M38D. Item characters die one after another, ATU 85, 295 .12.15.16.21.23.26.-.36.38.

Two or more characters, which are small objects or small animals, live or travel together and die one by one while committing protozoa actions.

Hausa, Catalans, Italians (Umbria), Ladins, Flemish, Alsatians, Germans (Grimms, East Frisia, Schleswig-Holstein, Switzerland), Dutch, Frisians, Tibetans (Sikkim, Amdo) Lavrung, (ao), Uttar Pradesh (Hindi), Chattisgarh, Haria, Assamese, Chinese, Slovenes, Hungarians, Greeks, Luzhitans, Slovaks, Poles, Russians (Moscow, Perm), Ukrainians (Odessa), Kalmyks, Lacks, Georgians, Tajiks, Baluchis, Estonians, Livons, Finns, Faroese, Danes, Latvians, Komi, Mari, Mordovians, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tofalars, South Altai Tuvans, Buryats, Oirats (Burguts), Southern Selkups, Mansi, Northern Khanty, Eastern Khanty, Tundra Nenets, Central, Northwestern (Olenek) and Northeastern (Verkhoyan) Yakuts, Japanese.

West Africa. Hausa [the fly, brick, straw and frog went to work in the field; the brick went to fetch water, drowned; the straw lit a fire and burned; the fly grinded the grain, ate greedily, stuck its head under the millstones and died; the frog saw that nothing had been done, began to swell with anger and burst]: Laptukhin 1964:19.

Southern Europe. Catalans [when the hostess melted the hearth to cook beans, one straw fell and did not burn; then the coal and then the bean fell out; they went on a journey; when they saw the river, the coal was frightened, and the straw confirmed that it swims well; we agreed that it would first transport the coal and then return for the bean; in the middle of the river, the coal straw caught fire from the heat; the bean laughed so much that his mouth burst ear to ear; cried; passing by (bug?) sewed up a dark trail that has been torn since then]: Camarena, Chevallier 1997, No. 295:441-442; Italians (Umbria) [mouse and sausage]: Cirese, Serafini 1975, No. 85:20; ladins: Brunold-Bigler, Widmer 2004, No. 37 [the coal fell out of the stove, the hostess dropped the straw when she lit the fire, the bean fell out of the pot; they reached the ditch; the straw lay down as a bridge; when the coal stepped on it, it caught fire and fell; a coal fell into the water behind her, died of fear; Bob laughed so much that he burst; the tailor sewed it up, the black thread left]: 233; Decurtins, Brunold-Bigler 2002, No. 49 [the wasp and bob went together, reached to the stream; the wasp laid a straw with a bridge; they argued who to cross first; the wasp went, fell into the water; the bean laughed so much that it cracked; since then it seemed to have a seam]: 133.

Western Europe. The Flemish [bean, straw, coal set off; the coal goes along the straw, it burns, it falls into the water; the bean laughs so much that there is a black speck left; the monkey watched, lost its hair in the back]: Meyer 1968, No. 295:30; the Dutch [bob and straw came to the hearth, a coal fell out of there, all three of them went for a walk; river on the way; bob: let the straw lie like a bridge, and we go for a walk along it let's move on; the coal came first, the wind blew, the straw caught fire, the coal fell, drowned; the bean burst with laughter, so there are stripes on it]: Soer 1979:119; Germans [the old lady is going to cook beans, started a fire; one straw, coal and bean fell unnoticed; went on a journey; when they came to the stream, the straw lay down as a bridge; in the middle, the bean was frightened and stopped; as a result, a straw caught fire; the bean laughed so much that it burst; the tailor walked by and sewed it up, the trail remained]: Grimm, Grimm 2002, No. 18:64 (=Grimm, Grimm 1987:60); Germans (Bavaria) [mouse, sausage and frog lead together the farm; the sausage cooks the food, the frog the firewood, the mouse pulls out the bread; the frog asks the sausage how it manages to cook such a delicious soup; sausage: I boil water and dip in it; the next day sausage went to get firewood, the frog stayed cooking, and the mouse went to the wedding for crumbs; when the sausage came back from the forest, found a frog cooked; a man came into the house; sausage: tell the mouse to go home: the frog in the soup was cooked; the man does not understand where the voice came from, came to the wedding and talked about what he heard; the mouse threw its bag under the table and hurried home; during this time the dog ate the sausage; the mouse saw a frog swimming in the pot, but did not find the sausage and went out the door; a cat ate it there]: Jahn 1891, No. 17:26; Alsatians [motive available]: Delarue 1976, No. 295:466; Germans (Eastern Frisia, Schleswig-Holstein, Switzerland), Friezes: Uther 2004 (1), No. 295:171

Tibet is the Northeast of India. Tibetans (Sikkim) [a wife named Fat always cooks fatty foods for her husband Meaty; he spies, sees her rolling in the pan to fill it; after sending his wife, the husband lies down on himself frying pan, fried; the wife is looking for a llama to perform a rite on him; Dove, Magpie, Raven do not know Lamsky words, the woman drives them; the Kite utters Buddha's epithets, the woman hands him her husband's body; when returns, the Kite replies that he ate the body, mistaking it for a treat; she throws a cup of sour milk at it; since then, there is a white spot on the kite's head]: Krapivina 2001:41-47; Tibetans (Amdo) [Com The fat remains to cook, the Lump of Meat goes to buy firewood; spies, sees the Fat Lump dip in boiling water and the food is ready; calls to cook, let the Fat Lump go for firewood; when he comes back, he sees that the Meat Lump was cooked]: Tshe dbang rdo rje et al. 2007:31; lavrung [needle, turnips, ball of earth, clay vessel, oil lived together; the needle began to sweep the floor, fell into the gap; the turnips went give food to the cows, they ate it; a lump of earth went to fetch water and blurred; the vessel climbed up to become king, fell and broke; the oil began to make a fire and melted]: G.yu lha 2012:55; (cf. ao [crab, frog, crayfish (shrimp) and minnow fish (minnow) are women who live and work together in the field, cook one by one; finding out that the crab cooks better than others, she was asked to become a permanent cook; once the vegetables had nothing to fill and the crab cooked its own leg; everyone liked it; as a result, the crab lost all its legs; one day friends waited in vain for her to call them; they came, and the crab in boiler, cooked herself; friends began to laugh so much that they acquired the appearance of the corresponding animals and began to live in the water]: Beck et al. 1987, No. 36:123-124).

South Asia. Uttar Pradesh (Mirzapur, Hindi) [the mouse has no girlfriend; finally, a lump of land became friends with her; she took him to swim in the river and he disappeared into the water; the river gave a fish; the mouse put the fish on To dry the pole, it was carried away by a hawk; the table gave a piece of wood; they went to buy sweets, and while the mouse was eating, the hostess threw a piece of wood into the fire; gave it a cake; it was eaten by a goat; the shepherd gave a kid; they went to the shop where musical instruments were sold, the owner of the goat slaughtered and cooked; gave a drum; women pushed rice, made a hole in the drum, gave a girl; the girl and the mouse sowed wheat, but when the girl became reap, she didn't notice the mouse and cut it in half with a sickle]: Rouse, Crooke 1899, No. 24:101-104; Chattisgarh (ethnicity?) [cow cake, a lump of land, and a chicken set off; a lump of land went to get water and melted, a cow cake went to get the fire and burned]: Twente 1938, No. 20 in Thompson, Roberts 1960:43; haria [ a lump of earth and a leaf lived together; a lump of earth covered the leaf from the wind and the leaf from the rain; but one day the wind and rain started together, a lump of earth got wet and spread, the leaf carried away]: Pinnow 1965, No. 5:48; Assamese [a man dug the ground next to bamboo; a piece of bamboo bark {bamboo has no bark - apparently a dry fragment of the stem} fell on a lump of earth and they began to live together; a piece of bamboo covered a lump from the rain, and A lump held him back if there was a strong wind; but one day the wind blew away the bamboo and the rain washed away the earth; both lamented until the last moment how the other would live without it]: Grierson 1903a:435.

China - Korea. Chinese (Southern China) [{probably Chinese, since Southern China}]: Eberhard, Eberhard 1976, No. 15 in Uther 2004 (1), No. 295:171.

The Balkans. Hungarians [a bean, a bubble, a straw, a spark set off and approach the river; a straw falls on a bridge, a spark steps on it, but the straw burns and the spark falls into the water; the bean laughed so much that burst; the shoemaker sewed it up, but the seam is now visible; the bubble laughed so much that it burst]: Kovács 1987, No. 295:302; Slavs, Greeks: Uther 2004 (1), No. 295:171

Central Europe. The Luzhitans [Coal, Bubble, Straw are thinking how to cross a horse's hoof trail full of water; The straw lay across, Coal went first, burned the Straw, both drowned; The bubble is so laughed that it burst; Pebble: who grieves, who laughs]: Romanenko 1962:132-133; Poles [mouse and sausage live together, performing every duty that is combined with their nature; changing roles, both die]: Krzyżanowski 1962, No. 85:57; Slovaks: Uther 2004 (1), No. 295:171; Russians (Moscow, Perm), Ukrainians (Odessa) [Bubble, straw and bast: trying to cross the river unsuccessfully; {a late literary source is likely}]: SUS 1979, No. 295:101.

Caucasus - Asia Minor. Kalmyks: Basangova 2002:152 [Throat with hair, Tumbleweed and Salt slaughtered the sheep, let the elder brother throw the intestines and droppings away; he ate abdominal fat, choked and died; Tumbleweed suffered pour out the sewage, the wind picked it up and carried it; Salt sees that the brothers died, melted in the rain; the dog got the sheep], 152-153 [Throat and hair, wormwood shin, egg-shaped head, spleen they slaughtered a sheep; The throat stole the peritoneum, gnawed off the fat, choked and died; The wormwood shin broke its leg and died; The egg-shaped head jumped with joy, hit the joint, died; The spleen began to scream from joy that she would get everything froze to the ice]; varnishes [a nutshell, a lump of oatmeal and a fly went on a journey; the shell was the first to try to cross the stream, the water carried it; the lump rushed to help her, melted in the water; the fly flew to the other side and laughed at her friends; her belly burst with laughter]: Kapiyeva 1974:155 (=Omar-ogly 1868:67; apparently this is the original source); Georgians [bubble, straw, hot coal fail to cross the river]: Kurdovanidze 2000, No. 295:29.

Iran - Central Asia. Tajiks: Amonov, Ulug-zade 1957 [as in Levin et al. 1981, No. 262; corn grain instead of a pea]: 84-85; Levin et al. 1981, No. 262 [the old woman fried peas; one pea fell out of the pot, rolled, invited the straw to run together: the old woman would burn her; the light rolled towards them, joined them; a stream on the way; the straw spread like a bridge; the pea crossed; when the light went, the straw caught fire and both fell into the water; the pea was upset and stared at one point with sadness in her eyes], 297 [a leaf and a lump of earth were friends; the leaf covered the lump from the rain, its lump from frost and wind; the fox was jealous; told everyone that the other was benefiting from the current situation; the wind carried away the leaf, the rain turned the lump into clay]: 243, 251; Baluchi [A lump of earth came to Kishke, said he was invited to visit the funeral; Kishka went with him; at the stream, Kishka asked the Lump to jump first; he fell into the water and dissolved; The gut laughed so much that it burst]: Zarubin 1930, No. 1: 653 (=Porozhnyakov 1989:137).

Baltoscandia. Estonians (mostly eastern Estonia) [coal, straw, bean went to travel; the straw lay across the stream as a bridge, coal ran along it; it caught fire and broke, coal fell into the water and hissed; the bob laughed so much that it burst; the tailor sewed it up, but every bean has a black seam mark since]: Mälk et al. 1967, No. 44:91; Faroese, Danes, Finns: Uther 2004 (1), No. 295:171; the Lives [a poor peasant borrowed a horse from a rich man, but without harness; tied firewood to his tail, the tail came off; the rich took the poor to the judge; went to the inn on the way ; while the rich was drinking schnabs, the poor fell asleep on the stove, from where he fell, running over the rich man's little son to death; crossing the bridge, the poor slipped and fell on an old man who was walking under the bridge on the ice; the old man died; When approaching the judge, the poor picked up a stone wrapped in a rag to kill him when the judge ordered him to hang; but the judge realized that there was money in the rag and decided to give the horse and wife to the poor man while the tail will not grow first, and the second will not give birth to a new child; the old man would still die, so that's it; when the poor man came to the rich man for his horse and wife, he paid off with a lot of money; when the judge sent a servant for the promised money, the poor man told him everything, and the servant thanked God that he himself was not killed with that stone]: Löwis of Menar 1927, No. 85:282-283; Latvians [bob, straw, coal roams the world; the straw spread across the river like a bridge; the coal went, it flashed and broke, the coal fell into the water, hissed; the bean laughed so much that it cracked from the side; the tailor sewed it up with black thread, the trail remained]: Alksnite et al. 1958:118-119.

Volga - Perm. Komi [a bubble, a straw and a bast are trying to cross the river unsuccessfully]: Korovina 2012, No. 295:78-79; Marie: Kecskeméti, Paunonen 1974, No. 295:222; Mordovia (Erzya) [from the old man Maggot beard and old women Tin eye girl Felt belly, son Reed leg and goby Dirty tail; old woman hears wolf howling, old man tells to make fire; old woman blew on coals, melted tin eye; the old man began to blow - the tow's beard caught fire; the son ran to get water - his reed leg broke; the daughter began to laugh, her felt belly burst; the wolf came in and carried away the bull]: Evseviev 1964, № 57:377.

Turkestan. Kazakhs: Kanbak Shal 1985 [Bubble-head, Straw Leg and Hair-Neck went to steal; a fly sat on the Bubble, it hit himself on the head, burst; when he saw dead, Straw Leg hit himself on knees, legs broke, he died; his neck screamed "Oibay", his neck burst, he died]: 227-228; Potanin 1916, No. 48 (Kokchetav) [about the same as in Kanbak-Shal]: 162; Kyrgyz [lived Bubble Head ( Kakanak Bash; "kakanak" - amniotic fluid, amniotic fluid membrane), Throat-S-Volosinku (Kyl Kekirtek) and Thighs-Travinki (Kuurai San); Bubble Head was afraid to go out in the sun and rain, Throat-S-Volosinku I was afraid to speak loudly; Thighs and Blades of Grass barely carried the weight of his body, was not suitable for anything; friends decided to get and slaughter a kid, arrange a redemptive treat; maybe ours will reach God complaints and cherished wishes will come true; they sowed corn to feed the goat; however, the bay cows began to trample on it and eat it; everyone was afraid to go to drive away the cows, they ate everything; friends went to the bazaar; kid it costs 3 tanga, they had 10; the sneaker promised to get it for 2 if he was given 10; brought a kid, but fled with all the money; friends stabbed the kid and went to wash their guts; the droppings hit their heads, Head- The bubble wanted to wipe it off its head with a finger, pierced his brains, died; Throat-S-Hair screamed, his throat burst, he died too; Thighs and Blades of Grass clapped his knees, his legs broke, he fell and died]: Sabyr uulu 2008:176-177.

Southern Siberia - Mongolia. Tofalars [there were three shepherd brothers: the eldest was Egg-Head, the middle was Grass-Leg, the youngest was Hair-Throat; VG began to cook meat, swallowed a piece, his throat burst; TN: he's bad a person steals and eats! hit his legs, they broke, he died; YAG saw that the brothers were dead, scratched his head to the middle of his fingers, they entered the brain, he died; half of the sheep and goats the brothers grazed ran away, so wild sheep and goats appeared]: Rassadin 1996, No. 12:21-24; Buryats: Bardakhanova, Gympilova 2008, No. 34 (Bayandaevsky District of the Irkutsk Region) [Fat, egg and blade of grass decided to cook lunch; let The one who catches the long one comes with water; a blade of grass caught, eaten by a cow on the way; then Zhirok went, eaten by Khartagai Khan's dog; the egg rolled to the lake, fell into the water on a stone, broke]: 161-162; Kungurov 1946 [egg, lard, hay decided to cook dinner; draw lots for who to go for water; hay went, cows ate it; lard was eaten by dogs; the egg rolled to the river, crashed against a stone, the shell swam, the river drowned her]: 9-10); Toroev 1946 [egg, lard and hay decided to cook dinner; the egg is afraid to go for water - it will fall into the river; lard will be eaten by dogs; hay will be eaten by cows; the lot fell on lard, the dogs ate it; then hay - the cows ate; the egg rolled, broke against a stone, the wind drove the shell along the river, it drowned]: 9; oirats (burguts) [salt, paper, bone lived in a yurt; dogs barked, paper like an elder told the bones to see what was going on, the dogs took the bone away; sent salt - it melted in the rain; came out by itself - the wind took it away]: Potanin 1983, No. 97:359; South Altai Tuvans [Bubble head, Thread neck , Reed Leg - three brothers; N. and KN ate sheep's neck, left meat for P. from a single vertebra; P. began to scratch his head, a hole became, he burst; N. was upset, his throat burst, he died; KN drowned out of anguish, broke his leg and also died]: Taube 1994, No. 45:264.

Western Siberia. Southern Selkups (p. Stepanovka, Verkhneketsky district) [hazel grouse and mouse went hunting, reached the river; mouse: I have no wings to fly over; hazel grouse made a grass bridge; the mouse walked along it, in the middle of the river there is a bridge broke, the mouse swam across the river, got wet; the hazel grouse laughed so much that his goiter burst; the mouse lives, does good]: Porotova 1982:140; Tundra Nenets: Pushkareva 2003, No. 295 [aspen stick, sparrow (coal, deer's net stomach, tubular stalk); sparrow (stomach) laughs at broken comrades, bumps into a knot and dies], 295** [A bunch of wool laughs at the burning Capercaillie goiter and a piece of hay; running into a spruce branch, dies]: 24; Mansi (North. Sosva or Ob, Zap. Chernetsov, 1936) [Arrow chips, Partridge Goiter, Insole in the Russian Shoe went to the forest, cooked soup, the chips dried up, burned down, the other two began to laugh - they were left with all the good; they rode with laughter , Goiter Partridge's stomach pierced through, the spirit came out; The insole was covered with sparks, it also burned down; the fish and animals caught by three comrades are now eating, happy]: Lukina 1990, No. 200:506; northern Khanty (Obdorsk, 1992) [The raven goes to cut firewood, the Deer Bone heats fat at home; the Raven peeks through the chimney, sees the Deer Bone boil water, climbs into the cauldron, the fat is heated, it collects it; offers to change roles; The raven jumped into the cauldron, cooked; Deer Bone began to go to buy firewood and heat fat, she lives in every home]: Nikolaeva 1999, No. 22:219; oriental Khanty: Lukina 1990, No. 104 (b. Tromjegan) [berries and cranberries are working, but the hay is still lying; we decided to lie down tomorrow to see what the hay would do; the hay got up in the evening, lit the fire and burned; the cranberries wanted to run up and burst; the berry runs and laughs, burst with laughter]: 256; Soldatova 2008, No. 5 (b. Wah) [a straw and a berry argued who would get up earlier; the straw got up earlier, flooded the stove, burned down itself; the berry laughed so much that it burst]: 118; Filchenko 2012 (b. Vasyugan) [a bunch of grass and a berry live together; a berry says to a bunch of grass: get up, my mouth dried up, the fire is blowing up every morning; a bunch of grass began to fan the fire, burned down itself; the berry laughed so much that burst]: 55; Chepregi 2015, No. 16 (b. Tromyegan) [live Bearded Chin, Thin Knife and Head Temple; enemy warriors came; Bearded chin was told to light a fire, the fire broke out, it burned down; the legs of the Thin Legs broke; The head temple was itchy and perforated; the Cranberry and the Sheaf live; they went somewhere, returned, the Cranberry told the Sheaf to make a fire; it broke out, burned; the Cranberry laughed and burst]: 104-105.

Eastern Siberia. Yakuts: Ergis 1964, No. 38 (central, 4th Malzhaga Nasleg of Khangalas Ulus) [Chaachahaan promises to slaughter a bull by evening; his son Ot Atah ("grass leg") began to ride with joy, fell , broke my right leg, started riding on the other leg, broke it too, started rolling on both arms, broke them too, started riding my head, my head flew off, started rolling on my chest, my chest broke, because of this the boy died; Ora Mayi's son ("naughty brain") ran to collect branches, threw them up, the branch fell on his head, he died; his son Ot Syalyya ("grass pants") was allowed to hold a burning splint, he accidentally set fire to his pants, burned down, died; the wife of the old woman Chabychahaan (the name of birch bark dishes), sitting and stirring the bull's blood in a birch bark dish, fell into this dish with blood and died; son Sebirdeh Tues ("foliage chest") walked carrying a bull's brisket, his chest broke and he died; daughter Kyl Kyuemey ("hairthroat") wanted to fry and eat the bull's thin oil seal, clay from the hearth stuck to the omentum, she swallowed it , choked and died; son Habah Bas ("bubble head") said, My relatives all died, stood, cried, scratching his head, suddenly his fingers dug into his head, because of this he died; C. ate one fried with his gut, decided to call Mogus to reduce meat; the eldest, middle Ala Mogus, says that they have lost their ability to eat; the youngest agrees, eats meat and the dead, carries C. himself as a gift to his wife; he cuts through the bag, falls out; the wife hastily swallowed a thimble with a needle, found an empty bag; Mogus decided that she ate C. in the yard, ripped her stomach, and a needle and a thimble fell out; Mogus returns for C., he hides himself in dry bark, M. tramples on C., thinks that his bones are cracking; at M. C. says it's better to eat it with small dried fish; promises M.'s children to make a spoon, who give him their father's knife, he cuts off their heads, puts them on their bed, cooks their meat, hides in a hole leading from home; to get into it, M. becomes thin, C. cuts off his head, takes the swallowed ones out of his stomach; does not find live water; the bird screams, Little finger; C. cuts M.'s little finger, there is a snuffbox with live with water, he revives his wife and children], 39 (reindeer) [Charchahaan wants to pick wood fungus from larch (it serves as a medicine); his hand, second hand, legs, forehead stick; Angaa Mogus takes him away, C. cuts through the bag, runs away, puts bark under his fur coat; AM finds him, kicks him, thinks his bones are cracking, brings it to the children, leaves himself; C. promises to make them a spoon, tells them to give them a sharp sword, cuts off their heads, puts them to bed, cooks meat, digs a way out; AM felt that it was the meat of his blood relatives, wanted to catch C., could not stick his head into the move; C. offers to climb backwards, pierces with a hot foot; he orders to make oars from his two hands, make a boat out of his back bones, make his ankle as a pole in the booth, a cauldron from the skull, cups from his eye sockets]: 112-116, 118-120 (including Yakut text, both texts together pp.108-120); Khudyakov 1890, No. 9 (Verkhoyansky) [Charchakhan's people have Hair Throat, Wood-Leaf Chest, Smelly Side, Bubble Head; he has a lousy bull to the cloud, a faded bull to the sky; the bull was killed; Leaf Breast lifted his sternum, broke his chest and died; Hairthroat wanted to swallow part of the lung, peeled off his throat, died; Grass Leg went to get water, put water on the ice, started jumping, legs, arms, everything broke, died; Herbal Pants began to make a fire, burned down; Bubble The head scratched his head in sorrow, it burst, died; C. goes to three eduns; the first eats little, the second stopped altogether, the third goes with C. He eats everything, takes him away in his bag; while he went to relieve himself, C. cut the bag and ran away; the edun's wife, out of joy that he brought meat, swallowed a thimble and a needle; the eater thinks she ate it meat, gutted it, there was only a thimble and a needle inside; the eater found C., he stuffed bark under his clothes, the eater stepped, there was a crackle, he brought it to him, went for fish; C. promises the children to make an eduna a knife, they released C., he killed them, cooked them, put their heads on the bed, dug out; the eater eats his children; looking for C., he responds from home and outside; the eater poked into the hole, stuck, C. cut off his head]: 232-239.

Japan. The Japanese (27 versions from Tohoku to northern Kyushu) [bob, straw, coal go to the temple to worship, either not to be used for their intended purpose, or to see the capital; the straw lies down by a bridge over the river, the coal begins to cross, the straw lights up, the coal falls into the river; the bean bursts with laughter; cries; the girl returns from sewing class, sews the bean's mouth with black thread, the seam is now visible]: Ikeda 1971, #271:67