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Stith Thompson Motif Index
About this index and how to read it
Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature classifies recurring narrative elements in folktales, myths, legends, ballads and related traditional narratives. Each entry below gives Thompson's motif reference and the description recorded in the index.
The index is large, so this browser displays 250 entries per page. You can search by motif reference or by words in the description, restrict the results to one of Thompson's main letter categories, and click motif references mentioned inside descriptions to follow cross-references. Individual motif pages also show any ATU tale types whose concordance explicitly cites that Thompson reference.
All
A
Mythological Motifs
B
Animal Motifs
C
Motifs of Tabu
D
Magic
E
The Dead
F
Marvels
G
Ogres
H
Tests
J
The Wise and the Foolish
K
Deceptions
L
Reversals of Fortune
M
Ordaining the Future
N
Chance and Fate
P
Society
Q
Rewards and Punishments
R
Captives and Fugitives
S
Unnatural Cruelty
T
Sex
U
The Nature of Life
V
Religion
W
Traits of Character
X
Humor
Z
Miscellaneous Groups of Motifs
| Thompson reference ▲ | Description |
|---|---|
| X0 | Humor of discomfiture. |
| X11 | Red pepper for the slow ass: man tries it on himself. When, on the advice of a friend, he gives the ass red pepper, the ass runs away. Then he tries it on himself. He runs so fast that he passes the ass. Arriving at home, he says to his wife, "Unload the ass when he comes. I must run through the village a couple of times more." Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 224 No. 64. |
| X12 | Man interrupted each time he tries to eat something. *Basset 1001 Contes I 273. |
| X12.1 | Man continually interrupted from eating answers in rhymed monosyllables. Nouvelles Récréations. |
| X21 | Accidental cannibalism. A man eats up the dried meat of a Jew on shipboard. It happens that the Jew is carrying his dead father back home for burial in this form. (Cf. G60.) *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin I 257 No. 193; Italian Novella: Rotunda. Cf. Japanese: Ikeda. |
| X31 | The dream of marking the treasure. A man dreams that he finds treasure and that he marks the spot with his excrements. Only the latter part of the dream is true. *Wesselski Arlotto II 267 No. 216, Hodscha Nasreddin I 278 No. 314; Lithuanian: Balys Legends No. 788f.; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X31.1 | Man dreams that he is rich. Finds cat's excrements. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X31.2 | Pig licks sleeping man's lips: man thinks he is being kissed. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X32 | Wager with overdressed youths that servant can carry a large bucket of water upstairs. They follow and are soaked when the servant purposely spills the dirty water. Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| X34 | Use of itch-producing ointment. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X52 | Ridiculous nakedness or exposure. |
| X52.1 | Woman exposed to ridicule when her wig is snatched off by a monkey. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| X53 | Man given ride on a hemp-dresser. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. |
| X100 | Humor of disability. Besides the motifs which follow, the entire series of motifs concerning fools (J1700—J2799) properly belongs here as well as where it is given. |
| X110 | Humor of deafness. |
| X111 | Deaf men and their answers. *Type 1698; **Aarne FFC XX; *Fb "tunghør"; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X111.1 | Deaf persons: search for the lost animal. A inquires for his lost animal.—B talks about his work and makes a gesture.—A follows the direction of the gesture and happens to find the animals. He returns and offers an injured animal to B in thanks. — B thinks that he is blamed for injuring the animals. Dispute. Taken to deaf judge. (Cf. X111.14.) *Type 1698A; Aarne FFC XX 16ff.; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X111.2 | Deaf peasant: travelers ask the way. Travelers ask their direction. Peasant thinks they want to buy oxen.—Peasant's wife arrives; thinks they say her food is too salty.—Daughter-in-law and father-in-law misunderstand each other. *Type 1698B; Aarne FFC XX 28ff.; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X111.3 | Two persons believe each other deaf. A trickster tells each of two persons before they meet that the other is hard of hearing and must be shouted at. A great shouting takes place, and each thinks the other out of his wits. *Type 1698C; *Aarne FFC XX 29ff.; Wesselski Gonnella 118 No. 16; Nouvelles Récréations No. 10; Nouvelles de Sens No. 4. |
| X111.4 | Deaf peasant: the wedding invitation. Lord: Good morning, Peter. —Peasant: I come from Bingen.—L. What is the hog worth? —P. Two weeks from next Sunday (the wedding).—L. Shall I come to the wedding?—P. Three and a half gulden. *Type 1698D; *Aarne FFC XX 35ff.; *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 719. |
| X111.5 | Deaf man on the bridge. Lord: Good day, Caspar. — Caspar: I am making a reel.—L. Good day, Caspar.—C. It is worth four pence. —L. Good day, Caspar.—C. Yes, my lord, whenever you wish. Type 1698E; *Aarne FFC XX 38ff. |
| X111.6 | The deaf man and the proud nobleman. A nobleman amuses himself at the expense of the deaf man. Finally—Nobleman: I wish you a thousand gallows and ropes around your neck.—Peasant: My lord, I wish you twice as many. Type 1698F; *Aarne FFC XX 39ff. |
| X111.7 | Misunderstood words lead to comic results. In some the people are not really deaf but fail to catch a word; in some they are deaf. Type 1698G; Aarne FFC XX 40, 76.—Spanish: Espinosa Jr. No. 189; India: Thompson-Balys; Indonesia: DeVries's list No. 296. |
| X111.8 | The deaf man with the bird in the tree. A traveller asks the way and the man keeps telling him about the bird he has caught. (The questions and answers often rhyme.) Type 1698H; Aarne FFC XX 41ff. |
| X111.9 | Deaf man visits the sick. He plans the conversation with the expected answers. The answers turn out otherwise.—A. How are you?—B. I am dead. —Thank God! What have you eaten? — Poison, I think.—I hope it agrees with you. *Type 1698I; Aarne FFC XX 50ff.; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X111.10 | "Good day." — "A woodchopper." The workman answers the traveler's courtesies with remarks about his work. (Cf. X111.8.) Type 1698J; Aarne FFC XX 51ff., cf. 67ff., 72, 75 (Types 12, 13, 16, 18). |
| X111.11 | Buyer and deaf seller. Type 1698K; Aarne FFC XX 60ff., 69ff. (Types 11, 14, 15). |
| X111.12 | The deaf parson. The youth answers unintelligibly but is praised nevertheless. Type 1698L. |
| X111.13 | The deaf bishop. The drunken priest says, "In the morning I take a drink of rum and afterwards four or five little drinks." Type 1698M. |
| X111.14 | Deaf litigants and deaf judge misunderstand one another. (Cf. X111.1.) *Chauvin VII 113 No. 381; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X111.15 | Travelers pass through Wesley. One asks name of town; another replies, "This is Wesley." Another says, "I thought it was Thursday." Third says, "So am I; let's have a drink." U.S.: Baughman. |
| X112 | Deaf husband orders deaf wife to prepare a certain dish: misunderstanding. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X113 | Misunderstanding and quarrels in family of deaf. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X120 | Humor of bad eyesight. |
| X121 | The wife who saw double. Sees two plates where there are one, etc. Thinks two men are with her. Husband: "See everything double except your husband." Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin II 186 No. 358. |
| X121.1 | The squint-eyed son and the bottle. Sent by his father to get the only bottle of rare wine, he sees two. Not wishing to show his father to be a liar, he breaks one—really the only one. Chauvin II 196 No. 22. |
| X122 | One-eyed man as appraiser of horse. Has appraised it at half a mark. "He saw only half a horse; otherwise he would have valued it at a mark." Bédier Fabliaux 123; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X123 | Blind man and the bull. Man asks bull if he is on the right road. Bull butts him and knocks him down. The man says that all that was not necessary, simply to say yes or no. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 140 No. 1699. |
| X123.1 | Blind man reaches his home hanging on ox's tail (or in other ridiculous situation). India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X124 | Nearsighted knight mistakes own servant for one of the enemy. Runs lance into his posterior. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X124.1 | Blind man strikes woman thinking she is buffalo. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X124.2 | Blind son-in-law visits his wife's family: gets into difficulties. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X125 | Blind men trying to kill pigs with clubs strike one another. (Cf. K1081.) Herbert III 71, 133, 572. |
| X128 | Blind man in awkward position pretends to see. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X130 | Other physical disabilities. |
| X131 | The wry-mouthed family. Each member has mouth turned in a different way. Unavailing attempts to blow out the light. U.S.: *Baughman; Danish: MS in Danske Folkemindesamling (Grundtvig No. 166). |
| X133 | Man calls convention of all long noses. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X135 | The humor of stuttering. U.S.: Baughman; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X135.1 | Each of four stutterers thinks the others are ridiculing him. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X135.2 | Stutterer tries to give alarm. Amusing results. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X137 | Humor of ugliness. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X141 | Blind, lame, and deaf as witnesses in court. Type 1673*. |
| X142 | The humor of small stature. (Cf. F535.1.) Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X142.1 | Dwarf king falls into porridge-pot at court of human king. Irish myth: *Cross. |
| X142.2 | Dwarf poet forced to swim in drinking-horn of human being. Irish myth: *Cross. |
| X142.3 | Tiny ambassador put on horse with long stirrups. Cannot say anything as he is too busy trying to keep his seat. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X142.4 | Short magistrate wears a high helmet. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X143 | Humor of lameness. |
| X143.1 | Lame man taken on hunt in wheel chair beats the dogs home when they tree a spook or when a bear gets after them. (Cf. K1861.) U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X145 | Humor of bad singing. |
| X145.1 | Audience of one hired to listen to egoistic dismal-voiced singer. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X151 | Humor of fatness. |
| X151.1 | Six short, fat husbands married to six tall, fat wives try absurdly to kiss them at the threshold on their wedding day. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X151.2 | Fat man so unwieldly he fishes from his window in the street. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X200 | Humor dealing with tradesmen. |
| X210 | Jokes about millers. (Cf. P443.) |
| X211 | Millers as thieves. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 785; Fb "møller" II 649; Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| X212 | The honest miller. Baker cannot understand how a man who has been a miller can be a beggar. It is a wonder that the farmers are not beggars instead. Wesselski Bebel I 118 No. 3. |
| X212.1 | Priest commends the poor miller. If he had been like the rest of the congregation he would have become rich. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 825. |
| X213 | Why no millers in hell. A mad dog in place of a miller in a sack. Flemish: DeMeyer FFC XXXVII 84 No. 27b. |
| X214 | Monks get revenge on millers. Drunken millers force monks to dance. Millers are enticed to monastery and beaten. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X220 | Jokes about tailors. (Cf. P441.) |
| X221 | Oversight of the thievish tailor. Sews the stolen piece of cloth on the outside of his coat, thinking that it is on the inside. Type 2005*. |
| X221.1 | Thievish tailor cuts a piece of his own coat. Type 2005**; Nouvelles Récréations No. 46. |
| X221.2 | Thieving tailor can hide stolen cloth even in needle-and-thread tube. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X222 | Tailor always associated with goat. **B. Salditt Hessische Blätter f. Vksk. XXX—XXXI 88. |
| X223 | Tailors cowards as warriors: go home to their needles. (Cf. W121.) India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X230 | Jokes about butchers. |
| X231 | Butcher wonders that man who has been buying his meat for seven years can still be alive. Wesselski Mönchslatein 184 No. 142. |
| X240 | Jokes about cobblers (shoemakers). |
| X241 | Ugly cobbler continually threatens to throw his last at people. The object of jokes. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 98 No. 836D*. |
| X242 | Shoemaker drinks more than his portion of "drink of lies", which has been prepared for all to partake of equally. Wienert FFC LVI 39; Halm Aesop No. 136. |
| X250 | Jokes about other artisans and tradesmen. |
| X251 | Jokes on weavers. (Cf. P445.) *Chauvin VIII 105 No. 81 n. 2. |
| X251.1 | Why no weavers in hell. Devils annoyed at their noisy trade. Flemish: DeMeyer FFC XXXVII 84 No. 27a. |
| X252 | Jokes about barbers. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X252.1 | Client flees when cobwebs are brought in to medicate cuts. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X252.2 | Barber uses cut hair to staunch cuts. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X253 | Jokes on fishermen. Nouvelles Récréations. |
| X253.1 | Talkativeness of the fishwives of Paris. Anecdotes of their invective. Nouvelles Récréations No. 63. |
| X300 | Humor dealing with professions. |
| X310 | Jokes on lawyers. (Cf. P422.) |
| X311 | What will happen when there are so many lawyers. Woman sees the crowds of students in the law school. She knows that the one lawyer in her village has ruined nearly everyone. *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 787; *Wesselski Bebel I 216 No. 110. |
| X312 | Beggar frightens lawyer into giving by telling him of all the lawyers in hell. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 95 No. 819*; cf. U.S.: Baughman. |
| X313 | Dying like Christ—between two thieves. The dying man has the lawyer and the notary stand on either side of him. U.S.: Baughman; Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 134 No. 1583*. |
| X314 | Lawyer who tries to practice without lying fails. He enters religious order and tries to conduct the legal business without lying. *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 127; Crane Vitry 155 No. 52; Scala Celi 7b No. 47; Alphabet No. 483. |
| X315 | Dying lawyer says, "I appeal". Crane Vitry 149f. No. 39; Scala Celi 7b No. 48; Herbert III 77 No. 200, 462 No. 94, 497 No. 238, 499 No. 262; Alphabet No. 41; Mensa Philosophica No. 147. |
| X315.1 | Dying lawyer asks delay. Crane Vitry 150 No. 40; Scala Celi 7b No. 45; Mensa Philosophica No. 148. |
| X316 | Nero has reserved place in hell for lawyers. Crane Vitry 148 No. 36; Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| X317 | Lawyer thrown back into mud when rescuers learn that he is a lawyer. Mensa Philosophica No. 37. |
| X318 | Lawyer loses tongue in death because he sold it in life. Alphabet No. 40. |
| X319 | Miscellaneous jokes about lawyers. |
| X319.1 | Eloquent lawyer makes obviously guilty client doubt his own guilt. Canada, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X330 | Jokes on magistrates. (Cf. P421.) |
| X331 | Guilty of everything connected with the seven senses. When the priest to whom he is confessing says there are but five senses, the magistrate says that he needs two more senses than other people. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 297. |
| X332 | Foreigner wonders why city with so many judges has not been destroyed. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X350 | Jokes on teachers. |
| X351 | Music teacher charges double for those who have taken music before. One fee for teaching and one for making them forget the old teaching. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 314. |
| X370 | Jokes on scholars. |
| X371 | Master of seven liberal arts begs from wagoner. With his one art latter supports his family. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 855. |
| X372 | Jokes on doctors. U.S.: Baughman; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X372.1 | Doctor cures palpitation of heart: patient stops breathing. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X372.2 | Head cut off to cure snakebite. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X372.3 | Eyedrops prescribed for stomach ache so that patient can see what he eats. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X372.4 | Foolish doctor performs useless operation. |
| X372.4.1 | Man with cheeks stuffed with food operated on to remove swellings. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X372.5 | Doctor called to attend sick man immediately gives orders for the funeral. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X410 | Jokes on parsons. *Types 1725—1824; **Kristensen Vore Fædres Kirketjeneste (Aarhus, 1899); *Fb "præst" II 884a; West Indies: Flowers 583. |
| X411 | Parson put to flight during his sermon. Type 1785. |
| X411.1 | Sexton's dog steals sausage from parson's pocket: parson flees. *Type 1785A. |
| X411.2 | Sexton puts needle in sacramental bread: parson sticks his hand. *Type 1785B. |
| X411.3 | Sexton arranges wasp-nest so that parson sits on it. Wasps chase him. *Type 1785C. |
| X412 | Tame bear tied to church bells. Rings alarm. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X413 | One-eyed parson in dimly lighted church joins the wrong couples. Marries the old man to the girl and the old woman to the boy. Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| X414 | Parson rides ox into church. He wants to show how Christ rode into Jerusalem. Sexton sticks ox with needle. *Type 1786. |
| X415 | The hog in church. Locked in church all week by mistake. When the congregation comes, the hog runs between the parson's legs and carries him out. *Type 1838; Fb "svin". |
| X416 | Parson preaches so that half the congregation weeps and half laughs. Has clothes torn in the back. Those that see this laugh. He wins the wager. *Type 1828*; Wesselski Morlini 297 No. 44. |
| X417 | Parson smears his hand with butter. Rascals have spread butter on the altarbread. The parson preaches, "What is the life of man?" and therewith brings his hand down on the altar-bread: "Pure butter!" Type 1836*. |
| X418 | Parson is to let a dove fly in the church. It dies in his pocket. *Type 1837. |
| X421 | At the blessing of the grave the parson's ox breaks loose: "Now the devil has him." *Type 1840; *Fb "tyr" III 908b. |
| X422 | The corpse with his feet cut off. The coffin-maker has fitted him to the coffin. The parson: "On the last day he will arise." One of the coffin-makers: "Did I say that?" Type 1699*. |
| X424 | The devil in the cemetery. A sexton hears thieves in the cemetery cracking nuts and thinks it is the devil cracking bones. With the gouty parson on his back he comes upon the thieves who, thinking it is their companion with the sheep, call out, "Is he fat?" The sexton: "Fat or lean, here he is!" *Type 1791; *BP III 395; *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 82; Scala Celi 101b No. 547; Alphabet No. 333; U.S., England: *Baughman; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 1791, Legends No. 889. |
| X424.1 | Robbers mistake man for devil (the "sheep" speaks, "Gently, gently!"). India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X425 | The parson who said there is no devil. The bear-showman lets the bear climb up the pulpit. The parson thinks the bear is the devil. Type 1745*. |
| X426 | If his son were only a fool he would let him study to be a priest. So says the innkeeper. Type 1865*. |
| X427 | A bad year for priests: few funerals. All but the priest rejoice over the good health of the community. He bemoans his loss of income from burials. *Wesselski Arlotto II 248 No. 155. |
| X428 | Enmity between priests and monks: chickens and eggs. Monks eat eggs and make chickens expensive; priests eat hens and make eggs high. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 69. |
| X431 | The hungry parson and the porridge-pot. Overnight at the peasant's house. The hungry parson hunts the porridge in the dark, guided by a rope the sexton has given him. Series of accidents. *Type 1775; Fb "seng" III 187a. |
| X431.1 | Stupid man tries to take honey from jug at night while visiting. Series of accidents. Chinese: Graham. |
| X434 | The parson put out of countenance. |
| X434.1 | The large loaves need a large oven. Parson says that the loaves with which Jesus fed the people in the wilderness were as large as the mountains. The mason asks what kind of oven they were baked in. Type 1834*. |
| X434.2 | Grace before meat. The parson asks the boy: "What does your father say when you begin to eat?" Boy: "You young devil, etc." *Type 1841. |
| X435 | The boy applies the sermon. Makes a present application of the words of the parson. *Type 1833; U.S.: Baughman. |
| X435.1 | "What says David?"—Boy: "Pay your old debts." Variants: (a) What evil did Adam do?—He (shoemaker) made my shoes too small. (b) What kind of man was Moses? He was a day laborer. *Type 1833A; *Wesselski Arlotto II 233 No. 113. |
| X435.2 | Parson "Where did the father stay?"—"He stayed to hold the oxen." *Type 1833B. |
| X435.3 | Parson: Where was Christ when he was neither in heaven nor on earth?—He was in the willow-grove looking for a stick to beat those who ask foolish questions. *Type 1833C. |
| X435.4 | Names of persons in the Trinity. The priest's example: the three cows. The boy: "The Holy Ghost has just had a calf." Type 1833D; England: Baughman. |
| X435.5 | Sermon about the rich man. A boy rides with a rich man. Goes into church and leaves his coat lying on the sled. When the parson preaches about the rich man who went to hell, the boy calls out, "Then he took my coat along!" *Type 1832. |
| X436 | The parson sings like a goat. The parson sees an old woman weeping and believes that she is touched by his singing. When spoken to she says that she has been reminded of her old goat which she has lost. *Type 1834; Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin II 243 No. 539; *Crane Vitry 157 No. 56; *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 576; Fb "prædiken" II 882; Scala Celi 25a No. 164;—Italian Novella: Rotunda; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X438 | The dream: all parsons in hell. The smith tells the parson whom he has summoned that he has dreamed of going to heaven where St. Peter would not admit him before he saw a parson. There were no parsons in heaven, but all in hell. *Type 1738. |
| X438.1 | All devout women in hell. Devout woman and a priest retell their dreams. The priest has dreamed that all the devout women are to be found in hell. Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 1847*. |
| X441 | Parson and sexton at mass. Parson intones instructions to the sexton (cook) as a part of the mass. *Type 1831; Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 147 No. 1831A*. |
| X441.1 | "I can't hear you." Rector confesses his sacristan: "Have you drunk the wine designated for the mass?" — "I can't hear you." Exchange of places. Sacristan asks rector: "Have you kissed my wife?" — "Really, I can't hear you." Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 2451*; Rumanian: Schullerus FFC LXXVIII No. 1777*. |
| X442 | Whistling at mass. Bell breaks and priest's patron whistles in place of ringing the bell at mass. *Wesselski Arlotto I 187 No. 7. |
| X443 | Parson's poor horsemanship. |
| X443.1 | Chaplain on bucking mule. Nouvelles Récréations No. 27. |
| X445 | Parson refreshes himself during the sermon. |
| X445.1 | Parson takes a drink of liquor during the sermon. (Cf. X111.13.) *Type 1827. |
| X445.2 | Parson takes a chew of tobacco during the sermon. Fb "kardus" II 91a. |
| X451 | Cock crows at church and the sexton awakes and begins to sing. *Type 1828. |
| X452 | The parson has no need to preach. Those who know may teach those who don't know. *Type 1826. |
| X452.1 | No need to give sermon about saint again. "Last year I told you all about his life and works. He has performed no new miracles." *Wesselski Arlotto I 188 No. 8; Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X453 | The woman whose name was "Worthy." Refuses to say, "I'm not worthy" at communion. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X454 | Chapel endowed with fifty blows for the friar. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X457 | Jokes on monks. |
| X457.1 | Bishop willing to admit castrated man as monk: wishes all were in the same condition. Nouvelles Récréations No. 15. |
| X459 | Jokes on parsons—miscellaneous. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X459.1 | Man heeds what he thinks to be call to the ministry. |
| X459.1.1 | Young man plowing corn sees letters "P. C." formed by clouds. He explains situation to minister, asks to be ordained. The minister explains that the letters mean "plow corn" instead of "preach Christ". U.S.: Baughman. |
| X460 | Humor concerning other professions. |
| X461 | Jokes on fortune-tellers. |
| X461.1 | Fortune-teller shows others how to get rich but remains poor himself. (Cf. J1062.) Herbert III 22 No. 186; Crane Vitry 250 No. 266. |
| X500 | Humor concerning other social classes. |
| X510 | Jokes concerning usurers. |
| X511 | Barber alone praises usurer. Custom not to bury dead until someone has something good to say about him. No one will praise a dead usurer until a barber is willing to say that he had a good beard. *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 195; Wesselski Mönchslatein 122 No. 105. |
| X512 | Usurers do not reply. The parson asks the various trades and professions to rise one by one for a special blessing. When he calls for the usurers none reply. Pauli (ed. Bolte) Nos. 193, 194; Crane Vitry 207 No. 179; Scala Celi 168b No. 959; Alphabet No. 792. |
| X513 | Devil will not carry usurers to hell but will drag them by the legs. So declares a youth paid by a usurer to protest against the priest's remarks that the devil would carry all usurers off. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 191; cf. Spanish: Espinosa Jr. No. 213. |
| X514 | Only usurers can carry the corpse of the usurer. It refuses to be moved by anyone else. (Cf. X521.) Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 190; Irish: Beal XXI 326, cf. O'Suilleabhain 74. |
| X516 | Usurer encourages sermons against usury, so that his competitors will cease activity. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 192; Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| X520 | Jokes concerning prostitutes. |
| X521 | Only prostitutes can carry the corpse of a prostitute. (Cf. X514.) Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 405. |
| X530 | Jokes concerning beggars. |
| X531 | Begging cripples hurry away from shrine lest they be healed and lose their livelihood. Wesselski Mönchslatein 183 No. 141. |
| X540 | Jokes on madmen. Irish myth: Cross. |
| X541 | Cohabitation between lunatics brought about for sport. Irish myth: Cross. |
| X550 | Jokes on secret societies. |
| X551 | Jokes on freemasons. *Fb "frimurer" I 371b; *Hdwb. d. Abergl. III 23ff. |
| X583 | Jokes about travelers. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X584 | Jokes about hunters. |
| X584.1 | Man chased by bear to camp claims that he brought it in thus since he did not want to carry it. (Cf. K1741.) U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X600 | Humor concerning races or nations. |
| X610 | Jokes concerning Jews. |
| X611 | How the Jews were drawn from heaven. Someone cries, "Clothes are being auctioned off in hell." *Type 2403; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 1868*; cf. U.S.: Baughman (X597.1, X902). |
| X613 | Trickster breaks up Jewish marriage ceremony and seduces the bride. (Cf. K1371.) Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X650 | Jokes concerning other races or nations. |
| X651 | Battle between lice of Strassburg and of Hungary. Hungarians win. Wesselski Bebel II 149 No. 160. |
| X652 | Learning the Bavarian language. A caretaker of an estate recently sold to a Bavarian sits among the swine so as to learn Bavarian. *Wesselski Bebel I 201 No. 80. |
| X661 | Why Arabians are liars. Hermes and his wagon of lies break down in Arabia. Wienert FFC LVI 39; Halm Aesop No. 141. |
| X680 | Jokes concerning various cities. |
| X681 | Blason populaire. Despiteful names used by one city for another. P. Sébillot and H. Gaidoz Le Blason Populaire de la France. |
| X700 | Humor concerning sex.1 |
| X750 | Jokes on old maids. *Types 1475—1499; Hdwb. d. Abergl. I 334 s.v. "Alte Jungfer". |
| X751 | Marriage forbidden outside the parish. An order is read in church forbidding the young people to marry girls from other parishes. *Type 1475. |
| X752 | The old maid in bed. On one side is a bundle of straw (her husband) and on the other a dog (her child). She gives the straw bundle a push and thereupon falls on the floor herself. Type 1480*. |
| X753 | A youth promises to marry an old maid if she will sit all night on the roof. She falls down. Type 1479*; Russian: Andrejev No. 1479*. |
| X754 | The meal of beans. One of the old maid's three teeth breaks off. Type 1478. |
| X755 | The wolf steals the old maid. She keeps him for a husband. Type 1477. |
| X756 | The mother trains the old maid to speak properly. Absurd results. Types 1485*, 1486*. |
| X760 | Jokes on courtship. |
| X800 | Humor based on drunkenness. Irish myth: *Cross; Icelandic: Boberg. |
| X811 | Drunk man lying under his bed thinks he is lying in his shroud. Is cured of drunkenness. Type 835*. |
| X812 | Drunk man goes to the king and wants to buy an island. Type 1671*. |
| X813 | Drunk man at the wedding. Goes to sleep and never reaches it, though at home he praises the wedding. Type 1705*. |
| X814 | Drunk men try to see one another home. Absurd results. Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 238. |
| X815 | Drunk man sees everything revolving and waits for his house to come to him. *Wesselski Hodscha Nasreddin II 236 No. 520. |
| X816 | Drunk woman thinks she is in heaven. Hears someone play the lyre. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X818 | Drunk recruits make war on a haystack. Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| X821 | Drunken volunteer firemen bungle their work. U.S.: Baughman. |
| X900 | Humor of lies and exaggeration. *Types 1875—1999; *Fb "løgn" II 513b; Irish myth: Cross. |
| X901 | One lie a year. A man who tells but one lie a year is believed because of his general truthfulness. Amusing results. Chauvin V 278 No. 161; *BP II 371, 509; Köhler-Bolte I 322; India: Thompson-Balys; Africa (Vai): Ellis 239 No. 46. |
| X902 | Liar comes to believe his own lie. He tells a lie so often that he believes it himself. (Cf. X611.) U.S.: Baughman. |
| X903 | Lie used as catch tale. (Cf. Z13.) Type 2200; U.S.: Baughman. |
| X904 | The teller reduces the size of his lie. |
| X904.1 | The liar reduces the size of his lie when his brother steps on his toes to remind him of his lying habits. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X904.2 | Liar reduces the size of his yarn when challenged. U.S.: Baughman. |
| X905 | Lying contests. Italian Novella: Rotunda; India: *Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda. |
| X905.1 | Master brought to say, "You lie!" Type 1920C; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 1920D*; Russian: Andrejev No. 1920D*; Prussian: Plenzat 78; Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 119 No. 27; Livonian: Loorits FFC LXVI 51 No. 89; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| X905.2 | Greatest liar made king of Schlaraffenland. (First ed. X950.3.) (Cf. X1503.) BP II 507. |
| X905.3 | Claim of property based on unusual lie. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| X905.4 | The liar: "I have no time to lie today"; lies nevertheless. Type 1920B; India: Thompson-Balys; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 308ff. No. 18, FFC CXXVIII 260ff. No. 160. |
| X905.4.1 | Boy to deceive his uncle: induces uncle to climb tree before deception begins: this is the deception. Chinese: Graham. |
| X906 | Would not lie for a trifle. Liar tells of shooting large number of animals with one shot (an odd number, usually 99). When asked why he did not make it a round number (or an even hundred), he replies indignantly that he would not lie for one pigeon (rabbit). U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X907 | Man has servant corroborate his lies. Rewards him poorly. Servant exposes him. Italian Novella: *Rotunda. |
| X907.1 | The second liar corroborates the lie of the first. Canada, U.S.: Baughman. |
| X908 | Lie: sea has burned up. (Often with answer: "Many fried fish.") (First ed. X925.) Type 1920A; *BP II 371; Fb "vesterhav" III 1042b, "a" III 1187b; Indonesian: DeVries Volksverhalen II 377. |
| X909 | Other stories about liars. |
| X909.1 | The incorrigible liar. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X909.1.1 | Church member who has been called to task about his lying habits tells another lie in expressing his concern for his weakness. He says he has shed barrels of tears because of his weakness. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X909.2 | The liar outdoes the tricksters who try to catch him in a lie. He continues the lie the tricksters have made up to catch him. (Cf. K306, L142.1.) U.S.: Baughman. |
| X910 | Lie: the remarkable man. (Cf. F500—F599.) For bibliography of American hero material see Harold Felton Legends of Paul Bunyan (New York, 1947). |
| X911 | Lie concerning birth of hero. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X912 | Lie concerning babyhood and boyhood of hero. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X913 | Lie: death of extraordinary man. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X916 | Lie: persons with remarkable bodily parts. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X920 | Lie: the large man. (First ed. X1041.) *Type 852; BP II 516. |
| X921 | Lie: remarkably tall person. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X922 | Lie: great weight of large person. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X923 | Lie: great girth of large person. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X924 | Lie: remarkably thin persons. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| X930 | Lie: remarkable person's physical powers and habits. |
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