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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 725 | The Dream | The boy refuses to tell his dream to his father, and even to the king. Various adventures. Conquers enemies, wins the princess. Thus the dream is fulfilled. The boy dreams that his parents shall serve him and that the king shall pour water on his… | , 725 | D1812.3.3., H551., L425., M312.0.1. |
| 1738 | The Dream: All Parsons in Hell | The smith, who is sick, sends for the parson, whoAT first refuses to come on account of bad weather. When he arrives the smith says that he has dreamed that he went to heaven, where St. Peter would not admit him before he saw a priest. There were no… | ||
| 1270 | The Drying of the Candle | The candle is laid in the stove to dry; melts [J2122]. | 1270 | J2122. |
| 992 | The Eaten Heart | Adulteress is caused unwittingly to eat her lover's heart. (Sometimes other parts of his body) [Q478.1]. | 992, 992A | NA, Q478.1. |
| 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. |
| 1804 | The eel filled with sand | A penitent confesses that a plan to sin has entered his mind. Priest tells him that the thought is as good as the deed. Assesses four florins as penance. Penitent says that he had only had it in his mind to give the florins; he must take the thought… | ||
| 221 | The Election of Bird-King | Wren wins by cleverness. | 221 | B236.1. |
| 977 | The Eloping Couple and the Robbers | An eloping couple comes to the house of a band of thieves who are absent. The mother of the thieves tries to detain the couple, but, unable to keep them until the robbers return, she ties a bag of seeds, or the like, to their horses so that they can… | ||
| 1423 | The Enchanted Pear Tree | The wife makes the husband, who has seen her adultery from the tree, believe that the tree is magic (or that he has seen double) [K1518]. | 1423 | K1518. |
| 1730 | The entrapped suitors | No examples in the Database yet | ||
| 1807 | The Equivocal Confession | A man makes an equivocal confession to the priest he has robbed, e.g., says that he has saved a man from a bear, (meaning that he stole the priest's furs); asks his confessor for guidance. The priest, misunderstanding the confession, even praises the… | ||
| 1418 | The Equivocal Oath | A husband insists that his wife take oath that she has been intimate with no one but himself. The paramour masks as ass-driver. She hires an ass from him, falls down, and lets him pick her up. She swears no one has touched her except the husband and… | 1418 | K1513. |
| 1170 | The Evil Woman in the Glass Case as Last Commodity | The man is to belong to the ogre as soon as he has sold his goods. If he has any goods that no one will buy, he is to be free. The man puts an evil old woman in a glass case. When the devil sees her he recognizes her: »Whoever knows her will refuse… | 1170 | K216.1. |
| 1164 | The evil woman thrown into the pit | The ogre comes out, since he cannot remain below with her. [K2325, T251.1.4]. | , 1164 | T251.1.2.1., T251.1.2.2. |
| 513 | The Extraordinary Companions | Cf. Types 301B, 571. | , 513A, 513B | D1533.1.1., D2144.1.2., F601., F601.2., F621., F632., F641., F661.5.3., F681.1., H1127., H1142., H1511., H331., H331.5.1., L161., N825.2. |
| 1940 | The Extraordinary Names | The place where animals and things have extraordinary names. | 1940 | X1506. |
| 178 | The Faithful Animal Rashly Killed | See AT 0178A and AT 0178B. | 178, 178A | B331.2., NA |
| 889 | The Faithful Servant | A lord makes a wager with his neighbor on the faithfulness of his servant [N25]. The servant is sent to the neighbor's house, where he is made drunk, etc. The neighbor loses the wager. Sometimes joined with Type 930 III a. | , 889 | J751.1., N25. |
| 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… | ||
| 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. |
| 1511 | The Faithless Queen | Cf. Type 871A. I. The Queen and the Loathsome Paramour [T232]. (a) A king follows his queen as she slips out of their bedchamber. (b) The queen goes to her lover, a loathsome cripple, beggar, etc., (c) who beats her for coming late to their… | ||
| 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. |
| 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… | ||
| 2027 | The fat cat | While the mistress is away the cat eats the porridge, the bowl, and the ladle. When the mistress return she says »How fat you are!» The cat: »I ate the porridge, the bowl, and the ladle and I will eat you.» The cat meets other animals and eats… | ||
| 137 | The Filthy Hog and the Clean Fish | The hog: "People will spit when they eat you, whereas in my case all will lick their fingers." | 137 | NA |
| 1185 | The First Crop | The man to pay the devil when he harvests his first crop. He plants acorns. | 1185 | K221. |
| 120 | The First to See the Sunrise | Wager between the fox and the hog. In the contest the fox places himself on a hill facing the east; the hog in a lower place facing the high trees to the west. The sun shines on the top of the trees and the hog wins. (Sometimes told with human actors.) | 120 | K52. |
| 253 | The Fish in the Net | The little fish slip through the meshes; the big ones are caught. | 253 | L331. |
| 555 | The Fisherman and his Wife, | The fish fulfills all the wishes of the wife of a poor fisher. I. The Wishes Obtained. (a) A poor fisher catches a fish who is a transformed monster and puts him back in the water; in gratitude the fish grants all the wishes of the wife; - or (b) a… | , 555 | B170., B375.1., C773.1., D1761.0.1., J514., Q338. |
| 1574 | The flattering foreman | A tailor dreams that at Judgment Day he sees a flag made up of all the pieces of cloth he has stolen. Upon waking he asks his servants to warn him if they ever see him tempted to steal again. This happens. He replies, »The piece I am about to steal… | 1574 | J1401. |
| 2025 | The Fleeing Pancake | A woman makes a pancake which flees. Various animals try in vain to stop it. Finally the fox eats it up. [Z33.1]. | 2025 | Z33.1. |
| 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… | ||
| 407 | The Flower Girl | A maiden is transformed into a flower [D212]. A man breaks a stalk of the flower and she becomes human again [D711.4]. He takes her as his wife [T101]. Cf. Type 652. | , 407, 407A, 407B | , D212., D711.4., T100. |
| 1600 | The fool as murderer | The brothers put a he-goat in place of the body and thus save their brother. [H472.1, K661.1]. Cf. Type 1381B, C, E. | 1600 | NA |
| 1695 | The Fool Spoils the Work of the Shoemaker, the Tailor and the Smith | Makes shoes for animals as well for men since he expects a cold winter. [J1873.1, W111.5.9]. | ||
| 1685 | The Foolish Bridegroom | Dog »Parsley» in the soup [J2462.1]. Clearing out the room (throws out the stove) [J2465.5]. To »throw good eyes» at the bride (throws ox-eyes and sheep-eyes on the plate) [J2462.2]. Cf. Type 1006. She flees. The he-goat in the bride's place in… | , 1685 | J2462.1., J2462.2., J2465.5. |
| 1725 | The foolish parson in the trunk | The clever rascal gets ready to throw the trunk into the water; see Type 1535, incidents III b, c, 1358. | ||
| 2012 | The Forgetful Man Counts the Days of the Week | On Monday they go to mill, etc. - He thus discovers that it is Sunday. [Z24]. | , 2012 | Z24., Z24.1., Z24.1.1. |
| 884 | The forgotten fiancée | A prince forsakes his fiancée in order to pledge himself to another of his father's choice. In men's clothes [K1837], the first fiancée along with her companions goes into the service of the prince. [K1816.0.2]. Test: whether men or maidens… | , 884 | D2003., H1578.1., K1816.0.2., K1837., N681.1., T165.4., T84. |
| 1687 | The forgotten word | No examples in the Database yet | 1687 | D2004.5. |
| 954 | The Forty Thieves | The robbers come with seven casks into the house. In one cask is oil, in the others men are hidden. [K312]. The girl kills the robbers. | , 676, 954 | D1552.2., F721.4., K312., N455.3., N471., N478., N512. |
| 63 | The Fox (or Jackal) and the Fleas | No examples in the Database yet | 63 | K921. |
| 105 | The fox and the cat | The cat has only one trick and saves herself in a tree. The fox who knows a hundred tricks is captured. | 105, 105* | J1662., K522. |
| 60 | The Fox and the Crane Invites Each Other | The crane (heron) has his food in a deep dish, the fox his on a flat plate. The crane injures his beak. | 60 | J1565.1. |
| 37 | The fox as shepherd | Search for a nursemaid (or mourning-woman). Fox takes service and eats up the young bears. | 37, 37* | K931. |
| 170 | The fox eats his fellow-lodger | The fox spends the night with a cock in a house. He eats the cock but in the morning he accuses the sheep of having eaten it. In the next inn likewise the ox has eaten the sheep, etc. In compensation he demands a larger animal each time. .… | 170, 171 | K443.7., NA |
| 36 | The Fox in Disguise Violates the She-Bear | The she-bear is caught in a tree cleft or hole in the hedge . To avoid later recognition the fox covers himself with soot and is taken for the pastor. Variant: the hare, the she-fox. | 36 | K1384. |
| 61 | The Fox Persuades the Cock to Crow with Closed Eyes | Captures him. Often followed by: the cock persuades the fox to ask a blessing before eating him. | 61, 61B | K721., K815.15. |
| 30 | The Fox Tricks the Wolf into Falling into a Pit | Race. | 30 | NA |
| 242 | The Frog Enticed out of his Hole | Crow (or other bird) swears not to eat him. Breaks his oath. | 242 | K815. |
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