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Aarne–Thompson–Uther index
About this index and how to read it
The ATU index classifies international folktales by type. Each row gives the type number, its title and summary, followed by the references it inherits: Arne Thompson is the earlier Aarne–Thompson type number, and Thompson lists the motif references from Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature associated with that type.
Cross-references inside a summary open the relevant tale-type or motif record. Thompson motif references in the final column are linked directly to the corresponding entry in the Stith Thompson Motif Index when that reference exists in the database. Any column heading can be clicked to sort by it, and clicking again reverses the order. Following a type number opens that type on its own page.
| ATU | Title | Summary ▲ | Arne Thompson | Thompson |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 856 | The Girl Elopes with the Wrong Man | I. Expulsion. A youth is driven forth by his father when the youth says he will marry four wives [M373]. (Cf. Type 725). II. The Elopement. (a) While acting as a servant, the hero pretends to be unable to read [K1816.0.3]. He accepts a message and… | ||
| 176 | The farmer tricks the jackals | I. Farmer vs. jackal. (a) A jackal forces a woman carrying food to her husband to give him food. (b) The husband disguises as a woman carrying food and beats the jackal, etc. (c) The jackal threatens to defecate on the man's plow. The man affixes… | ||
| 552 | Animals and In-laws | I. Marriage to Animals. (a) A bankrupt man promises his daughters in in marriage in return for safety and money to three animals (bear, eagle, whale); or (b) three girls despairing of marriage say that they will marry any one even if it is an animal… | , 552 | B501., B640., D621.1., S221.1. |
| 465 | Man persecuted for his beautiful wife | I. Obtaining the Beautiful Wife. (a) The hero steals the clothing of a bathing girl (swan maiden) and gives them back only if she will marry him [D361.1, K1335], or (b) he receives his wife from God. II. The Tasks. (a) The envious king covets the… | , 465, 465A, 465B, 465C | , B642., D721.3., H1023.3., H1090., H1233.2.1., H1335., H911., H931. |
| 916 | The brothers guarding the king's bedchamber and the snake | I. The Accusation. Several brothers are hired by a king to guard his bedchamber. The first brother sees a snake in the bedchamber and kills it, but a drop of its poison falls on the queen. While he is wiping the poison from the queen, she awakes and,… | ||
| 567 | The Magic Bird Heart | I. The Bird-heart. The hero eats the heart of the magic bird and thereby receives the power (a) of spitting gold or (b) of finding each day a coin under his pillow; or (c) he will become king. II. The Treacherous Wife. A woman (or his own wife)… | , 567, 567A | B113.1., D132.1., D1561.1.1., D861.5., D965., K512., M312.3., N311., N683., S264.1., S322.4. |
| 978 | The Youth in the Land of the Cheaters | I. The Cheats. A youth sets out to trade end comes to a land where cheaters flourish. He loses all his goods. (a) A one-eyed man (woman) states that the youth's father had taken the other eye and demands compensation. (The rescuer demands that the… | ||
| 652 | The Boy Whose Wishes Always Come True | I. The Godfather. (a) A king chooses as godfather for his son the first man he meets. (b) The old man chosen as godfather takes the boy secretly to a church, blesses him, and gives him the power to make all wishes come true. II. The Treacherous… | , 652 | D141., D1761.0.1., D212.1., D630., K2155.1., K2250., N811., N856.1., Q455.1., R131.8.5., T52.1. |
| 506 | The Rescued Princess | I. The Grateful Dead Man. (a) The hero ransoms a corpse from creditors who refuse its burial. (b) The grateful dead man in the form of an old man, a servant, or a fox later helps the hero on condition that they are to divide all winnings. II. The… | ||
| 508 | The Bride Won in a Tournement | I. The Grateful Dead Man. See Type 506 (I). II. The Tournament. The hero wins a bride in a tournament [H331.2] by means of a horse or of weapons which he has received from the dead man [H972]. III. The Dividing in Half. See Type 506 (V). | ||
| 507 | The Mistress of the Monster | I. The Grateful Dead Man. See Type 506 I. II. The Monster Husband. The hero woos a princess whose former suitors have all come to misfortune and whose heads have been stuck on poles. With the help of the dead man who has taken the necessary magic… | , 507A | H322.1., H972., T172.0.1., T172.2.1. |
| 301 | The Three Kidnapped Princesses | I. The Hero is of supernatural origin and strength: (a) son of a bear who has stolen his mother; (b) of a dwarf or robber from whom the boy rescues himself and his mother; (c) the son of a man and a she-bear or cow; or (e) engendered by the eating of… | , 301, 301A, 301B, 301D* | B11.11.11., B322.1.1., B631., F102.1.1., F451.5.2.5.2., F601., F92., F96., H1385.1.1., H80., H94., K1931.2.2., K1933., L161., Q262., R111.2.1.2.1., T68.1.1. |
| 888 | The Faithful Wife | I. The Husband Threatens to Beat his Wife. (a) A prince (merchant's son) says he will marry only a girl who will submit to a beating (with a hose) each day [M134]. (b) The prince marries the girl and she refuses to allow him to beat her, saying he… | , 888, 888A | H431.1., H80., J1545.6., K1837., M134., R152.1., R61., T320.1. |
| 896 | The Lecherous Holy Man and the Maiden in a Box | I. The Lecherous Holy Man. (a) A holy man or (b) another trusted adviser falls in love with a beautiful girl, but she spurns his advances. He convinces the girl's father or husband that the girl is unchaste or that she will bring calamities to the… | ||
| 949 | The Faithful Servitor | I. The Necessary Sacrifice. A poor man is befriended by a kin". He hears weeping during the night, goes out, and learns from the Fates, a goddess, or a witch that (a) a man must sacrifice himself or (b) a man must sacrifice his sons so that the king… | ||
| 546 | The Clever Parrot | I. The Parrot Wins a Princess for the King. (a) The king wins the gratitude of a parrot. (b) The parrot takes the king to a princess. (c) The parrot brings a princess to the king. II. Separation. On the return trip the king and his bride are… | 546 | B469.9. |
| 510 | Cinderella and Cap o' Rushes | I. The Persecuted Heroine. (a) The heroine is abused by her stepmother and stepsisters and (a1) stays on the hearth or in the ashes and, (a2) is dressed in rough clothing - cap of rushes, wooden cloak, etc., (b) flees in disguise from her father who… | , 510A, 510B | B450., C761.3., D1050.1., F823.2., H151.5., H36.1., H94.2., K1911.3.3.1., K521.1., L55., M255., N711.6., N815., R255., S31., T311.1., T411.1. |
| 891 | The Man Who Deserts his Wife and Sets Her the Task of Bearing Him a Child | I. The Prince Deserts His Wife. (a) A girl by accident arouses the enmity of a prince, who threatens to make her half a wife, or the like, and marries her, or (b) a prince becomes angry at his wife. (c) The prince deserts his wife, (d) or imprisons… | , 891, 891A, 891B | H1187., K1814., K1837., M372., na, R41.2., T381. |
| 537 | The Flight with the Eagle | I. The Speaking Eagle. A man aims to shoot an eagle, when suddenly the bird begins to speak like a human being [B211.3]. The man spares him. II. The Grateful Eagle. The bird has a wing broken. The man cares for it for three years and wastes all his… | ||
| 879 | The Basil Maiden (The Sugar Puppet, Viola) | I. The Sprinkler of Basil. A princess before leaving her schoolmistress is used to sprinkling a vase of flowers. II. Questions and Counter questions. A prince ridicules her with a rhyme but the girl learns from her teacher a rhyme which scorns him in… | , 879 | H702., H705.3., K1837., K525.1. |
| 44 | The Oath on the Iron | In a dispute between the fox, the wolf, and the bear concerning the theft of their winter supplies, the fox denies the guilt and swears by touching iron (a trap). The bear follows his example but hits the iron so hard that his paws are caught. | 44 | K1115. |
| 1651 | Whittington's cat | In a land where cats are unknown, he sells it for fortune. Cf. Types 1281, 1650. I. He Gets the Cat. (a) The hero is left a cat as his only inheritance [N411.1.1] (see Type 1650); or (b) he earns or finds four coins which he tests by throwing them… | ||
| 1279 | Protected by the Needle | In a storm on the ice, fools stick needles into the ice to keep from blowing away. [J1965]. | ||
| 665 | The Man in Three Animal Forms | In a war gets the sword of the king, who gives him his daughter as wife. I. The Hero's Powers. (a) The power of transforming himself into a bird, a fish, and a hare is given to the hero (b) by an old man with whom he divides his last penny, (c) by a… | , 665 | B515., D1081., D117.2., D1470.1.15., D150., D170., D630., D641., H78.2., K1931.3., N681., Q42.1. |
| 1013 | Bathing or Warming Grandmother/ Ogre's Wife Burned in his Own Oven | In boiling water or on stove. [K1462]. | 1013 | K1462. |
| 800 | The Tailor in Heaven | In God's absence, Peter lets an unworthy tailor into heaven. The tailor throws Gods footstool at an old woman thief on earth. He si expelled from heaven. | , 800 | A661.0.1.2., F1037.1., L435.3., P441.1. |
| 156 | Androcles and the Lion | In gratitude the lion later rewards the man. | 156, 156A | B301.8., B381. |
| 831 | The Dishonest Priest | In order to get hold of money found by a poor man, the priest goes with the skin of a he-goat on his back (as Devil) to the man to frighten him [Q551.2]. But when he gets home he cannot get the skin off [Q551.2]. | 831 | Q551.2. |
| 1162 | The Iron Man and the Ogre | In order to save the king's daughter from the ogre an iron man is forged. The ogre is driven away. [K1756]. | ||
| 1261 | The Slaughter of the Ox | In preparation, the feet are cut off the evening before. [J2168]. | ||
| 43 | The Bear Builds a House of Wood; the Fox, of Ice | In summer the fox wants to drive the bear out of his house Cf. Types 81, 1097, 1238. | 1097, 43 | J741.1. |
| 1565 | Agreement Not to Scratch | In talking, the trickster makes gestures and scratches without detection. [K263]. | 1565 | K263. |
| 9 | The unjust partner | In the field and in the stable. The bear works: the idle fox cheats the bear. | 9, 9B, 9C | K1251.1, K171.2., K471. |
| 1311 | The Wolf Taken for a Colt | In the man's absence eats the mare [J1752]. | ||
| 1012 | Cleaning the child | Intestines taken out and cleaned. [K1461.1]. | 1012 | K1461.1. |
| 2009 | Origin of Chess | Inventor asks one wheat-grain for the first square, two for the second, four for the third, eight for the fourth, etc. The king cannot pay. [Z21.1]. | ||
| 501 | The Three Spinners | Invited to the wedding. I. Spinning Assigned to Girl. (a) Through false boast of a girl's mother, or (b) of the girl herself, or (c) false reports by jealous servants a girl is compelled to spin an impossible amount (cf. Type 500). (d) She is to… | , 501 | G201.1., G244., H1092., H914. |
| 880 | The Man Boasts of his Wife | Is imprisoned in the royal castle. The wife in man's clothing is betrothed to the princess [K1837]. Escapes with her husband [R152.1]. | , 880 | K1837., R152.1. |
| 715 | Demi-coq | Is put in with the horses, oxen, etc. The animals taken along (bear, wolf, etc.) help. | , 715 | B171.1., B435.1., D1382.8., D915.2., F601.7., K481. |
| 1837 | The Parson to Let a Dove Fly in the Church | It dies in his pocket (or has other accident). [X418]. | ||
| 1682 | The groom teaches his horse to live without food | It dies. [J1914]. | 1682 | J1914. |
| 1009 | Guarding the Store-room Door | It is lifted off and carried away. [K1413]. Cf. Type 1653A. | 1009 | K1413. |
| 804 | Peter's Mother Falls from Heaven | It is permitted to the son in heaven [A661.0.1.2] to pull his mother out of hell on a stalk [F51.1.3]. When the other dead catch her feet, she kicks them and falls back into hell [Q291.1]. | , 804 | A661.0.1.2., F51.1.3., Q291.1.St. |
| 1247 | The Man Sticks his Head into the Hole of the Millstone | It rolls into the lake. [J2131.5.4]. Cf. Type 1241. | ||
| 1212 | The Horse is Drawn across the Ice | Its skin is rubbed off [J1972]. | ||
| 328 | The Treasures of the Giant | Jack and the Beanstalk. The horse, the light, etc. Finally the giant is killed. Sometimes joined with Type 327. Cf also Types 531, 1525. I. Expeditions to the Giant. (a) The hero sets out to steal from a giant in order to get revenge for former… | , 328, 328A, 328A* | , B103.2.1.2.1., D1601.18.18., F54.2.2., G84., H1151., H1172. |
| 2250 | Unfinished tales | Just as interest is aroused the narrator quits. »If the bowl had been stronger my tale had been longer». [Z12]. | ||
| 1315 | The Big Tree Taken for a Snake | Killed with guns and spears. [J1771.1]. | ||
| 1211 | The Peasant Woman Thinks the Cow Chewing her Cud is Mimicking Her | Kills the cow. [J1835]. | ||
| 858 | When the King Sneezes the Shephard Refuses to Cry "God Bless You!" | King has him tortured and promises him large gifts if he will say it, but the shepherd refuses until he receives the princess as wife. |
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