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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1260 | Jumping into the sea for fish | They put meal into the ice hole and then, one after another, all jump in to taste the porridge. [J1938]. | 1260 | J1938. |
| 1261 | The Slaughter of the Ox | In preparation, the feet are cut off the evening before. [J2168]. | ||
| 1263 | The Porridge Eaten in Different Rooms | The porridge in one, the milk in another [J2167]. | 1263 | J2167. |
| 1270 | The Drying of the Candle | The candle is laid in the stove to dry; melts [J2122]. | 1270 | J2122. |
| 1276 | Rowing without going forward | One woman rows in one direction, another in the opposite; or rowing in a boat which is tied up. [J2164.1, J2l64.2]. | , 1276 | J2164.1., J2164.2. |
| 1277 | The Boat Gets Tired | The woman tries to tire out her rival's boat so as to win the race, but only tires herself. [J1884]. | ||
| 1278 | Marking the place on the boat | An object falls into the sea from a boat. Numskulls mark the place on the boat-rail to indicate where it fell. [J1922.1]. | 1278, 1278* | J1922.1., J1922.2. |
| 1279 | Protected by the Needle | In a storm on the ice, fools stick needles into the ice to keep from blowing away. [J1965]. | ||
| 1280 | The Needle (or the like) Falls into the Sea | The man hunts it the next summer. [J1921]. | ||
| 1281 | Burning the Barn to Destroy an Unknown Animal | The cat (owl) is bought. Eats many mice. To kill it they set the house on fire. [J2101]. Cf. Type 1651. | 1281, 1281A | J1815., J2101. |
| 1285 | Pulling on the shirt | The shirt is sewed together at the neck. The man's head is cut off so that the shirt can be put on him. [J2161.2]. | ||
| 1286 | Jumping into the Breeches | The woman tries to pull on her husband's breeches for him on both legs at once. | 1286 | J2161.1. |
| 1287 | Numskull unable to count their own number | No examples in the Database yet | 1287 | J2031., J2031.1. |
| 1288 | 'These are not my feet' | A stranger helps them with a switch. [J2021]. | 1288 | J2021. |
| 1290 | Swimming in the Flax-field | Peasants go to visit the sea. They see a waving flax field, and thinking it is the sea, jump in for a swim. [J1821]. | 1290 | J1821. |
| 1291 | Sending One Cheese After Another | One cheese falls and rolls down the hill. She sends the second to bring back the first. [J1881.1.2]. | 1291, 1291B, 1291C | J1871., J1881.1.2., J1881.1.3. |
| 1293 | Numskull Stays until he has Finished | As he is making water he hears a brook flowing and mistakes what it is. He waits for a day and a half. [J1814]. | ||
| 1294 | Getting the Calf's Head out of the Pot | A calf gets its head caught in the pot. A fool cuts off the calf's head and then breaks the pot to get it out. [J2113]. | 1294 | J2113. |
| 1295 | The Seventh Cake Satisfies | Fool regrets that he had not eaten number seven first since that was the one that brought satisfaction. [J2213.3]. | ||
| 1296 | Fool's Errand | People sent to get imaginary things. (Left-handed monkey wrench and the like.) [J2346]. | 1296 | J2346. |
| 1309 | Choosing the Clean Figs | From figs which have been urinated on he is to choose only clean ones. In testing he eats them all. | ||
| 1310 | Drowning the crayfish as punishment | Eel, crab, turtle, etc. express fear of water and are thrown in. | , 1310 | J1762.1.2., K581.1. |
| 1311 | The Wolf Taken for a Colt | In the man's absence eats the mare [J1752]. | ||
| 1313 | The Man who Thought Himself Dead | Has the corpse eat bread. (Usually has eaten from a pot of preserves said to be poisoned.) | , 1313, 1313A | J2311.1., J2311.1.4., J2311.2., J2311.4. |
| 1314 | The Buttercask Taken for a Dead Man | Fools knock it in two. [J1783.1]. | 1315 | J1771.1. |
| 1315 | The Big Tree Taken for a Snake | Killed with guns and spears. [J1771.1]. | ||
| 1316 | Rabbit Thought to be a Cow | Servant sent to bring in cows is found chasing rabbits. [J1757]. Cf. Type 570. | , 1316 | J1751., J1754., J1755., J1757. |
| 1317 | Blind Man and Elephant | Four blind men feel an elephant's leg, tail, ear, and body respectively, and conclude it is like a log, a rope, a fan, and something without beginning or end. [J1761.10]. | NA | J1761.10. |
| 1319 | Other mistaken identities | No examples in the Database yet | 1319, 1319A*, 1319J* | J1761.11., J1772.1., J1781.2. |
| 1321 | Fools frightened | Cf. Type 1677. | 1321, 1321C | J2600., J2614.1. |
| 1326 | Moving the church | The stolen coat. To see whether the church is moving someone lays down his coat in front of it. It is stolen. They think the church has passed over it. [J2328]. | 1326 | J2328. |
| 1327 | Emptying the Meal Sack | To convince arguers of the emptiness of their quarrel he empties sack of meal (pot of oil). [J2062.1]. | 1327 | J2062.1. |
| 1330 | Quenching the Burning Boat | People row to land and fetch water from a spring to put out the fire. [J2162.3]. | ||
| 1331 | The Covetous and the Envious | Of two envious men one is given the power of fulfilling any wish, on condition that the other shall receive double. He wishes that he may lose an eye. [J2074]. Cf. Type 750. | ||
| 1333 | The Shepherd who Cried "Wolf!" too often | When the wolf really comes no one believes him [J2172.1]. | 1333 | J2172.1. |
| 1334 | The Local Moon | A numskull greets the old moon as if it were new. »I haven't seen it before, for I have just come to the city.» (Each town thought to have a different moon.) [J2271.1]. | 1334 | J2271.1. |
| 1335 | The Eaten Moon | The numskull sees a cow drink from a pool where the moon is reflected. The moon goes under a cloud. He thinks the cow has eaten the moon and slaughters her to recover it. [J1791.1]. | 1335, 1335*, 1335A | J1791.1., J1791.2., J1806. |
| 1336 | Diving for Cheese | Man (animal) sees moon reflected in water and, thinking it a cheese, dives in for it. [J1791.3]. This is Type 34 with human actors. | 1336A | J1791.7. |
| 1341 | Fools Warn Thief what Not to Steal | Explain where everything is and where the key is kept. [J2091, J2091.1]. Cf. Types 1525P, 1577*. | ||
| 1342 | Hot and Cold with the Same Breath | No examples in the Database yet | 1342 | NA |
| 1343 | Hanging Game | Comrade to rescue fool when he whistles. Hangs himself. [N334.2]. | ||
| 1344 | Lighting a Fire from the Sparks from a Box on the Ear | Cf. Type 1372. | ||
| 1347 | Living Crucifix Chosen | Peasants take their old crucifix to an artist for a new one. The artist asks them whether they want a living or dead crucifix. Argument: living God takes less for upkeep and he can be killed later. [J1738.2]. | 1347, 1347* | J1738.2., NA |
| 1348 | The Imaginative Boy | No examples in the Database yet | 1348 | W211.2. |
| 1380 | The faithless wife | Asks God how she can fool her husband. The husband from the tree (or rafters) tells her that she can make him blind by feeding him milk-toast. The husband feigns blindness and slays the lover. The body is thrown into the river. Cf. Types 1324*, 1375,… | 1380 | K1553. |
| 1381 | The talkative wife and the discovered treasure | The wood-cock in the fish-net and the fish in the bird-trap. The woman under the bath tub (for fear of rumored war). The woman is considered mad and the man can keep his treasure. The husband has foolishly told his talkative wife of discovered… | 1381, 1381B, 1381C, 1381D, 1381E | H472.1., J1151.1.1., J1151.1.3., J2353., NA |
| 1382 | The Peasant Woman at Market | The sale of the cow. The woman made drunk or is to give a pawn; cf. Type 1385. Doesn't know herself any more; cf. Type 1383. The husband fishes in the street and thus discovers the buyer of the cow. [J1149.2]. | ||
| 1383 | A Woman Does Not Know Herself | No examples in the Database yet | , 1383 | J2012.2., J2012.3. |
| 1384 | The husband hunts for three persons as stupid as his wife | Cf. Types 1450, Clever Elsie; 1385, The Foolish Wife's Pawn. The man finds three as foolish [H1312.1]. Cf. Type 1540, The Student from Paradise. This type combines with many others, particularly 1310, 1245, 1265, 1286, 1326, 1371*, 1385, 1386, 1387… | 1384 | H1312.1. |
| 1385 | A Woman Loses Her Husband's Money | The wife sells cows. Gets one of them back as pledge for the unpaid purchase price [J2086]. Cf. Types 1382, 1384. | 1385, 1385* | J2086., na |
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