk, he killed a sparrow, became a young man again; freed O.'s captives and married his daughter in Baja]: Sulaimanov 1998:49-58.

Southern Siberia - Mongolia. Shors [son among 40 girls, 40 pigeons, 40 bulls]: Arbachakova 2010, No. 4:215-223.

Eastern Siberia. Central Yakuts (?) Yakuts (a summary of three archival texts, no places of records are specified) [the old woman sends her son to study to the sorcerer; in 13 years she should recognize him among 13 identical ones; recognizes him among foals, birds, bees; the son turns into a bird in a cage, into a horse; the old woman sells it to the sorcerer; the sorcerer's daughter frees; the sorcerer chases the boy, who turns into a bear, a wolf, a fish; a ring on the finger of the younger princess; The sorcerer smashes the ring, it crumbles in grains, the rooster sorcerer pecks, one grain becomes a hawk, kills the sorcerer]: Ergis 1967b, No. 106:183.

Amur - Sakhalin. The Udege people [husband among 20 celestials].

Plains. A calf son among bison. Blacklegs; crowe; sheyens; mandan; santi; omaha and ponka; oto [identify wife and son traces]; arikara; pawnee (skidi); wichita.