Yu.E. Berezkin, E.N. Duvakin

Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motifs by area

Analytical catalogue

Introduction
Bibliography
Ethnicities and habitats

M39a5a1. Chicken Army. 27.-.29.31.32.

Realizing that a son or wife, by telling the truth, will cause trouble for the family, the mother or husband makes them believe in the invasion of chickens (geese, crows), in the rain of stones, in the rain, from which they go blind, etc. In all cases, gullible people are planted in a hole covered with skin, in a barrel, etc., and let in the skin of poultry pecking grain (in Kyurins, chickens bite grain in the yard). See M39a5a motif.

Bosnians, Bulgarians, Macedonians, Albanians, Russians (Moscow), Kurins, Georgians, Karelians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Chuvash.

The Balkans. The Bosnians [the husband beat the fool his wife; she thought that the cow was looking at her the wrong way, killed her with an ax; the husband salted the meat, ordered the ham to be covered with cabbage leaf and taken as needed; his wife cut it, scattered it in the garden among the cabbage; the dogs ate everything; the wife caught one, tied it to the plug of a barrel of wine, began to beat; the dog rushed, the wine flowed out; the wife covered the puddle with flour; fearing her husband, ran into the forest and found the treasure; the husband hid it, but the wife found it, took out a few coins, bought pots, put a fence on the stakes, one did not have enough stake; she began to beat the others to move apart, killed everyone; the husband realized that the treasure would be known; said that a chicken army would come, put his wife in a hole, covered it with skin, scattered grain; the chickens began to bite, the wife was a little alive in fear; then the husband said that to those who did not hid, the chickens pecked out his eyes; the husband was brought to the cadia to talk about gold; husband: the wife is also crazy; asked his wife when she found the treasure; when the chicken army came and the cadia pecked out their eyes (cadium crooked); kady ordered the woman to be expelled]: Golenishchev-Kutuzov 1991:329-331; Bulgarians [to hide the treasure found from his stupid wife, her husband tells her that there was a "chicken hail" (that birds are pecking out people's eyes; that the army goes, etc.); hides his wife in a hole, puts something on top, sprinkles grain and lets chickens; in court, the wife claims that the treasure was found when the hen hail was coming; asks the crooked judge if they pecked out his eye; the judge considers her crazy, the treasure remains for her husband]: Daskalova-Perkovska et al. 1994, No. 1381:448; Macedonians [the camel with royal goods fell behind; his husband stabbed him, took the goods; showed He said to his wife that they were crows pecking their eyes; the king sent the woman to buy camel meat as if for medicine; the wife sold a piece, said that the husband had killed the camel; at the trial, the wife said, what was it when crows pecked their eyes and pecked one at the judge (and the judge was crooked); the wife was considered stupid, her husband was released]: Sumtsov 2015:89; Albanians [husband tells stupid wife that Ramazan is long and more food should be bought; the wife asks every passerby if it is a long Ramadan; one young man replies that he is; the wife gives him all the meat her husband bought; the husband bought the sheep again, ordered to put it out with cabbage; the wife spread the pieces of meat on cabbage in the garden, it was eaten by dogs; the wife tied one dog to the plug of the wine barrel, began to beat, the dog escaped, pulling out the plug, the wine spilled out; the wife became hit the ground with a sickle on the ground where the wine had spilled, the sickle bent; the husband brought Pasha's camel who had run away and let him eat meat; to prevent his wife from talking, told her that Allah wanted to stone them, covered them with a lid; put him in a cauldron, told his friends to throw stones; the husband let his wife go; she told Pasha's sons that she saw the camel being strangled and chopped; Pasha ordered the woman's husband to be grabbed, asked her; she answered what all happened when Allah threw stones and knocked out Pasha's eye; Pasha let the couple go]: Serkova 1989:287-290.

Central Europe. Russians (Moscow) [the man plowed, found a treasure; the wife is going to tell the master; the men tells his wife that in the evening the enemy will come to kill everyone; put them in a hole in the field, covered them with straw, scattered oats, brought geese; then the man throws his bagels, says that they are falling out of the cloud; then he tied a goat in the forest, began to tear his skin off the living; tells his wife that the master's devils were fighting; the master has a woman about all this says; the master felt sorry for the man, divorced his wife, married a young woman, released him into the wild; the man dug up a treasure]: Chudinsky 1864, No. 8:49-54.

Caucasus - Asia Minor. The Curins [when going into the field, a husband and an intelligent wife tell the stupid man to look outside the door; she sits at the door, then takes it off, drags it to her neighbors, finally comes back; she is scolded for her stupidity; she is offended, runs away, climbs a tree; the hen's cackling, the dog's barking understands as an invitation to return home, but refuses; when a camel comes up, agrees, brings a camel; husband and intelligent wife cut camels, they hide the meat and jewelry that the camel carried; they say that it will rain at night that makes them blind, let the stupid wife sit in the tandoor; the camel owner sent the man to find out; he speaks that the patient needs a camel; the stupid wife tells everything; they were all summoned to the owner; when she saw that he was blind, the stupid woman explains that she brought the camel when it rained blinding, and this is the result; the owner drove her to a complete fool]: Dirr 1920, No. 78:271-272; Georgians [stupid wife invites frogs to knit her socks; they croak; she takes it for consent, throws yarn into the pond; when she came for socks, found a golden reel in the pond; explains that the frogs did not tie her socks and she took their gold; exchanged her reel for several dolls and one flip flop; her husband beat her and drove her away; she sees a dog, a rooster, thinks that her husband sent them for her, decides not to go; when the camel comes with luggage, she went with a camel; the husband sees that the camel is loaded with jewelry; he put his wife in a tone, covered it with leather, poured grains on top and let geese go; she thinks that hail is coming; the husband killed the camel, hid the luggage and meat; the wife says that she brought a camel, her husband was captured, he tells the king that nothing does not know; the wife says that she brought the camel when the hail was coming and knocked out the king's eye (it was crooked); the tsar drove her away]: Kurdovanidze 1988 (2), No. 146:290-292.

Baltoscandia. Karelians (northern, Tunguda district) [husband found a treasure; knowing his wife's stupidity, put a mirror on the bottom of the river; told his wife that the sun was shining from the river, war would begin now, hide under a barrel; poured on top of the grain, let the chickens go, they hit the barrel with their beaks; when she released his wife, she said that there was a scuffle, the barrel was shaking; told others that her husband had found the treasure; in court they ask her when it happened; when the sun was shining from the river and there was war; her husband was freed]: Stepanova 2000, No. 122:227; Latvians: Aris, Medne 1977, No. 1381 [Goose War. The husband finds a treasure, but is afraid that his wife will reveal the secret and the master will take the money. The husband arranges that the master takes his wife for crazy and drives her away]: 351; Brivzemniax 1887, No. 144 (Livonia) [the man found the treasure, the wife chatted, the master ordered to bring money; the man told his wife that there will be a war, ordered to sit in a hole, covered it with cow's skin, poured grains and let the chickens; they peck grain, the wife thinks that war is going on; the husband wrote into the pit, the wife thinks that God sent warm rain; on the way to The master bleats a ram in the barn; man to his wife: it was the devils who were fighting our master; wife to the master: the husband found the treasure when the eider war was going on, it rained warmly and the master's devils were fighting; the master drove the woman away, the treasure remained peasant]: 387-388; Lithuanians [the peasant found money, did not tell his wife; she found out, got angry, promised to tell the master; the husband scattered candy canes around the yard and said that candy hail had passed at night; then said that the Iron-billed war would begin; put his wife in a hole, covered him with dry bovine skin, sketched grains and let geese go; the wife hears thunder; the third time the husband hung the goat by the horns, she bleats, the husband says it's the devil riding the master; the wife told the master that her husband found the treasure when the candy hail was going on, there was an Iron-billed war, and the hell drove the master; the master drove her away]: Lobite 1965:336-337.

Volga - Perm. Chuvashi [in a hungry time, a peasant stabbed someone else's lamb; a young son sees his father hiding meat and skin; a neighbor says that a ram is missing, a boy says that this ram was stabbed by his parents; the parents decided to scatter pancakes around the yard, put their son in an inverted tub, on top of oats, let the chickens peck, tell their son that the chicken army was coming; the son believed that the chicken army was passing by and walking pancake rain; answers the head that it was the day before the pancake rain and the attack of the chicken army; his parents were left alone]: Sidorova 1979:206-209.