Linked Motifs

Motif	Name	Description
a12	Eclipses: monster’s attack	Some creature or creatures regularly (sunrise and sunset, summer and winter, lunar phases) or irregularly (solar and lunar eclipses, eschatological events) attack the luminaries or shade their light
a23a	Who will see the Sun first?	Two persons or animals argue about who of them will be the first to see the rising sun. One who seemed to have less chances wins
a23d	Who will be the first in the calendar cycle?	Animals argue which of them should stand at the beginning of the calendar cycle (twelve months or years). Mouse obtains the first place
a2a	The sun is a source of distructive heat	The world was or will be (almost) burned when several suns had (will) appear(ed) simultaneously; or the only sun was too hot (or bright)
a2a1	The Moon was as bright as the Sun	Initially, the Moon was as bright and hot as the Sun
a2b	Extra suns and moons annihilated	Other suns or moons besides present ones had been in the sky and were later annihilated
a32	Figure on lunar disc	A figure or an imprint of some being or object are seen in the Moon. (For statistical analysis motifs A32A – A32J are also included into A32)
a32c1	Predator animal in the Moon	A predator animal (fox, wolf, dog, coyote, jaguar, lion) or its imprint is seen in the Moon
a32d	Man in the Moon	Human being or imprint of human being is seen in the moon
a32e	Person with an object in hands	Person who holds some object in his or her hands is seen in the moon (rare: in the sun)
a32f	Water-carrier in the Moon	Person who went to fetch water and/or holds in hands a container for liquid is seen in the moon
a37	The Sun is attacked with weapons	Person intentionally and with special equipment (usually shooting arrows) attacks the Sun (or several suns if they were many)
a4	Female sun	The Sun is female, the Moon is male or (more rare) also female
a43	Person with a shoe on one foot	While being transformed into a bird or ascending to the sky a person was in a hurry and put a footwear only on one foot, or somebody attempted to seize him grasping his foot. Now the corresponding bird or a sky-person is believed to have different feet
a44	Moon the protector	A person pursued by an enemy or tyrannized by others asks the Moon to take her or him to the sky. The request is granted and the person is now seen in the Moon
b109	Person turns into bear	Person turns into a bear (origin of bears)
b110	If by back, the ravines, if by head the red flowers	Person dragged on the ground disintegrates or touches the ground with different parts of her or his body producing particular features of landscape, different plants, etc.
b115	Evergreen trees	Coniferous or some other trees or shrubs (subshrubs) became evergree when the life elixir was spilled on them by chance
b18	Light in container	Day light (also warmth, the sun, the moon) is kept as a particular object in a container, under a cover, etc.
b2a	The female earth	The earth is a female person (alone or together with a male person); she is female being or associated with a woman
b2d	Marriage of the sky and the earth	The male Sky (the Sun, the Thunder, the creator of the sky) marries the female Earth (or its female creator) or the female Sky marries the male Earth
b2e	The male earth	The earth or the world as a whole is a male person (alone or together with a female person)
b33	Mother of wind	Female person is incarnation of wind, mother of winds, etc.
b33a	Person dies of cold in the spring	When it becomes warm, a person or animal (bird) decides that the winter is over (most often an old woman goes to graze her animals) but dies of cold or the animals that had been deiven to the pasture die
b3a	Primeval waters	Water is the original element, the dry earth appears later
b3b	Earth grows big	Original earth was small and later increased in size or the fertile soil grew from a small amount of original substance
b46b	Seven star sisters	Every one of the seven main stars of the Ursa major is a female person
b46c	Big Dipper is seven persons or animals	Every main star of the Big Dipper is interpreted as a particular person or animal
b47	The Pleiades bring cold	In former times or regularly the Pleiades or other group of stars produced or produce till now severe cold. (The heliacal set of the Pleiades is in May-June while in the Northern Hemisphere they are seen best of all in the winter time)
b48	Predators become herbivorous	Weak or herbivorous animals were dangerous predators but have been transformed
b49	Muddled request	Animals of particular species do not hear well the instructions concerning their way of life or the ask God for some benefit but muddle their request. Thanks to this they acquire their present habits. (In the Toraja tale the motif is used to explain the mortal nature of human beings)
b50	Whose blood is sweeter?	An insect feeds on human blood (flesh). Dangerous person asks it where it had sucked blood or whose blood (flesh) is the most delicious. Usually the insect lies or cannot answer (its tongue is cut off) and thanks to this dangerous person attacks certain plants or animals and not people
b51a	The snake is an enemy of the swallow	The snake is an enemy of the swallow (usually because swallow does not let snake to destroy people; the snake sends mosquito or other bloodsucking insect to get know whose blood is the most delicious; the insect flies back to report that human blood is the sweetest; swallow bites its tongue off and the snake gets to pull off feathers from the swallow's tail)
b73	The cuchoo: different legs	Person turns into the cuckoo so quickly that one of his or her legs remains bare or one of her braids not plaited. Now it is believed that the cuckoo has different legs or wings
b77	Primeval sky close to earth	Originally the sky was close to the earth, then it has risen up
c19	Acquisition of the sun	The Sun (the day light) that was absent, stolen or hidden appears (again)
c2	Deluge and conflagration combined	Inhabitans of the Middle World are (partly) destroyed (or will be destoyed) once by fire or draught, another time by a flood or the world is destroyed with a flood of fire or boiling water
c3	Snakes stops up a hole in the Noah’s arch	When a hole is opened in the arch (rare: in the ground) from which a torrent of water flows, a snake (eel, frog) stops it up with its own body
c30a	A pound of flesh	A contract entitles the lender of a sum of money to cut a certain amount of flesh (or eye, head, limb, etc.) from the debtor’s body if the load is not repaid in time. The lender cannot cut out the flesh being unable to fulfill a condition that looks logical but is practically absurd
c32c (motif is not in the correlation table)	Beware of cut off nails	The cut off nails (and hair) have special significance for the fate of the soul in the beyond or for the future of the entire world
c6	Valuables brought from the lower world	Persons or animals dive or otherwise decend to the lower world to get a desired object and to bring it to earth (besides episodes in the fairytales, cf. motif k27x9)
c6c	The diver is a bird	An aquatic bird dives and brings the desired object from the bottom
c6c4	The duck is successful diver	The duck (or an aquatic bird similar to the duck) dives and brings a piece of earth that is transformed into the dry land (it is the only or the only successful diver)
c6d	The aquisition of the earth from the lower world	The dry land (the earth) grows from a small amount of solid substance (sand, clay, dirt and the like) brought from the lower world (usually from the bottom of the ocean)
d1	Female spirit of fire	Fire is personified as an (elder) woman, alone or with her husband, master of fire
e11	The burned skin	Magic person reveals his true nature and/or remains with the real people after the object responsible for preserving the non-human appearance (usually an animal skin) is destroyed (usually burned)
e31a	Creators and rescuers of a girl	Several men take part in rescuing, creation or reanimation of a girl (rare: a bird) or several women take part in the reanimation of a dead man or they differetly express their grief. It is asked whose role was crucial (who behavior more noble) and/or who should be the spouse of the reanimated person. Or three men make something valuable and it is asked whose role in the corresponding enterprise was more important
e32	People born from trees	First people are born by trees or come out of a tree, flower, reed
e9	The mysterious housekeeper	Person observes traces of some activity that takes place in his (rare: her) house in his (her) absence and then takes by surprise the responsible one
e9i1	Swan-wife	A man marries supernatural woman who is a swan
e9o	Frog or toad-wife	Man marries frog- or toad-woman
f7	The underwater-maiden	Man takes or attempts to take a wife who is connected with the underwater world (fish, crab, snake, water animal and the like)
f70	Potiphar's wife: false accusation of sexual abuse	Woman makes vain overtures to young man and/or falsely accuses him of sexual abuse. Her husband believes that the young man is guilty, kills or tries to kill him
f70a	Disordered clothes as evidence against innocent man	To accuse a man or boy of (sexual) abbuse, a woman tears her clothes, smears or scratches her body pretending to be attacked
f70b	Revenge of a rejected woman	A woman revenges on a man who rejected her love but necessary not pretends to be an object of sexual harassment from his part
f9g	Brunhilde	A strong woman overcomes and kills suitors. Hero or his helper tames her (usually whips in the wedding night). The hero marries her
g6a	Tree of the year	Year is described as a tree with the number of branches, twigs, leaves etc. corresponding to the number of seasons, months, days, etc.
g8	Restored tree	A deep notch in the tree (or in the sky support) is magically restored as soon as persons or creatures who cut or gnaw it stop working
g8b	Cutting tree to get a person	Person hides in a tree. Somebody tries to fell it but the notch disappears and the tree becomes intact
h16a	Rivers of blood	Rivers (lakes) of blood (also of puss, bones, sweat or water used for washing of corpses) are mentioned in narratives (in different context)
h16b	The basin of milk	A river (wave, lake, basin) of milk that exists on earth (and not among the stars) is mentioned in narratives (in different context)
h18b	Cattle returns into water	After getting domestic animals from supernaturals a person immediately loses the animals or most of them (usually because of a broken taboo like to look, to speak in a loud voice, etc.; the animals disappear in water, remain in the sky, scatter in various directions, etc.)
h24	Container opened too early	Container with valuables or with dangerous creatures is opened (before time). Its content goes out of control or disappear
h36ff	Death and the raven	Raven is responsible for introduction of permanent death
h47	Offended sky or earth	The sky (or the earth) is offended by people’s behavior in respect to it and reacts accordingly (e.g. rises higher than it was before)
h55a	Married couple under one blanket	Person gets to see husband and wife who pull their blanket from each other or have not enough space for two on their bed
h6a	People and plants	Mortal humans are contrasted with (almost) immortal trees that shed their bark, become green again after winter sleep or propagate by sprouts
h6b	The life-medicine spilled on plants	The life-medicine is accidentally spilled not on men but on plants which become evergreen, capable for regeneration or producing fruits
h6c	The immortal raven	Raven is associated with death or contrasted with people as an immortal with mortals (is sent to the medicine of immortality; drinks itself water of immortality; gives instructions concerning funeral rites; etc.)
h6c1	Valuables in exchange for the nestling	To obtain a desired object, person catches a child or spouse of an animal person (bird, snake, crab) and promises to release it as soon as its parent (spouse)) brings the object
h7	The personified Death	Death (also Old Age, Disease, etc.) is a particular person not identical with the Master of the Dead. He kills people usually carrying away their souls
h7d	The old man asks Death to help him to carry a load	An old man has to carry a heavy load of wood. Tired and exhausted, he wishes for death. When Death appears he asks her to help him with the load
i12	The world axis	A tree or post pierces and unites different layers of the universe
i121	Twin constellations	Two constellations (usually Ursa major and Ursa minor) are interpreted as twin objects of the same type (two animals, two carts, etc.)
i128	Ursa major is a dipper	Ursa major is a dipper, a ladle
i137	Constellation of the bast-shoe	A constellation is associated with a shoe, usually with a (worn-out) bast shoe
i13b	A horned snake	Snake of natural size has horns on its head
i13c	Snake’s crown	Reptiles possess treasure which a person gets or tries to get. Usually it is a crown, jewel or small horns on the snake's head
i141	The magic stick	A stick is a tool to initiate processes which results have no rational explanation
i22	Objects in permanent movement	There are objects which remaining on the same place are moving permanently or periodically (meet and part. rise and fall down, shut and open, rotate)
i22g	Clapping rocks	There are mountains or rocks which permanently collide and separate again from each other or a crack (jaws) in a vertical cliff which is opening and closing
i25	The bribed guards	Way to the place of a certain person is guided by dangerous creatures (which often stand on the both sides of the pathway). Person placates them by gifts or nice talk, and they let him or her go the both ways, sometimes being punished for this by their master
i25a	Bones to cows	Person sees that food put for certain animals is inedible for them and corrects situation (usually gives to herbivorous animals food that was given before to predators and vice versa)
i25d	To grease and oil gates and doors	On his way to a dangerous being the hero (heroine) greases (oils) the gate (door) hinges. When the hero goes back the grateful gate does not agree to hold him despite the order of the dangerous being
i3	Weapon of Thunder	The lightning (and thunder) is (produced with) an object (axe, sword, mirror, belt, stones, skin, etc.) in hands of anthropomorphic being
i32	Tree of the babies	There is (or was) a tree on which souls of still unborn babies grow, which leaves transform into people, or which trunk is covered with female breasts or flowers that innumerable babies are sucking
i32a	Tree of human life	When a leave or a fruit of a certain tree drops, one of the people on the earth dies
i3a	Lightning is a whip	During the thunderstorm supernatural person beats somthing or somebody with a whip. This is the lightning
i4	Thunder rides in the sky	Thunder is heard when a vehicle moves in the sky
i40	Rainbow bow	Rainbow is a bow
i46	Rainbow belt	Rainbow is the ornamented part of the clothes, its decoration, a belt
i50	Ungulate animal with more than four legs	An ungulate animal (a horse, an elk, a moose) with six or more legs is described or represented in art
i50a	Torn off legs of the helpful animal	Demon tears off or devours one by one legs of aт animal who helps the hero, usually of his riding horse
i50c	Šarabkha (animal with legs on its back)	An ungulate animal with an additional set of legs on its back runs using in turns legs under its belly and on its back. Thanks to this it is indefatigable
i51a	Bull the earth-holder	Big mammal supports the earth
i52	Fish the earth-holder	World is supported by fish or fish-like monster or the earth itself is such a monster
i55b	The sun deer	Hero pursues a deer or elk which carry the sun
i58	Milky Way is the way of birds	Milky Way is the path of migratory birds (especially wild geese)
i68	Opening of the sky	On a certain moment, a crack, a window or the like opens in the sky vault (rains flows though it, the upper world is seen, communication with inhabitants of the upper world becomes possible)
i68b	Night of the fulfilled wishes	In a certain night of the year any wish that was thought of or voiced is fulfilled
i76a	Snake turns into dragon	After certain time a snake or fish turn into a dragon
i82b	Venus is female	Morning and/or Evening Star is a female personage
i82c	Venus is the Moon’s wife	Venus or some other bright star seen near the eastern or western horizon is female and wife of the Moon
i82h	Venus’ name is Čolpan	The name of the Venus is like Čolpan, Čolbon, Tsulmon, etc.
i82i	Venus is Zahra (Zuhra, Zura, etc.)	The name of an object of the night sky (usually Venus) is like Zakhra, Zukhra, Zura, etc.
i85	Polaris is a pole, a nail	Polaris is a (tethering) pole or a nail
i85a	Animals walk around Polaris	Hoofed animals are walking around Polaris or the movement of stars is compared with the movement of animals around a post
i87a1	Small or big? A dialogue	Two persons engaged into dialogue describe a series of objects and creatures as simultaneously giant and small
i92	Rainbow transforms sex	Person who gets to walk under, over or through the rainbow changes his or her sex
i92a	Jump over the rainbow	Anyone who jumps or steps over the rainbow will change his or her sex
i94	The Pleiades are openings	The Pleiades are holes in the firmament
i95	The Pleiades are a sieve for grain	The Pleiades are a sieve to process agricultural products
i95b	Orion is a shoulder-yoke	Orion is a shoulder-yoke
j21	Birth from eggs	Gods, first people or founders of the royal lineages are born from eggs
j25	Babies escape and return	Heroes (usually one or two), being still babies or embryos, escape or are thrown away, often into the water. To bring them back into the human world, they are lured (persuaded) to come out or caught with difficulty
j26	Babies come out of the water	Baby heroes, embryos or objects from which they emerge are found in a river or lake or come to people out of the water
j26a	Boys and pups	Among woman’s childen or among children of two women who live together are a boy and a puppy or woman’s son is substituted with a pup and thrown away. This puppy lives with the woman and helps her.
j27	Lodge-boy and Thrown-away	A small boy (several babies) was thrown away, born by the dead woman, lives in the water (in forest, etc.). Another boy lives with his father or mother. Ultimately the first boy comes to live in the locus of the second one. Often (see motif j25, Babies escape and return) during some time the boy who lives in the wilderness meets secretly with his brother (with other children, with pups that had been fed up by his mother) who lives with the people
j28b	A hot scone	A youth gets to know that a woman (usually his mother) conceals from him important information about his father, brothers or bride. He causes her pain (usually putting hot scone, handful of hot grain, etc. into her hand) making her tell him the truth
j31	Father’s weapon	A young hero obtains and uses weapons or other powerful objects which belonged to his murdered father
j32	To identify the night thief	Some valuables (foals, hay, apples, etc.) are regularly stolen. Nobody (the elder brothers) is able to catch the thief and only the hero (the younger brother) finds who it is
j32e	The new-born foals stolen	Every foal to which a mare gives birth is immediately stolen. The hero identifies the thief
j42	Waters split apart	When person comes to the water body, waters are split apart so the person reaches the other bank walking on the dry ground
j46	Enemy drowns	Antagonist perishes falling into the water or trying to cross a water body
j51	One piece is missing	Person or animal is eaten up or destroyed otherwise. His bones are put together and he or it is revived. Because one bone was broken, swallowed or lost (or a drop of blood, a small piece of flesh lost), the person or animal cannot be revived or being revived misses some part of his or its body
k100	A faithful servant	A man gets to know about dangers that threaten another man (and often about turning into stone of anybody who would warn about these dangers). He helps the man to escape the dangers though his behavior seems strange or hostile
k100a	Tobias	A young man lets free a fish or an animal that was caught or he or his father renders a help to somebody. When the young man sets off for a journey, the grateful creature or person in guise of a stranger or animal becomes his companion and protector
k100b	A grateful dead	A young man helps to bury a man (pays the debts of the dead man, honors a saint). When the young man sets off for a journey, the grateful dead (the saint) in guise of a stranger becomes his protector
k100c	Girl’s bridegrooms are bitten by a snake	. The hero or his companion eliminate the source of danger
k100f2	After quenching his thirst, person breaks his chains	The imprisoned supernatural person breaks his chains and escapes after they give him some water (or wine, etc.)
k100g	The son must be sacrificed	To revive or to cure his friend (rare: himself) or to fulfill a vow person is ready to sacrifice his small (young) son (children). The son revives or the supernatural powers are satisfied with the very willingness of the person to commit sacrifice
k101	Night dances of girls	Every morning girl' or (rare) boy’s clothes are in disorder, the boy looks very tied. People spy on her (or on him) and discover that she or he spends nights in the non-human world
k102	Woman associated with the hero conspires in favor of his enemy	A woman who initially is friendly to the hero (his mother, sister, more rare his wife, sexual partner) begins to cooperate with his enemy. For this she provokes the hero to do something that is mortally dangerous for him
k102a2	Conflict between mother and son	Mother tries to kill her son (children) because he interferes with her love affair
k102b	To ride for the last time	To kill a boy (a girl), the antagonist first needs to get rid of his or her horse. When they are ready to kill the horse, the boy (the girl) rides on his horse away saving his or her life
k102c	Changing his appearance, the hero returns magic object that was stolen from him	The adversary receives magic object that protects the hero and kills him. The hero is revived, changes his appearance and provokes the adversary to put the object on the ground. He takes it back and kills the adversary
k103	Helpful cow	Cow (ox, bull) helps an orphan child or a young woman who got into trouble
k106	Thrown to cows	To get rid of a baby child or of the magic cock, they throw him into enclosure for animals, but cows or other animals do not trample the child or cock down
k107	Lost husband found	A woman is abandoned by her magic husband. She finds him and becomes his wife again
k107a	Iron shoes to be worn out	Wandering to the purpose of her or his travel person has to worn out her or his iron shoes or staff
k107c	Knives on the windowsill (the prince as bird)	Magic bridegroom who comes as bird or other guise and then changes into a man meets regularly with a young woman. Her jealous sisters (stepmother, brother, etc.) wound him (usually putting knives of broken glass around the window). He disappears, the girl goes to find him.
k110	Reflection of golden sword	Person must get a treasure from the bottom of water body. He understands that what he sees is a reflection in water while the treasure is high in a tree
k113	The animal bride	Several young men (usually three brothers) decide to choose wives (usually shooting arrows or throwing objects on the off-chance). The wife of the youngest initially is ugly or non-human (a frog, a snake) but proves to be beautiful enchantress. She and her husband triumph. Or girls choose their husbands and the youngest one gets a youth who has guise of a snake
k113a	To take wife where arrow falls	A young man shoots an arrow or throws an object on the off-chance He finds the girl to be married or something that helps to obtain her at the place where his arrow (other object) falls
k114	Brothers leave home after their sister is born	Several brothers leave home immediately after their mother gives birth to a girl. Usually they do not want to have another brother and hope that this time a girl will be born but chance or by evil intent a signal is given that not a girl but a boy is born again. The brothers are disappointed and leave, the girl grows up and travels in search of them
k118	The prohibited room	Master of the house allows person to feel himself (herself) free bit not to look into particular place. The person breaks prohibition
k118a	A portrait of an unknown beauty	After seeing a portrait of an unknown beauty, a man is eager to meet her
k119	Animal helper marries a poor boy to a princess	To make a poor man rich (usually to marry him to a rich girl or to marry a poor girl to a prince), an animal makes other people believe that the groom is rich already. The man becomes prosperous indeed
k119a	The ungrateful master	An animal saves a man or helps him but the ungrateful man humiliates the animal, kills or tries to kill it
k119d	Puss in boots	A cat marries a poor boy to a princess (poor girl to a prince)
k12	Woman is lost and returned	By trick or by force, a rival or adversary kidnaps hero's wife or bride. The man gets her back
k120	The averted incest (daughter and father)	A man is going to marry his daughter (rare: his stepdaughter; sometimes certain conditions are put on his future marriage and only his daughter complies with them). The girl gets to escape
k121	Wanderer at a crossroad	It is written at a crossroad that following one of the paths person will safely return and following another it will not return (there is often a third path following which person either returns or not). Hero follows the dangerous path
k126	Wolf pays for the eaten up horse	A wolf (lion, etc.) or a demon eats up hero's horse but gives him a fair compensation (usually provides a wife)
k128	Grazing animals to be preserved by a herdsman	A man had to graze animals or birds. If at least one is lost, the master would kill (not reward) him. Cf. K128B (ATU 570)
k129	The disenchanted beauty	Because of the female antagonist, a girl faints and is taken for dead but her body is not decomposed. A valuable marriage partner breaks the charms, she revives
k12a	A strained bow	An unrecognized hero comes to a place where his bride or wife has to marry another man or is tuned into a slave. Despite expectations, he gets to strain a tight bow killing his rivals
k131	Men fight over magic objects	A man on a journey meets tree or two persons who are quarreling over the division of magic objects (a flying carpet, seven mile boots, etc.). The man promises to render a judgment, but he asks first to try our the objects or suggests the owners to run a race and uses opportunity to escape with the objects
k131b	Magic objects are exchanged and returned	A man loses a magic object that he got before but gets it back thanks to another object (a cudgel, a box with soldiers, etc.) that is exchanged for the first one or obtained by the man’s brother. The episode can be repeated several times
k131d	Seven-league boots	The boots (shoes, sandals) which allow the person wearing them to move with extraordinary speed are mentioned
k132	Invincible chicken	Person of a small size (often a chicken) overcomes powerful adversary despite all attempts to destroy him thanks to objects and animals met on the way and preserved in his bag or inside his body
k135	Seven with one stroke	A weak and timid man or boy overcomes accidentally powerful enemies and gets high esteem
k137	Sister tricks women to come and revive her brother	When her brother is killed, a girl puts on his clothes and in a guise of a man wins competitions and gets women who are able to revive the dead. She puts the clothes back on her brother and the women come and revive him taking him for their husband. Or a sister is killed and her brother after winning wives tricks them to revive her
k137a	A girl in her brother’s guise gets a wife for him	A young man is killed. His sister puts on his clothes and pretending she is a man gets a wife for him. This woman beliefs that the girl’s brother from the very beginning was a man whom she married
k14	Precious advices	A man gives his last money for simple advices. Each of them saves his life or helps to achieve success or he does not follow the advices and gets into trouble
k147	Hero's horse brings his remains and he is revived	Enemy cuts hero’s body into pieces and ties them to his horse or the horse itself picks them up and brings to his master’s friends. They revive him.
k14c	Man mistakes his son for his wife’s lover	Coming home after a long absence, a man understands that there is another man in his house but keeps patience and discovers that it is his own son or a close kin of his wife
k14d	The make believe crime	To test his wife (friend, member of his household), a man pretends to commit a crime or his behavior seems to be strange and deserved to be punished. At the last moment he presents evidence that proves his innocence
k151	The fisherman and his wife	Supernatural creature fulfills a poor man’s moderate request. After this he or his wife asks for ever bigger gifts till the angry helper punishes them (usually takes all his gifts away)
k152	The devil is frightened and runs away	A man saves a devil (snake, dangerous animal) who suffers from proximity of certain object or person. The grateful devil promises to enter a princess and abandon her as soon as the man comes to cure her. The man will get a reward but he should not try such a trick again. The man scares the devil forever telling him that the object or person of which the devil is afraid will be near soon
k152a	The evil woman and the devil in one pit	A man throws his evil wife into the pit or well. The devil (snake, predator animal, etc.) who had been there before is grateful when the man pulls him to the surface or jumps our himself: even he is afraid of the shrewish woman
k154	A skull with an inscription	A man picks up a skull with an enigmatic and ominous inscription on it. Later its meaning becomes clear
k154a	Men in the harem	Solving a riddle, a boy or youth unmasks a daughter (wife, minister) of a powerful person: house-maids (or some of them) are men, the minister plans to kill his master)
k157	Robbers killed one by one	Person tricks his enemies to leave their enclosure one by one and cuts off their head as soon as the next one appears before him. In rare cases the multi-headed enemy thrusts his heads on by one and the hero cuts them off
k159	Peas poured under the feet	When two persons are fighting, somebody wants one of them fall (while another be firm on his feet) and for this throws something under his feet
k15b	Substituted barrel of water	Because containers with alive and dead water (one makes one stronger, another weaker) are imperceptibly exchanged, during the battle the hero drinks the alive water and overcomes his enemy who drinks the dead water
k160a	Demon’s answers to his wife’s questions	A woman who lives in the house of a supernatural person conceals the man who had come to her and puts questions to this person. The answers that are received and became known to the man are of great importance for him
k161	The liberated dragon	Person imprisoned a dragon (demon, Thunder, etc.) and warns the other not to open a certain room (not to give water to the prisoner, etc.). The instruction is broken and the demon liberates himself that has undesirable consequences
k164	Wife is not the best friend	A man himself or somebody else creates situation that demonstrates that his wife is not his best friend. Often a treacherous wife is contrasted with a true dog
k165	The youth who wanted to learn what fear is	A youth who does not know what fear is tries various frightful experiences without becoming afraid
k171	Weaver creates ever new warriors	Somebody from the enemies’ camp is constantly weaving (forging) ever new warriors (rare: weapons)
k174	Fingering thrown into a pitcher	A person puts (usually inconspicuously) his or her fingering or other small personal object into a pitcher with which a servant (girl) has come to take water. The servant's mistress or master finds the ring and understands that the person is nearby
k176	A man in search of the woman	A (young) man sets off to find or to return his bride or his wife
k177	The travelling heroine	A girl or young woman sets off to find or return her fience or her husband or she escapes from a fanger and ultimately marries happily
k18	Infant picks out his unknown father	A boy is born whose father or (rare) mother is unknown. He himself points at his parent who as a rule occupies the lowest social position. Usually many men (women) come together and everyone hopes that the boy points at him (her)
k181	The horse from the cellar	The hero finds the horse that fits his needs in a cellar (cave, tower, etc.) where it had been preserved for a long time
k1f	Conflict because of a woman	A man maroons another because of jealousy or because he plans to take hold of his wife
k2	The destroyed ladder	Hero climbs up (e.g. to a tree) or down (e.g. into a deep cave) by ladder, rope, from branch to branch, etc. The rope etc. breaks or is intentionally destroyed and the hero cannot return to the ground. (All cases of motif K2A, besides the Koreans, also contain motif K2)
k20	Wish for star-husband or wife realized	A human person admires a star or (rare) the Moon in the sky, expresses desire to marry it or (rare) to get a star-object. Star descends to him or to her or takes him or her to the sky
k24	Stolen clothes of supernatural woman	Women (rare: men) who possess supernatural power and usually come from a non-human world (from sky, from under the water, they are winged beings, bird- or animal-persons; rare: a girl of higher social status than the hero) take off their clothes (feather skins and the like) or part of it. Because a person hides the clothes (of one of them), their owner(s) have (has) to marry him or help him (rare: her)
k25	Magic wife	A man consciously marries a woman related to the non-human world
k25e	Magic wife is an ancestor	All humans, members of a particular ethnic or social group or a ruling dynasty are believed to descend from a mortal man and a woman of supernatural origin
k27 (motif is not in the correlation table)	Competitions and difficult tasks	Person is suggested to fulfill tasks that are mortally dangerous or cannot be fulfilled without supernatural helpers or capacities. The person fulfills the tasks and remains alive. A contest between persons has form of a competition or game in which the loser is deprived of his status or life
k27f	The task: to get a woman	A task-giver asks the hero to get for him a particular woman
k27g	Ordeal: to bathe in a boiling liquid	Person is ordered to bathe in a (boiling) milk or other hot liquid or to jump into fire. He remains unharmed but his adversary usually dies
k27hh	To sort grain	A task: to sort a large amount or small particles of different kind (usually seeds of different plants) mixed in container or to count such particles or to pick up the spilled grains
k27n1	Task-giver is a king or a chief	Person who gives difficult tasks to the hero and/or person who demands the fulfillment of certain conditions from those who want to marry his daughter is a prominent figure in social hierarchy. He is a head of the socio-political unit of community or super-community level and is neither a member of the hero’s household nor a mythical being
k27nn	Envious minister	Not the powerful person himself but his official or adviser tries to get rid of the hero and suggests that the person should give the hero difficult tasks
k27q	Milk of the wild beast	Hero is sent to bring milk of a wild animal or milk in possession of a dangerous creature or person
k27r	To visit the world of the dead	A task: to bring object or news from the land of the dead
k27r1	The burnt person proves to be unharmed	The antagonist believes that the hero was burned but returned from the other world alive and prosperous therefore he asks burn him (her) or his representatives
k27s	Contest: a race	Contest: a race
k27ss	To win a race with an (old) woman	A strong man has to race with a woman (often with an old woman). He cannot surpass her or does it with much difficulty
k27v3	To shoot an arrow though the ring	Person must shoot an arrow through a small ring or several rings
k27w	Monster brought by the hero kills the task-giver	Task-giver asks to bring him dangerous being or object possessed by a moster or deity. Hero fulfills the task. The beast, monster, deity or the object itself kills the task-giver
k27x1	Invisible servant (“Bring don’t know what”)	Hero receives a difficult task (usually to bring an object or creature that have no particular indications and properties) and comes across an invisible person who is a powerful and well-disposed servant to anybody who becomes his master. The hero is kind with him and the person helps him
k27x3	The man persecuted because of his beautiful bride	A powerful person coverts a beautiful bride or wife of a man and gives him impossible tasks to get rid of him
k27x3a	Recognition by magic wife’s towel	When the hero goes to fulfill a difficult task, his magic wife gives him her towel or handkerchief and orders to use only them (usually her relatives recognize him as their son-in-law when they see the object in question)
k27x4	Climb a tree with a full glass in hand	Person must climb a tree (pole, rock) with a full open vessel in hand and not a drop should be spilled
k27x5	Helpful persons of different age	Setting off for a search of a woman or magic objects, a man comes across several (usually three) supernatural (often demonic) persons who help him. All the persons are similar but usually every next one is older (younger) than another
k27x7	Master of animals calls them together to question them	Person in search of the remote and inaccessible place comes to the master (mistress) of animals (birds, fish) or demons who summon all of them and asks about the way to this place. Only (the last) one knows the way
k27x8	The frog directs to the aim	The hero (heroine) is in search of the place that is not achievable for common people. Only the frog (toad) knows the way (and helps to achieve destination)
k27x9	To bring an object from the sea bottom	The hero must bring a small object (often a finger ring) from the bottom of a deep waterbody (often the sea)
k27z1	Bird, horse and princess	Helpful animal instructs the hero how to steal an object he needs to get but not to take anything else (bird, but not cage, horse but not bridle, etc.) The hero breaks prohibition, is caught but released on condition that he brings another wonderful object. Situation is repeated and the last task is to bring a girl. Ultimately the hero gets both the girl and all the objects
k27z5	An agreement to marry the would be born children	Two men agree to marry their future children if a girl and a boy will be born. The girl’s parents evade the given obligation. The boy grows up and finds his bride
k27z7	To get know what is the rose of the heart	A person promises to fulfill somebody’s request if another gets to know why certain man or woman acts regularly in a strange way
k27z9	Why the fish laughed	A (dried) fish (water-spirit, satyr, etc.) laughs, smiles or spits because a man disguised as a woman lives in the house
k29a	Surviving in a fire	Hero demonstrates his supernatural abilities remaining alive in a burning hot chamber, stove, bonfire, among burning vegetation
k2a	Hero marooned in the underworld	Hero is sent to the lower world though a well, precipice, etc. After he obtains valuables (young women), his envious companions cut the rope to get rid of him but he succeeds in returning back
k32	The false wife	An ugly, old, lazy, etc. woman or (in Chaco) a male trickster comes to man under disguise of his wife or bride who is driven out, confined to the underworld, killed, etc.
k32a	Travelling man leaves his wife or daughter for a short time	A man travels with his wife or daughter. Another woman or a demonic person replaces her when the man goes away for a short time or (rare) falls asleep
k32d	Sister sent to feed geese, servant taken for the sister	A girl (rare: boy) is walking to her or his relations or to her bridegroom. On the way the imposter lures her (him) to exchange clothes and takes her (his) place while the real girl (boy) is sent to look after crops or fee domestic fowl or animals. People hear her (his) song in which all the story is told. The deception is disclosed, the imposter killed
k32g	Punishment: torn apart by horses	To punish an antagonist, he or she is tied to a horse (camel, bull) and dragged or he or she is torn apart (usually by horses)
k32g1	Forty horses or forty knives?	Person is asked to choose between objects that have utilitarian value, often forty (seven, etc.) horses or forty knives. Usually the person does not understand that the question is about different kinds of execution
k32h3	Punishment: burned alive	To punish an antagonist, he or she is burned alive. (Episodes in which the burning of the dangerous being is not a punishment but an effective way to get rid of him or her are not considered)
k33	Drowned woman remains alive	A young woman is transformed into an animal, pushed into the water, into the underworld or she herself has to plunge into water (acquire animal form). Her connection with the human world is not completely lost, however, and usually she is helped to return to the people
k33a	Younger brother transformed into animal	Siblings (most often younger brother and elder sister) leave their home. One of them (most often the brother, most rare several brothers) turn into animal (usually an ungulate) or (rare) a bird but (in the most cases) ultimately acquires his or her human form again
k33g	Fruits of two kinds	One who eats certain fruit (leave, etc.) gets horns (long nose, etc.) or turns into an animal. After eating another fruit (leave) person recovers his or her normal body
k35a	Hero brands his rivals	In exchange for temporal advantages, person agrees to be maimed or branded
k35a1	Not to pick up a feather of fire-bird	On his way a man picks up a precious feather (often despite the warning of his magic horse). When a powerful person gets to know about the feather he tells the man to fulfill difficult tasks
k35a6	The shining feather	Person finds an objects (usually a feather) with which he illuminates his room
k35c	Ogre in a well	An ogre (a dragon, king of the sea) has not killed a man who descended to him as other people had thought but rewarded because the greeted him and/or gave a correct answer to his question
k35c2	Man descends to the sea bottom	A man rides a ship that stops suddenly and does not move for a long time. The man agrees to descend to the bottom, behaves himself in a proper way with the sea dwellers and returns to the ship
k35c3	The ship suddenly stops	Because of the reason that for some time remains unclear a ship stops in the middle of the sea (rare: a horse stops on the road)
k36	Bewitched into animal	Person is temporary transformed into animal (usually into a dog or coyote or into donkey, ox, etc.). When he acquires his human guise again, the antagonist suffers similar transformation. In some texts only the hero or only the antagonist is transformed
k38	Hero helps the nestlings	For helping its children, their powerful mother or father who is a giant bird or (rare) other flying being helps the hero
k38a	White and black rams	Getting to the underworld, hero should take a white ram (horse) which would carry him back to earth. By chance, he takes the black one which carries him even deeper to the lower level of the underworld. Or the hero grabs not the right but the left horn of the animal and because of this gets to the wrong place
k38b	The nestlings and the aggressive snake	A serpent or water monster regularly devours or injures children of a bird or other flying creature (almost always nestlings of giant bird). The hero kills the serpent (monster)
k38b3	Hero takes care of nestlings	Mighty bird or other flying creature helps a man because he took care of its youngs feeding them, warming, decorating, etc.
k38c	Bird brings the hero to his destination	After the hero helps a powerful bird (usually does good to her nestlings), the grateful bird brings him to the place where he is eager to get or tells to do it one of her nestlings. (It is not the vertical movement between layers of the world. According to the Sumerian variant, the bird endows the hero with capability to move with extraordinary speed and directs him to his destination)
k38d	Monster blocks waters	A monster blocks sources of water (or sends floods) and usually gives some (promises not to send floods) in exchange for human victims or valuables. Hero kills the monster
k38d1	A girl sacrificed to a dragon	To appease a water monster (water spirits, gods) or to put an end to the drought or flood, a girl is sacrificed or descends into the water by her own will
k38e	Of copper, of silver, of gold	Loci or objects of three (rare – four) different materials are mentioned in such a way that all of them have positive connotations though unequal value (copper, silver and gold; silver, gold and diamonds, etc.)
k38e1	Forest of metal trees	Person travels across a forest with trees of two or more kinds of metal (copper, silver, etc.)
k38e2	The packed kingdom	Coming from the underworld to the earth, princess puts objects that she used (clothes, house, “kingdom”) into a small container (an egg, a ball, etc.) and brings them with her
k38f	The dragon-slayer	A reptile monster demands humans (usually virgins) as a sacrifice or abducts a girl or closes sources of water. Hero kills him. Monster’s victims do not play an active part in the plot
k38f4	Fire-breathing monster	From the mouth of a monstrous creature or person who is the enemy of the hero fire is coming out; its breath is fire
k39	Man feeds his own flesh to a creature who helps him	Person has to feed powerful creature (usually a giant bird) giving it regularly pieces of meat. When meat supply is exhausted, he cuts off a piece of his own flesh
k40	One will be eaten today and another tomorrow	Two (rare more) persons or creatures think that they are doomed but one whose death is slightly delayed is happy while one who will be killed earlier is in grief
k41	Thunder against a serpent	Thunder or giant bird fights against a reptile, big water animal or other big and strong creature who lives in water or under the earth
k56	The kind and the unkind girls	One of (step)sisters, co-spouses or young female neighbors meets a being that is able to reward and to punish. She behaves herself properly and is rewarded. Another (other) girl comes to the same being but behaves in a wrong way and is punished (not rewarded).
k561	The wise carving of the fowl	A poor man brings his master a chicken (goose, etc.) as a present. The master asks him to divide the bird appropriately among the members of his household. The poor man does it considering the symbolic meaning of particular parts (gives the master the head, his daughters the wings, etc.) and receives rich compensation. A neighbor brings the master five chickens but is unable to divide them approppriately. The first man does it again.
k56a2	If asked to do in a bad way, do otherwise	Person (usually a girl) gets to the powerful person (usually an old woman) who asks her to act in a strange and harsh way (to put room in disorder, to bring unclean water, and the like). The person does not according to order but in a rationale and polite way and is recompensed. Another person acts according to the direct sense of the words and is punished
k56a2a	To wash herself in the red water	The girl becomes beautiful or ugly after washing herself in the water of particular color
k56a4	Dog the messenger	When the kind girl returns home, a dog barks saying that everything is well with her and when the unkind girl returns (or her dead body is brought home), the dog barks that everything is bad
k56a4a	The girl sends the demon to bring her new clothes	At night a girl remains alone in an isolated house (mill, bath-house, etc.). When a demon comes, she asks him to bring her ever new pieces of attire, jewelry, etc. till it dawns and the demon disappears
k56a9	Helpful mouse rings a bell	Using a bell (drum, etc.) an animal (usually a mouse) produces sounds which the antagonist who is blind or is outdoors takes for the sounds produced by the hero (heroine). Thanks to this the hero escapes
k56b	The worthy man is rewarded, the unworthy punished	First one, then another man meets a powerful person or persons. The first man is worthy and rewarded with treasure, prestige or the like. The second man (or two men) follows him, behaves in a wrong way and is punished
k56e	Two humpbacks	Two men have a similar defect (a hump, a lump). One spends a night in a place where spirits free him from his defect. Another comes to the same place but spirits double his defect giving him what they had taken off from the first man
k56f	To divide a chicken	A divides the chicken among the members of a household (and guests) considering the symbolic meaning of particular parts (gives the master the head, his daughters the wings, etc.).
k56f1	To divide several chicken	A poor man brings his master a chicken (goose, etc.) as a present. The master asks him to divide the bird appropriately among the members of his household. The poor man does it considering the symbolic meaning of particular parts (gives the master the head, his daughters the wings, etc.) and receives rich compensation. A neighbor brings the master five chickens but is unable to divide them appropriately. The first man does it again.
k60a	How strong are these bonds?	Person lets be firmly tied up when another one say that it's only a joke (e.g. a test to see can the first one break bonds)
k62a	Quarrel of mouse and bird	A mouse (rat, mole, etc.) and a small bird quarrel because they cannot divide supplies for the winter. (Usually this episode initiates the story about the war between animals and birds)
k62a1	A man cures the wounded eagle	A man saves (spares) a wounded bird. When the bird becomes strong again, it carries the man to a distant land (to the sky)
k64a	Blinded cyclopes	Person blinds sleeping ogre or ogress and escapes from him or her
k64b	Object sticks to person	Hero's adversary provokes him to touch an object that proves to be sticky. The hero sticks to it, sometimes has to cut off his finger
k65	Genii loci	Being thrown out, put into certain places, born by primeval couple some beings turn into spirits of particular loci
k65a	Spirits fall from the sky	Being thrown down (usually from the sky), some beings get to different places and turn into spirits or animals with particular functions and names
k65f	With which eye do you see?	When person touches her or his eye with the magic substance, she or he sees supernatural beings unseen for the people. Usually the beings understand it and make this eye blind
k66c	The bear takes human spouse	The bear (lion) takes a woman for sexual partner or the she-bear takes a man. They have children who look like humans or bear cubs. More rare the woman gives birth to her son in the bear den because being abducted by the bear she was pregnant
k66d	The bear’s (adopted) son	The (adopted) human child of a bear has superhuman strength
k67a	A drowned wife	A man who has a low social position is a nuisance for persons of high position. He gets to know that they plan to drown him or his preperty (rare: to strangle him) and tricks them to drown instead one of them or their own property
k67b	Bargain not to become angry	Person of a low social position (a man) makes an agreement with a person of high social position (an ogre) that the master must never become angry with the servant. The servant abuses the master until the latter erupts in anger and has to be severely punished or to pay a great fee
k67f	Slaughter any sheep that will look at you!	A fool (trickster) is told to slaughter any sheep (cow, ox) that will look at him, i.e. it’s all the same which one. He kills all the sheep because all of them looked in his direction
k72	Three maidens	Powerful person listens in conversation of three (rare: two or four) women. Each of them tells what she would do if the person marries her. One promises to bear his son (children) who would have wonderful qualities, two others promise to practice some kind of work or (more rare) marry people of lower status
k73	Children of the youngest wife	A young woman promises to bear a wonderful children (wonderful son). In her husband's absence other people (co-wives, mother-in-law, etc.) try to kill the mother and/or the child, usually slandering the young woman
k73a	Baby child substituted with object or animal	Hostile women substitute baby of the newly made mother with an animal or an object (inform the baby’s father that his wife has given birth to an animal or an object)
k73a4	Baby child substituted with a pup	Hostile women substitute baby of the newly made mother with a pup (inform the baby’s father that his wife has given birth to a pup)
k73b	Innocent woman punished	A woman who was falsely accused of killing her new-born child or giving birth to pups and the like is punished in such a way that she must suffer from filth and be taunted by passers by
k73b6	Hero flies to his mother’s enemies to listen to what they are talking about	Wife of a powerful person gives birth to wonderful child(ren). Her envious sisters play a trick to make her husband order to get rid of her (usually to put her and her child into the barrel which is thrown into the sea). The wonderful son saves her and himself. Imperceptibly (usually in guise of an animal or an insect, or sending his brother who has guise of a puppy) he gets into his father’s house and listens in what people are are talking about
k74	Hero, his companions and a dwarf	The hero and his companion or companions live together. Every morning one stays at home while another or others go to hunt, etc. A demonic person comes, eats up all the food and beats the cook. Or the man who remained at home comes to the demon himself in search of fire and is maltreated by him. The hero kills or neutralizes the demon
k74a	Only the hero gets to overcome the demon whose track he then follows	Every time a demon commits an outrage upon one of the men who remains at home. When it is the hero’s turn, he overcomes the demon and follows his track to his world
k75	The youngest daughter is willing (The loathsome bridegroom)	A girl (usually the youngest of several sisters) does not reject but marries a poor, sick, dirty, old, too young, non-human, etc. man who later demonstrates his supernatural qualities
k75a	Thrown apple hits the chosen one	Boy or girl selects one person among many throwing an object (usually an apple) into him or her. This way a girl makes a choice of a husband, a young man of a bride, a boy identifies his father
k75a1	The youngest son-in-law should live in the stable	The sovereign orders his youngest daughter (together with a man chosen by her) to live in conditions that do not correspond to her high status. Her father does not know that her chosen one is not a poor wretch as he seems to be but a prince
k75b	Three melons from the three daughters	To show their father that he must marry them, his daughters of different age send him fruits of the same kind but of different degree of ripeness (or bread that is differently baked)
k76	A strange son	A boy born into a family or found by his adoptive parents has a strange guise (ball of meat, nut, bag, half of a man, an animal). He possesses magic power, becomes a handsome man and usually marries a girl of high social status. The magic spouse of a princess originally has a non-human or monstrous appearance
k76a	Frog as a marriage partner	Frog or toad marries a girl or a handsome youth marries a frog or road
k76b	Snake son and snake husband	An (adoptive) son is a snake who turns into handsome man. The snake is the magic spouse of princess, lost and returned
k76f	Youth the calf	A youth who initially has guise of a calf marries a girl and becomes a handsome man.
k77b	The animals in night quarters (Bremen town musicians)	Domestic animals abandon their masters. They find an empty house or build a house. Robbers or the predator animals come there. The domestic animals attack (or just frighten) them. The robbers (predators) do not understand who are their enemies, are scared and run away
k77b1	The wolf flees from the wolf-head	When domestic animals meat the predators, they – deliberately or unintentionally – behave in such a way that the predators escape in panic
k78	Extracted from finger	An ogre (an ogress) swallows people, is killed but the people are not found in his or her belly or are found dead. Only when the ogre's finger is cut off, the hero finds a remedy to revive the people or the swallowed up (the swallowed hero himself) come out alive from the finger of the ogre
k78a	To cure a person, demon swallows him	The demon swallows and vomits maimed and disfigured persons that makes them healthy and handsome
k79	Snake serves an example of resuscitation	Person in a desperate situation gets to see how a snake or other small animal uses remedy to revive or to cure itself or other animals. The person uses the remedy, succeeds
k80a	A bird or an object tell about a murder	An object or a creature that emerged from remains, decorations, etc. of a killed person tells about his or her fate. Usually a reed grows from the person's grave and a pipe made from the reed tells the story
k80a1	Bird tells about a murder	A bird (that usually emerges from the remains of a murdered person or being incarnation of his or her soul) punishes the murderer or tells people about the crime
k80a2	Pipe tells about a murder	Body part of a murdered person or a plant that grew on the place of the crime tells people about the crime
k80a6	Speaking pipe made from a recently grown plant	A pipe or other musical instrument is made from a plant that has grown on a place where certain person was killed (fell, touched ground). When the instrument plays, people hear a particular message
k82	Evil sister-in-law	Wife of a man or wives of a group of brothers envy his (their) sister and tries (try) to destroy her
k83	The sons on a quest for a wonderful remedy for their father	To cure a sick person or to make him (rare: her) young again it is necessary to bring a remedy from a distant country. The medicine is brought and the sick person is cured (becomes young)
k84	Sisters married to animals	Young man gives his sisters to the first bridegrooms who claim them. These are demons or animals who usually later help him
k84a	To give a sister to the first male who comes marry her	On his deathbed, father orders his son to give his sister(s) in marriage to the first male(s) who come(s) to take her (them)
k85	Horses-brothers	An antagonist possesses a horse which can overtake any other. Hero obtains the brother (sister) of this horse who is the only one to win the race with the antagonist's horse
k85c	The four-legged horse is faster than the three-legged one	A horse with a bigger number of legs or wings is faster than the horse that has lesser number of legs or wings
k85e	The sea horses	Magic horses live under the water
k88	The two travellers (Truth and Falsehood)	Two men travel or argue about whether truth or falsehood (justice or injustice, etc.) is more powerful. The evil one abandons the good one robbing or blinding (maiming) him but the good one gets back his sight and becomes rich. The evil one usually perishes
k88a	The blinded bride	Wicked stepmother (aunt, a rival) blinds a young woman. The heroine returns her eyes (often gets them back in exchange for some values)
k88b	Food exchanged for eyes	A companion promises to share water or food with a thirsty or hungry person on condition that he or she allows to blind him or her
k8a	Jonah: swallowed by monster	Person gets into the belly of water being or into the belly of giant creature which appearance and living place remain vague. He kills the monster from the inside and/or returns to earth by himself (i.e. not extracted by other people)
k8c	Jonah: swallowed by terrestrial animal	Person gets into the belly of ground animal or bird. He kills it from the inside and/or returns to earth by himself (i.e. not extracted by other people)
k8c1	First swallowed by herbivorous animal and then by wolf	Tiny boy is first swallowed by chance by a big herbivorous animal and then carried away by a wolf began to eat the animal's offal
k90b	Stag antlers stuck in serpent’s throat	Antlers of a stag or tusks of an elephant who a serpent tries to swallow are stuck in its throat
k91	The invisible battle	Hero's dogs or horse or (rare) he himself fight with his adversary in the underworld (under the water). Those who are waiting for the outcome of the combat understand who overcomes whom by the color of water or foam that rises to the surface, or the color animal who comes first to the surface
k92a	The princess responsible for her own fortune	A girl driven away from home or married to a poor man become prosperous
k92c	Wife is weaving, husband is selling	A princess or a fairy becomes the wife of a poor man. She weaves or embroiders a kerchief (or something else) and sends him to sell it. This is the first step to their ultimate success
k93	Twin brothers and a woman	After a series of adventures and victories, the hero gets into trouble. His twin brother or the best friend follows his traces, gets across the same persons but overcomes the last enemy and revives (liberates) the hero
k93a	Sword of chastity	Sleeping in one bed with a woman, man puts a sharp or thorny object between them as a sign of chastity (sometimes the woman herself puts the sword)
k93b1	Conception from eaten fish	After eating a fish, the sterile woman gives birth to a son or twins
k93b2	Conception from eaten fruit	After eating a fruit (usually an apple, in Northern traditions also an egg), the sterile woman gives birth to a son or twins
k93b3	Boys, colts and puppies are born the same day	To have children, a woman eats a fish, apple or something else. A mare, a bitch or other domestic animals eat part of this food (often skin, broth, etc.). The woman gives birth to a boy (twins) a mare to colts, a bitch to puppies
k94	Bird of luck (eaten up head)	Person eats magic bird, fish, small animal, or fruit and becomes prosperous and powerful
k95	The twining branches (united in death)	Two persons who loved each other (usually a man and a girl) are buried in one grave or not far from each other. After the burial something related to this event takes place (two plants grow up and stretch their branches to each other, smoke of two funeral pyres is merged, two birds flu out from the grave, two stars appear on the sky, etc.)
k95a	Thorny bush between roses	Two lovers are buried in one grave or nearby. Two plants that grow up on the place stretch their branches to each other but a thorn grows in between them as an incarnation or symbol of a person who prevented the happy marriage
k96	Fifty sons	Many brothers marry or have to marry in such a way that all their wives are (were) sisters
k97	Now you are grieved as I was	A man is going to kill but spares a giant bird. Later when the bird carries him high in the air it pretends to drop him or to abandon him on a rock. This way the bird wants him to feel the same terror that it felt when the man was going to kill it. Or the bird first drops and picks up a man and he later makes the bird feel a similar terror
k99	Prophecy of future sovereiniy	A young man or (rare) a girl has a (day-)dream that predicts his or her future triumph. The dreamer either conceals or reports its contest to his family and in both cases is punished for too high opinion of himself. In the beginning the dreamer sometimes sells his dream to another young man, who becomes the protagonist of the tale. Adventures that follow explain the contest of the dream. The youth becomes rich and happy (e.g. marries heiresses of two kingdoms, that in the dream were symbolized by two suns or a sun and a moon), the girl marries king's son
k99a1	Smart man is rescued from prison	An imprisoned man is rescued and exalted because only he gets to resolve problems that trouble the king or to save the princess (prince, the king himself)
k99a3	The happy dream: Sun, Moon and stars	A young man has a dream: he sees the Sun, the Moon and a star (all of them or some of these luminaries). When the narrative come to the end, the man understands the meaning of the dream: these are people who love or adore him
k99b	Eloping with the wrong man	At night a girl’s lover has to carry her away but falls asleep or is late. She is carried away by another man who happened to be on the place
l100d	The entrapped suitors	A pretty, faithful wife is courted by one or several men, one of them usually a clergyman. With her husband’s consent, she invites the suitor(s) to a private rendezvous. Before the first man’s wishes are gratified, the next one arrives and then the husband himself. The suitor or suitors are caught in an uncomfortable position and then killed, punished in some other manner, ridiculed, made to pay ransom, to work, etc.
l100e	The lover, the husband and the guest	Before coming in, a guest gets to notice that the housewife is with her lover. When the husband comes home, the guest pretends to possess magic object or the like that helps him to reveal where the good food and the lover are hidden
l100f	Guest runs away from the host	In the absence of the host, the guest is told that the host is going to kill or to maim him. The guest runs away, the host runs after him with good intentions but the guest believes that the received warning had a reason
l101	Pieces of clothes thrown to pursuer	Pursued by demonic creature (usually a whale or walrus), people throw behind piece by piece children’s or woman’s clothes. These attract the pursuer’s attention, he loses time, the runaways escape
l103	Obstacle flight (Atalanta type)	Treasure, or the like, is thrown back to tempt pursuer to delay
l103a	Relatives do not open the door for the girl	A girl or young woman runs away from the demonic person, knocks at the door of her house but her relatives do not open the door and she is devoured by the demon. (Musical instrument is made from her hair or bowels)
l104	Fugitive and pursuer change guises	A fugitive turns in succession into different animals or objects. A pursuer does the same, every time becoming an animal or a person who is dangerous for the fugitive in his given guise
l106b	Journey to the other world in search of the lost object	In search of a lost object, usually carried away by water or wind, a girl or (rare) a boy comes to a powerful person, gets the object back and/or is rewarded. The object is related to the everyday life, it has no ritual significance and is not a weapon
l108	The wolf and the kids	An (animal) person gives a signal (special song, etc.) to his relative or friend who lets him or her in. Antagonist imitates the person's voice or guise and the relative lets him in
l108a	Goat kills the antagonist	A predator animal (ogre, ogress) swallows people or animals. The goat (rare: the sheep) punishes him or her and usually saves the victims (most often opens the ogre’s belly open and the swallowed ones come out alive)
l108b	The thin voice	To make himself unrecognizable by the victim, a predator or ogre modifies his throat or tongue mechanically (oils or burns it, asks blacksmith to remake it, etc.)
l108b1	A smith makes the voice thin	Person asks the smith to make his voice thin
l108f	Lured from river-bottom	A person (a girl, a small boy) gets into the water and remains there. Antagonist lures him out imitating his father's or sibling's voice
l10a	Demon comes to hunter’s camp-fire	A hunter spends night in a desolate place. A demon comes to his fire. When the demon falls asleep or goes away for a while, the hunter puts his clothes over a log and hides nearby. When the demon attacks the log taking it for the man, the hunter wounds or kills the demon
l110	The devourer	A demonic being swallows a multitude of people and animals. When it is killed and cut open, the swallowed ones come out alive or are revived
l110b	Stomach devours an oak tree	A stomach (spleen) cut out of the body of a domestic animal or fowl becomes a voracious monster
l110c	Artificial child	Old man and woman make a child of clay (wood, straw). The doll becomes alive, devours everybody who comes across. Usually a goat (sheep) breaks it, swallowed people come our alive
l120	Snake-women turn into apple-trees	Hero listens in conversation of demonic beings who plan to turn into something edible, attractive, etc. and to destroy those who touch them. The hero neutralize the demons beforehand
l120a	Tongue of dragoness and the smith’s pincers	Hero hides in a smithy from a dragoness who pursues him. She destroys the door or wall (with her tongue) but the hero (smith) burns her (usually grips tight her tongue with his hot pincers or throws hot iron club in her mouth)
l125	Demonic wife recognized	A man marries a beauty but catches her in a situation when her not human nature is revealed. After this their marriage breaks down
l15a	Vulnerable place on the body	The only vulnerable spot is near the surface of person’s or creature’s body and not in his inner organs
l15a1	Achilles' heel	Vulnerable place on the body of a person or creature is on his or her foot (toe, heel, sole, ankle)
l15d	The external soul	Life of a person or creature is preserved outside of his (her, its) body. Person or creature dies after the corresponding object is destroyed
l15d1	The feigned location of soul	Being asked where his soul (death) is located, person initially gives a false answer. The inquirer usually becomes to show concern to corresponding object or locus (decorates it, etc.)
l15e	Hero’s life in his sword	Hero's life is in certain object, usually in his weapon. When antagonist steals the object, the hero dies but revives after his friends or brothers find the object and bring it back
l15h	The external soul: three or more objects one inside the other	An object that contains the life (soul) of a person is inside two or more creatures or other objects (like an egg in a duck, a duck in a hare, etc.) or the zoomorphic soul container tries to escape and turns in succession to other animals (three or more transformations)
l15h1	Person’s soul is in the egg	An object that contains certain person’s soul / death is inside other object, the latter is in the third one (etc.). The last receptacle of the life is an egg
l15h2	Person’s soul is in a bird	An object that contains certain person’s soul / death is inside other object, the latter is in the third one (etc.). The last receptacle of the life is a (small) bird (a nestling, several nestlings of birds)
l19a	Beings with even number of heads	Beings (any besides birds) with even but not more than ten number of heads are described in tales or represented in art. Beings that with even number of heads named in a row with other multi-headed beings and the highest number is even or bigger than ten are not considered
l19b	Beings with odd number of heads	Being (any besides birds) with more than ten heads or with odd (but more than one) number of heads are described in tales or represented in art. If beings with ever more number of heads are named, the row ends with a being that has odd (or more than ten) number of heads
l19b1	The seven-headed monster	Описывается или изображается чудовище (обычно змей) о семи головах. При перечисления существ по мере возрастания у них числа голов ряд заканчивается на семи
l19b2	The nine-headed monster	A monster with nine heads is mentioned either alone or at the end of the row of creatures with ever bigger number of heads
l19b3	The twelve-headed monster	A monster with twelve heads is mentioned either alone or at the end of the row of creatures with ever bigger number of heads
l37b	Secrets accidentally overheard	Person accidentally overhears secrets of animals or demons and thus gets to know the causes of his and other people's misfortunes
l37c1	Luck (good or bad) as a person	Good or bad luck of a man are particular persons with whom the man meets
l4	The unmasked murderer (Blue Beard)	Person kills girls (rare: his nephews or younger brothers of his wife) in succession (usually the male person kills his wives). The last of potential victims escapes, usually after finding remains of those who had been killed or imprisoned earlier
l40b	Absurd actions to lure person out	Somebody acts in absurd way to lure person out of his or her place. The person does not understand the deception and comes to explain how to act correctly
l43	Dangerous persons eat filth	Persons who are dangerous for the hero (demons, robbers, merchants) take for something pleasant and edible those objects, creatures or matters (excrements, snakes, insects, etc.) that are disgusting (not edible)
l4a	The meat answers its master	A demon orders the hero (heroine) to eat some food that is prohibited for him. When the hero answers that he has eaten the food the demons asks it where it is at the present moment and the food answers him
l56	Fire in monster’s belly	A monster or a big animal dies when fire is kindled in its belly
l57a	Hero's body part is returned by his companion	The antagonists acquire person’s organ or body part (his remains) . Another person gets back what has been stolen and the first one revives (becomes strong again)
l57b	Demon comes to get his body part back	Person cuts off and uses for his own needs a part of the body of predator animal or demonic creature. The demon (the animal) comes after it and usually kills or maims the person
l64	Removable head	Person removes part of his or her body (head, scalp, lungs) and then puts it back
l65a1	Horse’ legs eaten off	A demonic person devours in succession parts of the hero’s horse, each time coming back to the hero and returning again to the horse. (Often asking the hero, if he has ridden on a three-. two-. one-legged horse)
l65a2	The shot off finger	Person shoots off (injures) a finger of a demonic person and then sees that his baby-sister’s finger has a similar injury
l65b	Dogs save their master	A demonic woman or (rare) her paramour or a monster is going to kill a man usually after driving him up a tree. At the last moment the man's dogs or other animals or birds who are the man's pets come and kill the demon
l65b3	The escape on the tree	Persons climbs a tree and thanks to this escapes from a demon (who usually tries to fell the tree)
l72	The obstacle flight	Running away from a dangerous being, person throws small objects behind him or her which turn into mighty obstacles on the way of the pursuer
l72a	Comb becomes a thicket	Running away from a dangerous being, person throws a comb (a brush) that turns into mighty obstacle (usually a thicket) on the way of the pursuer. (In South America the motif is probably of European origin)
l72b	Whetstone becomes a mountain	Running away from a dangerous being, person throws objects that turn into mighty obstacles on the way of the pursuer. One of the thrown objects is a whetstone which turns into a mountain
l72c	Obstacle flight: the thrown mirror	Running away from a dangerous being, person throws a pair of scissors behind him or her creating an obstacle on the way of the pursuer
l81	Demon’s fire	Person sets off in search of fire and finds it in the house of a demon. The demon makes harm to the person
l81a	Cat brings a misfortune	Because a girl or young woman offends a cat (rare: a dog, a cock), it plays a trick that brings the girl a misfortune (usually extinguishes the fire and in search of it the girl gets to a demon)
l81a2	Demon comes to drink blood of a girl	While the men of the household are not at home, a demonic person comes to drink blood of a girl or young woman or make her harm other way. Initially the men do not understand why the girl becomes thin
l81b	Hero’s legs are cut off	Hero’s companions cut off his legs and abandon him (usually they put a sword in front of his tent and when the hero runs out in a hurry, he is wounded by the blade)
l81c	Feetless, handless and blind	A man whose feet were cut off lives with two others, one of whom lost his hands and another eyes (or with one of them). Acting in cooperation, they become health again
l85	One-sided people	One-sided people have one leg and/or also one arm, one half of a head, etc. The second leg is not cut or burned off, preserved as a stump but is absent completely
l9	Sharp body members	Body members of a person has the form of cutting or piercing weapon
l90	Mouth from the earth to the sky	Monster's upper lip (fang, horn, etc.) touches the sky, lower touches the ground
l90c	Horns reaching the sky and the earth	An animal (deer, ram, goat, bull, cow or wolverine) has the horns, one of which touches the ground, and the other one rises to the sky or reaches the heaven
l92	Feigned suggestion to help the ogre	Person escapes to a tree or high rock. An ogre tries to cut it down. Some person or animal suggests the ogre to have a rest, promises to work instead of him but spoils his work or (in Subarctic) kills him when the ogre gives him his axe. (Africa versions have Eurasian origins)
l93	Axe thrown into the water	Person escapes to a tree or a high rock. An ogre tries to cut it down. While the ogre has a rest, an animal throws his axe into the water or carries it away
l93a	Helpful fox	Cunning fox, jackal or coyote saves particular person or many people, helps them
l94	Child promised to demon	A demon helps a man or a woman or lets him or her free. As a reward, the person is forced to promise to give the demon his child
l94a	Caught by his beard	A man, stooping down to water, is caught and held by his beard, and has to give the promise in order to be relieved
l94b	Give me what you do not know at home!	Person promises to give (sacrifice) to a supernatural the being that will be the first to come to him when he will return home (or something that he has never seen in his house, or an object that he will first see behind the door; etc.). The person thinks that it will be something insignificant but it is his own child
l94b1	Demon puts the spilled treasure back into bag	A man receives a box or bag as a gift and is told that he should open it not before he comes to his place. The curious man opens it before time and everything that must make him rich (cattle, houses, etc.) falls out. A demon puts everything back but under certain condition. Usually the man does not understand that he promised to the demon his child
l95	Coming back to pick up toys	Person (usually a kid or lad) returns to the former place to pick up the forgotten object (often a toy) and is caught there by a demonic being
l95a	Floating lungs	A lung or a liver lies on a road or floats in a pond etc. As soon as person touches them, a dangerous demon appears in front of him
l95b	Parents collaborate with a demon against their child	When a man or a woman promises to give his or her child to a demon, he or she does not try to save the child but help the demon to catch him or her. Despite all, the boy or girl escapes from the demon
m106	Meaningful name	Person lies that his name is so and so. Others understand it not as a name but as a common word and behave accordingly
m106b	“Last year” in a demon’s house	After doing damage or inflicting injury, person lies that his name is Last Year or so. Others understand that the injury had been done long ago and there is no sense to investigate the case now
m106f	A guest from the paradise	A stranger tells a woman that he comes from the other world and had seen there her dead relative. The woman gives him money and goods for the latter. Usually when her husband goes after the trickster to retrieve the money, the trickster steals his horse
m106g	The cow is taken to the roof to graze	A cow (donkey, ox, etc.) is taken to the roof to graze grass that was grown there. Or the wife is raised with a rope on her neck
m109	The tail-fisher	Animal person puts his tail (penis) down and waits in hope to get something edible. The tail (penis) is torn or cut off, the person escapes or dies
m114	Rope of sand	Person is suggested to twist (or he really twists) a rope or make other object of sand, ash, smoke, etc.
m114a	Clothes of stone	Person is suggested to make clothes of stone or iron or to skin a stone
m114b1	What is the fattest, sweetest, swiftest?	Answering to a question what is the fatties, sweetest, swiftest, etc., the clever person names abstract notions and non-material values (and a fool names particular objects or creatures)
m114f	A crooked chimney	A girl has a minor body defect. A man tells that the house is nice but the chimney is somewhat crooked. The girl answers that this chimney has a good draught
m114g	The camel is high, the goat has a long beard	Only a young boy gives clever answers to the questions or riddles of a powerful man. When this man asks why they sent to him a boy and not a higher and elder person, the boy says that if the man needs somebody who are high and whose beard is long, these are camel and goat
m116	Wisdom of hidden old man saves kingdom	People are ordered to kill their fathers or (rare) mothers (the Nyoro: to deprive them of power and property; the Baluch: not to take them setting off for the journey). An old man concealed by his son helps to resolve difficult problem
m120	Cannibal baby-sitter	Animal person promises to take care of another animal's children but do not fulfill obligations and usually eats the young ones
m124	A bull’s tail	Person buries a tail or head of a bull or other domestic animal with a tail or horns outside. He explains that the animal sank into the ground and usually asks the others to pull the tail (horns). When they are “torn off”, he tells that people are guilty of the animal being lost
m127a	The quail makes the fox laugh	Trickster animal asks a bird to make him laugh. The bird sits on the head of a woman (child, cow, etc.), other person tries to kill the bird, hits the wife (breaks cow's horn, etc.). Or the bird distracts person attention to let the trickster steal the person’s food
m130	Fox and bird in one hole	Fox and bird hide from a hunter together in one and the same hole. The bird makes believe he is dead and escapes (with the fox or alone)
m134b	Wolf measured by tailor	When a predator is going to eat a man, the latter asks permission first to measure him and beats with his (feigned) measuring tool
m135a	The wolf's reverses	Wolf (more rare other predator animal) comes to different (more than two species) domestic animals (animals and people) to eat them but agrees to fulfill their requests and remains without his meal and usually becomes beaten (killed)
m135b	Wolf regrets for being so stupid	Wolf (rare: jackal, fox) comes to different domestic animals (rare: only to one animal) to eat them but agrees to fulfill their demands. As a result he remains hungry and usually beaten and accuses himself that his ways were so stupid (“Am I a mollah to read?”)
m136d	The air castles	A person plans to turn his (future) possessions into a great wealth (milk, eggs, small money, animal to be killed, etc.) but imagining this wealth, he destroys what he already has (eggs are broken, the animal runs away, etc.). Or two persons are involved into quarrel about possessions that they do not yet have
m137	The weak predator imitates the strong one	The weak predator tries to imitate the strong one but is unable to accomplish actions that the strong one does easily
m140	The theft of fish	Trickster pretends to be dead, sick or weak and is picked up by those who carry something edible in a cart (sledge, boat, bag, etc.). The trickster secretly eats the food, often after throwing it out of the cart (sledge, etc.)
m141a	And the Mouse? For us he is nobody	In an assembly of different animals one of them names the weakest one as having no relation to others (having an ugly name) and the latter is eaten up. The episode repeats with ever bigger animals being killed
m141b	The animals flee in fear of the end of the world	A small bird or animal (chicken, cat, mouse, etc.) takes a trivial event (a leaf or an acorn falls, etc.) for a catastrophe (a war, the end of the world, the fall of the sky, etc.) and flees. Other animals share its fear and go along with it.
m145	The lion in a well	A weak (animal) person demonstrates a strong one his reflection in water. The latter believes that an animal like he contests his supremacy, invites him for a visit, etc., usually jumps in and drowns
m149	Tell them that I am a stump	Strong antagonist is going to kill the hero (a person or a weak animal). Another person or animal pretends not to know about the situation and tells that the antagonist is in search to be killed. The hero is saved. Usually the latter asks the man not to give him out and answer that it is a stump, a log and the like near him. This opens possibility to treat the antagonist as a corresponding object (to cut it with an axe, to tie up, etc.)
m151a	Holding up the rock	(Animal) person pretends to hold up a rock, tree etc. and explains that otherwise it will fall
m152	Why only one wolf?	When a weak animal or a person gets to see a predator animal or an ogre, he says in a loud voice (or asks to say his wife or children) something that frightens the predator (ogre): why the predator (ogre) brought to him is lean (small; only one instead of several), or it is good that more food gets to his house, etc. The predator (ogre) runs away
m153	Letter on the hoof	The wolf (lion, etc.) is going to eat a horse (mule, etc.). The horse asks him to look at his hoof (for different reasons) or eat him from his hindquarters forward; then he kicks him
m154	The animal language and the stubborn wife	A man obtains knowledge of animal languages but if he reveals the secret, he must die. Once he hears animals talking and laughs. His wife thinks that he laughs at her or at her mother. The man is ready to open his secret and either does it and dies or hears how animals (usually a cock) blame him for being so foolish. So he keeps his secret.
m154b	The man who does his wife's work	Husband remains home instead of his wife (rare: son instead of his mother) but does everything wrong so as he suffers a series of accidents
m156	The ungrateful one returned to captivity	An (animal) person saves a dangerous animal from a snare or the like. The saved one is going to kill his savior but the third person saves the second (usually tricks the first one to captivity again)
m157	The impossible giving birth	Person claims that a man or a male animal had given birth (or is menstruating) or that a female gave birth to a young of another species or that a woman gave birth to an animal
m157a1	Father is giving birth	Person proves the absurdity of the claims of another person saying that his or her father (or other man or a male animal) had given or is giving birth or is menstruating
m157a3	To milk a bull	Person demands from the other to bring him an offspring or milk of a male animal
m163	The precious cat	Person gets to a country where rats or mice are a plague and receives a fortune selling a cat
m163b	Father’s heritage brings fortune	When a man is dying, he leaves his son (each of his sons) something that does not have any significant value. The son comes to a country where the corresponding object or animal is unknown and sells it for great money
m166	Piece among animals	To lure his potential victim down from a tree, a predator pretends not to be dangerous (usually announces that it has been decreed that all animals are united in piece). The victim is dubious and usually asks the predator to announce the same news to the dogs. The predator runs away
m169	Medicine for the sick lion	In the presence of powerful person one of his subjects is plotting against the other. The other answers that the problem can be resolved if the first one would be maimed (usually a part of his body used as a medicine). The schemer is killed or injured
m171	The profitable exchange: from a pea to a horse	Person or animal stays for a night and the next morning declares that his possessions (which value is none or negligible) are lost. Or other persons whom the trickster meets really use or spoil objects that the trickster gives them. Every time he receives in compensation objects or animals with ever bigger value, the last acquisition usually being a costly animal or a girl. (All texts with motifs M171A and M171C contain also the motif M171)
m171a	The profitable exchange: getting a girl	Person or animal gets to exchange less valuable goods for ever more valuable. The last or the next to last one is a girl
m177	But he had no heart at all	A weak predator eats part of a body of a killed animal and explain to the strong one that this animal did not have such a part at all
m177a	Guilty is the one who is silent	One animal person teaches another to be silent or to look to the side (down, etc.) when the third one becomes to ask them who had eaten the best piece of meat. It is a trick because the third one decides that guilty is the second one
m180	Fox and crane invite each other	An animal person invites another and serves his food in such a way that he is unable to taste it. Then the other invites the first animal and puts him in similar situation
m182a	Wild animals stick to horse	Person smears with pitch a domestic animal (a stuffed animal, an object); wild animals or demons stick to it
m182a1	Captured wild animals ransom themselves	A man catches several wild animals but lets them go after they promise to bring him something valuable or to help him. The animals fulfill their promise
m183	A race: one against many	Many animals of one species that all look identical together fulfill the task that would be impossible for any of them if he were alone; the competitors believe that the task was fulfilled by only one animal. Usually a slow and a fast animals agree to race. The slow one puts other animals of his species at the finish or along the distance, each one answering the fast one that he is ahead of him. The fast one accepts his loss
m191	Cat and wild animals	The fox (dog, squirrel) lives with the cat and poses him as a strong and dangerous animal. The wild predator animals are scared and bring him meat
m196	The silence wager	A man and his wife make a wager: Whoever speaks first must do certain trivial work or get a bigger portion of some simple food. They or one of them continue to keep silence even being exposed to violence or taken by others as the dead
m197a	The pot has a child and dies	A borrower returns a cattle (pot) together with a small one, claiming that the cattle gave birth to a child. He borrows the pot again but does not return it, claiming that the pot dies
m197b	The neighing stallions and the mares who foaled	A powerful man claims that after his stallions neighed his neighbor’s mares foaled, that all foals in his land are born by his mare, etc. A youth comes to kill dogs of the man because they did not drive wolves in due time (because they scared game, etc.). The dogs were far away from the place of the event and the man recognizes that his trick failed
m197c	Sham physician: using the flea powder	A huckster sells powder that he guarantees will kill fleas (rats, etc.). When someone asks how to use it, he relies that one has to catch the flea, hold its mouth (eyes) open and put powder in it. When the customer says that it would be easier simply to crush, the seller agrees with him
m198	Wise brothers (the king is bastard)	When three brothers (rare: a person) are Invited to khan (judge, king, etc.) and served delicious food, they claim that the food and drink have a taste (smell) of a corpse, dog, goat etc. and/or their host is of a low descent or a bastard. Investigation confirms that their deduction was correct
m198a	Wise brothers (the strayed camel)	Three or four brothers (rare: one man) see the track of a domestic animal and are able to deduce how it looked like (lame, had no tale, carried oil and honey, etc.) or they deduce how the man who had stolen the animal looks like
m198a1	The eldest: it is round, the middle: it is hard, the youngest: it is a nut!	Three brothers in succession and without obvious reason describe an object or a person which or whom they have never seen
m198a3	Who did steal the ruby?	One of the brothers steals a treasure for which all of them have equal rights or he is a bastard. Brothers come to a powerful person and want him to say who of them is the thief or the bastard. Usually the person tells a story and discovers the guilty one considering his reaction
m198a4	Which was the noblest act?	Listeners of a story must answer whom they liked more: a husband who let his wife go to another man, a robber who did not harm her, or the other man who immediately sent her back to her husband
m199	Squeezing the (supposed) stone	A man or a weak animal and an ogre (giant, devil) have a contest to see which of them can squeeze a stone. The man squeezes a cheese (egg, turnip) and thus intimidates the ogre
m199c	Throwing a club	A man pretends that he had thrown or is going to throw a heavy object to the sky (to the clouds). His adversary asks him not to do it.
m199d	Wrestling and running contests	An ogre (devil, etc.) challenges a man to a wrestling and/or running contest. The man sends his “relative” – a bear to wrestle and a hare to run
m199e	Carrying the horse	An ogre (devil, etc.) and a man take turns in carrying a horse. The ogre carries it on his back and is soon exhausted and the man “takes the horse between the legs”, i.e. rides it
m199f	Pulling the lake together	Person threatens the devils (water dwellers, etc.) that he will deprive them of their home (pull together or stir up a lake, dry the sea, build a church where the devils live, etc.). The devils (fish, etc.) fulfill person’s demands
m199k	A man makes believe that he is going to bring an entire well	An ogre sends a man to bring water giving him an enormous skin. The man is unable to carry such an amount of water but does not reveal his weakness using a ruse (he is digging around the well and explains that he wants to carry all the water at once; or says that he brought the skin with the water but drank it already up, etc.)
m202	Thorn removed from lion’s paw	Person removes a thorn from the paw (bone from the throat) of a strong and dangerous animal or a demon, the animal (demon) is grateful
m23	Mock plea	Person or creature pretends to be afraid of a particular sort of treatment that really cannot do him any harm
m26a	Ducks rise hunter into the air (threaded on a string)	Person catches birds by tying a bait to a string which they swallow and become tied one after another to the same string; or he immobilizes many birds with one bullet; or gives them liquor and ties to a string. Usually the birds all fly up at once and lift the man up in the air
m27	Coming back from the sky	A tree or a chain of reeds by which people have ascended to the sky is destroyed. On their way back they fall to the ground. Some of them remain in the sky for ever or longer than others
m29b	Trickster-fox, jackal or coyote	In episodes related to deception, absurd, obscene or anti-social behavior the protagonist is fox, jackal or coyote
m29b1	The wolf is a failure	Because of its stupidity and unsocial behavior, the wolf suffers a reverse, is injured or dies
m29b2	The bear is a failure/enemy	Because of its stupidity or unsocial behavior, the bear suffers a reverse, is injured or dies
m29g	Trickster-hare or rabbit	In episodes related to deception, absurd, obscene or anti-social behavior the protagonist is hare or rabbit
m29gg	The hedgehog wins thanks to his smartness	Being smart and witty, the hedgehog overcomes overcomes strong adversaries
m29w2	The tiger is a failure	Because of its stupidity and unsocial behavior, the tiger suffers a reverse, is injured or dies
m29w3	The lion is a failure	Because of its stupidity and unsocial behavior, the lion suffers a reverse, is injured or dies
m29z	The Beardless	Person named as the Beardless (Kusa, Kesa, Kose, Kysa, Kusu, etc.) acts in narratives
m29z1	The Bald-headed	A bald person acts in narratives (thence his usual name: Taz, Tazchi, Kal, Keloglan, Kechal etc.)
m39a1	Misunderstood instructions: a step behind	Fool follows instructions that were reasonable in every previous episode but become absurd in every next one
m39a2	Fool puts a needle into the hay	Fool puts a small sharp object (needle, pin, nail) in a place when it is impossible later to find it (a cart-load of hay, a bag of flour. etc.)
m39a2e	The forgotten name	A fool forgets his name but it comes back to his mind when he hears some word by chance
m39a4	Fool and his shadow	Fool takes his own shadow for a person who pursues him and gives it his possessions
m39a4a	Fool’s customer is an animal or an object	A fool gives meat, a domestic animal, cloth etc. to an animal (plant, inanimate object) and thinks that the latter will pay him later or asks an animal to do some work. Claiming money or products of the work, he finds treasure
m39a4e	Fool’s customer is a tree	Fool sells property to a tree (stump, pole, a cross in the countryside) and believes that it will pay him. Trying to get his money, he finds treasure
m39a4g	Fool’s customers are dogs	Fool sells property to the dogs and believes that they will pay him. Trying to get his money, he finds treasure
m39a5a	The sausage rain	Because telling the truth a stupid son (wife, husband)) can bring misfortune upon the family, his mother (wife; her husband) mystifies him (her) making him or her describe events that are definitely impossible. People take him (her) for a fool and let alone.
m39a6c	King the craftsman	A poor girl agrees to marry a prince only if he learns some craft. He does it, marries the girl and then gets into hands of some criminals. He promises them to produce valuable object that they can sell for good money. His wife or (rare) his father recognize his work (or read signs of the object). He is released, the criminals killed
m39a6g	Four coins (The sharing of bread and money)	Man explains that one part of his incomes he puts out at interest while another part is used to pay debts, i.e. he cares for his children and keeps up his parents
m39a6h	Plucking geese	King asks a commoner to pluck (skin, milk, cut) a goose (geese, other birds, animals) that he sends him. The commoner understands correctly that he is allowed to fleece a courtier
m39a8	A fool carries a door on his back	A fool or a buffoon takes the door of the house and carries it on his back
m39a8a	Fool drops an object from a tree	A person (often a fool or buffoon) drops a (heavy) object from a tree. Those who are under the tree (usually robbers or demons) are frightened and run away abandoning their goods and valuables
m39e	What sort of a tree?	Asking about minor details of the case, a judge demonstrates that the plaintiff (or the defendant) lies because he does (not) know about them
m39f	He had a hat, had he a head?	A fool loses his head (usually bitten off by a bear). His wife or companions cannot say had he his head before but remember that he certainly had a hat (beard)
m39g	Girl bewails the loss of her child before she has any (Clever Elsie)	Girl bewails the loss of her future child before she has any; thinking about an event that could have been tragic; is jealous of her sisters before any of them have fiancée; thinks out the name of her child that does not exist instead of coming to meet her fiancée.
m39h	Husband pretends to become blind (The faithless wife)	A married woman is eager to get rid of her husband and usually asks a spirit (God, saint, etc.) to make him blind. The husband hides in a tree, behind the alter, etc. and usually tells her that good food will make her husnad blind, or the husband himself tells his wife that the good food is dangerous for him. He pretends to become blind, kills the love (and his wife)
m39i	The treasure of the hanging man	When he spends his entire fortune, a man is going to hang himself but finds treasure (intentionally put in the corresponding place by his father)
m51	Meat in a tree	One of two animal-persons kills game. In the absence of the stronger one, the weaker one hides the meat to eat it alone later
m57a	Beads discharged from the body	Instead of common body discharges a man or a woman urinates, spits, etc. beads, flowers, gold and other valuables; valuables are produced by the very presence of particular person
m57a3	Female person is the producer of valuables	Instead of common body discharges a a woman urinates, spits, etc. beads, flowers, gold and other valuables; valuables are produced by the very presence of particular female person. See motif m57a
m57c	Gold producing animal	An animal (ass, cow, horse, goat, bear, leopard) extracts gold or food from its body or person makes others believe that it is so
m57d	Beat, cudgel!	Person gets one by one magic objects that bring food or treasure. Other people replace them with common objects or take them away by force. The person takes his property back (usually beating the thieves with magic cudgel or whip)
m57d1	Bird presents objects and fulfills wishes	A bird gives a man several magic objects in succession (or one object which helps to get others) or fulfills in succession a series of his wishes
m57d2	Tree grants a wish	When a man is going to fell a tree, the tree itself or the being who lives in (on) it asks him not to do it and grants the man’s wishes
m60	Sham doctor: finished off enemy	Hero wounds dangerous enemy (a monster, a robber) and then, in guise of a doctor, comes to him and kills his patient instead of curing him
m60a	A hunter comes to one whom he wounded	An animal or a supernatural creature is wounded but escapes. Local doctors are helpless. The hero or his companion, masked as a doctor, comes to the wounded one and either cures or kills him.
m60a2	False servant licks soles	A servant has to lick soles or a wound of his master or mistress. The hero comes disguised as the servant and instead of licking the soles rubs them (rubs the wound) with a cut off animal tongue
m60b	False doctor: a finished off victim	The deceiver who promised to cure a sick or wounded person or animal devours him or suggests a remedy that makes the sick one to feel ever worse
m74a	Strange names of the babies	An animal person pretends to be invited to be godfather or he gives names to different places along which he travels in a sledge, boat, etc. The names look strange but become understandable when other people or animals get to know that their companion has devoured all the supplies
m74aa	Theft of food by playing godfather	An animal person pretends (several times) that he has to make a visit (that he has been invited to be godfather at a baptism or invited to a funeral or wedding) but instead eats secretly food supplies
m74b	Who has eaten up the fat?	To demonstrate that the thief who had eaten food supplies is somebody else or to declare somebody else as a victim to be eaten up, animal person smears his sleeping companion with remains of the food or body excretions (exchanges the excretions)
m75	Valuables taken off the vultures	Person attracts and catches the carrion-eaters (usually some birds) and thanks to this obtains valuables retrieves valuables (fire, woman, animals, etc.)
m75b	Hero inside carcass	A man hides in a skin or carcass of a big animal. A bird carries it to its nest without knowing that the man is inside
m75c	Treasure on mountain top	A man sends another one to top of a mountain or a tree to obtain treasure for him. To go back is impossible but the man survives
m77	A soiled bed	While person is asleep, another smears with excrements or something that reminds excrements his or her bed or clothes. The ashamed person runs away or agrees to make what the trickster wants in exchange of his silence
m78	A tiny boy (Thumbling)	Tiny boy as small as a thumb, a pea and the like taunts people, predator animals, ogres
m78a	Tail-boy	A wee boy is a transformed tail of a sheep or goat
m78c	Cut-off finger-boy	A cut off finger or thumb turns into a wee boy
m78f	A planted empryo	When a woman falls asleep, the trickster (usually a tiny boy) puts animal embryo or entrails (or something that looks like this) near her to make her or other people believe that she has had a miscarriage or her own entrails have fallen out
m83b	Whose dream is better?	Two (or more) (animal)-persons agree that whichever of them has the most wonderful dream may eat all the food. The first one tells about a feast that he participated in his dream. His companion answers that he was sure that after such a feast (after getting into the paradise, etc.) the first one would not need the food, so he has eaten it alone
m84	Revived from bones	Person, animal, fish or (rare) a fruit is eaten up and then revived, usually after all bones (all seeds) being put together
m84a	Goat resuscitated	Supernatural beings kill and eat an animal and then put all the bones together (in the animal's skin). After the feast the animal becomes whole (and usually revives)
m85	The fox bluffs	An animal person (usually a fox or a jackal) threatens to cut down a tree on which mother bird (squirrel) made its nest unless she will throw down one of her nestlings (squirrel children) or eggs. Another bird lets the mother bird know that the predator is unable to realize his threat
m90a	To marry a man who would give a correct answer	A girl is promised to a man who would know her name or whose finger would fit her ring, or who would guess a material from which certain object is made or grown. Person finds a correct answer by deception
m90a1	The louse skin	It should be guessed the nature of a big animal or its skin, the content of a box. The correct answer is that the animal is a louse (or a flea), a louse is in the box
m90a5	The golden apples	Golden fruits (in rare cases only leaves) of a certain tree are mentioned in tail. Usually these are golden apples
m91	The killed corpse	Person pretends that a person (often his or her mother, spouse or lover) who recently died is alive, claims that the death of the false alive resulted from negligence of others and gets a reward
m91a	Simulated killing (a bag with blood)	Person pierces a bladder with blood or red juice, simulates murder or suicide
m91b	The sold ashes	Using trick, a man sells or exchanges for treasure ashes. Another person tries to sell ashes and is ridiculed
m91b1	The sold skin	A man goes to sell a skin of domestic animal and on his way, by trick or thanks to chance, gets a big sum of money. Usually coming back he explains that this was the price of the skin but when other people kill their animals they cannot sell skins for such a sum. (In India the hero sometimes pretends to sold cow meat to brahmins for whom it is forbidden)
m91c1	Herd from the river bottom	Person gets other person’s possessions by trick (or pretends to get it; usually another person is drowned instead of him) and then demonstrates his possessions (usually a herd) and explains that he had received everything at the river bottom. His enemies believe him
m91c2	Put into the bag	Person is put into a bag (a cage, tied up, etc.) to be drowned, burned, etc. He pretends to be in this situation by his own will or because he refuses to marry a princess, to become a chief and the like. Another person is willing to take his place and is killed
m91c3	Hare the messenger	After warning his wife about the planned trick, person lets free a wild animal or bird asking it to pass a message to his wife. Seeing the same (actually another) animal or bird in his companion’s house another man buys the animal for a lot of money
m91c4	Pot that does not need fire to cook	Man takes a pot from the fire but it is still boiling or he cooks the food beforehand and tells that his pot cooks it in no time (or that his stick touching ground creates the food). Another man buys the pot (the stick)
m91c7	Tell them that I have died	When enemies come to deal with a man he pretends to be dead
m94b	Wolf in a basket	Person tricks another to crawl into a basket and closes it. One in a basket is killed or badly injured (usually rolled down a hill)
m94b1	Wolf under the mill wheel	Animal person is tricked to creep under the mill wheel, he is killed or badly injured
m95	To bring a present for person's kin	A weaker person asks the stronger one to take present to his or her kin and hides himself or herself in a bag. The stronger one brings the bag to the weaker one's relatives thinking that there are but some objects inside. Usually a girl deceives the ogre into carrying her sisters and then herself in a sack (chest) back to their home
m98	Who are more numerous?	Person reckons up number of members in two enormous and alternative multitudes (alive trees and dead trees, men and women, etc.). Usually numbers prove to be equal but one member possesses the qualities of the both multitudes. Adding it to one of them, person demonstrates his case
n1	Initial formula: when Altai was but a small tussock	Epics and folktales begin with an initial formula in which it is claimed that objects that are huge now were tiny
n14	Storyteller on the wedding	Closing formula of the folktale: the teller represents himself as being present at the wedding and/or feast, which were organized by characters of the tale
n15	It ran down onto my moustache, but didn’t get into my mouth	Closing formula of the folktale: the teller ate some food and/or drank some alcohol but it did not get into his mouth and/or stomach
n2	Initial formula: when a goat was a colonel	Epics and folktales begin with an initial formula in which it is claimed that animals fulfilled social or economic roles of the people
n20	They attained their desires	Closing formula of the folktale: the teller says that the characters attained their desires, goals and/or happiness or that God satisfied their desires
n21	The Dough-strong man	The warrior-hero was made of dough and then became alive (his name is “The Dough”)
n25	The length of a needle as a long distance	It is said that tale characters have been on the road for a long time (days, weeks, months, years), but passed in the end a distance no more than a grain, needle or another small object
n27	The milk of birds	Bird’s (hen’s) milk is mentioned in fairy tales, riddles and proverbs as something very rare and difficult to obtain
n27a	You can find even bird’s milk there!	It is said that somewhere there is (or was) even bird’s milk
n27b	The only thing missing is bird’s milk	It is said that someone is only lacking bird’s milk or that somewhere the only thing missing is bird’s milk
n30	Crying while looking in one direction and laughing while looking in another	The formula that describes the confusion of feelings: when a person looks in one direction, he or she cries, when in another – begins to laugh or smile; or one eye of a person laughs and another laughs; or person laughs looking at one object and weeps looking at another; or one of two persons who share the same fate laughs and another smiles, etc.
n33	Pressing adversary into the ground	The hero presses his adversary into the ground or both of them press each other (ankle-, waist-, breast-deep and the like)
n6	Horse tells to whip him strongly	A horse tells his rider to whip him with such force that his blood would splash out, skin would come off, flesh would be gashed to the very bone, etc. The rider follows these instructions

Similar traditions based on Cosmology and Etiology motifs:
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition: Georgians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition: Chuvash
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition: Russian Pomors (“seasiders): Arkhangelsk province without its southern part (Shengur district and Konosha dstrict), Karelia White Sea coast
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition: Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Armenians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Kumyk, Terekemen
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Ossetians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Greeks (modern)
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Bulgarians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Finns

Similar traditions based on Adventures and Tricks motifs:
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition: Kazakh
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition: Anatolia Turks
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Georgians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Baluch
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Azeris (Azerbaijanis)
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Armenians
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Kumyk, Terekemen
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Crimea Tatars, Karaims
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition: Chuvash