A Collection of Chain Tales: ATU-done

Showing posts with label ATU-done. Show all posts

ATU 2009 Origin of chess

At this site:
The Invention of Chess

Z21.1 [ATU 2009] Origin of chess. Inventor asks one wheat-grain for first square, two for the second, four for the third, eight for the fourth, etc. The king cannot pay.

additional information:

Murray History of Chess (Oxford 1913) 207-9, 755 [online at Internet Archive]

see also Wikipedia:
Wheat and Chessboard Problem
Powers of Two / The Chess Number

ATU 2010 Ehod mi yodea (One: Who Knows?)

At this site:
Kohut. Ehad mi-Yode'a
Kohut. Dic mihi: quid est unus?
Sharp. The Ten Commandments
Children, Go Where I Send Thee!
Newell. Come and I Will Sing You
Baring-Gould. The Dilly Song
Rubin. Green Grow the Rushes
Spanish: Las doce palabras retorneadas [online at Hathi]
(more to come!)

21.2 [ATU 2010]. Ehod mi yodea (One; who knows?); Le dodici parole della verita; Las doce palabras retorneadas. The numbers from one to twelve are brought into relation with various objects, often objects of religious significance.
See also: ATU 2010A Twelve Days (Gifts) of Christmas

additional information:
Wikipedia: Echad Mi Yodea

ATU 2010A Twelve Days (Gifts) of Christmas

At this site:
Twelve Days of Christmas
Gilbert. In These Twelve Days
The Gaping, Wide-mouthed, Waddling Frog

ATU 2010A:
Z21.2.1. The Twelve Days (Gifts) of Christmas: 1 partridge, 2 turtle-doves, 3 French hens, 4 colly birds, 5 gold rings 6 geese 7 swans 8 mais 9 drummers 10 pipers 11 ladies 12 lords.
Z21.2.2. The Twelve Kinds of Food: 1 partridge 2 turtledoves 3 woodpigeons 4 ducks 5 rabbits 6 hares 7 hounds 8 sheep 9 oxen 10 turkeys 11 hams 12 cheese.
Z23. How the Rich Man paid his Servant (Lonen hos den rike man). A farmer pays his servant in the first year a hen, in the second a cock, goose, goat, cow, horse, . . . girl, farmstead.

ATU 2012 Days of the Week

At this site:

Gomme. The Witch
Lang. Solomon Grundy
Halliwell. Sneezes
Halliwell. Washing
Talley. When I was a Roustabout
Lang. Monday's Bairn
Tarrant. Fingernails
Northall. Marriage
Dodge. My Week
(more to come!)

ATU 2012: Z24.1.3. Solomon Grundy. This miscellaneous type comprises various chain tales in which the months of the year, days of the week, or hours of the day are connected to actions or events:
1. A forgetful man enumerates the chores done on various days of the week and comes to the conclusion that today must be Sunday.
2. A widower relates how he courted, married, and buried his wife within a single week.
3. The chief events of a human life, from birth to death, are assigned to hours of the day.
4. In a children's rhyme, the main events of human life, from birth to death, are assigned to the various days of the week.
5. A bird gives a father instructions for educating his lazy children. She tells him what she does for her chicks each month from March to August, when they are ready to fly away.

ATU 2014. Chains Involving Contraditions or Extremes

At this site:
Baughman. That's Tough
Jacobs. News!
Martin. That's good. No, that's bad.

Z51.1 [ATU 2014]. Chains involving contradictions or extremes. The house is burned down. That is too bad. That is not bad at all, my wife burned it down. That is good. That is not good, etc.

ATU 2014. This miscellaneous type comprised of various chain tales that feature contradictions or extremes. The following are the most common variants:
1. A man who has recently been married meets a friend (neighbor, stranger) who tells him what has happened at home while he was absent. The friend makes the events sound positive, but as the married man asks for more information, the situation turns out to be disasterous. During their conversation they exchange other news. For example, one says that a goat (hog) ate a giant cabbage and became fat enough to be slaughtered. Questions and answers follow, with comments like, "That's good" - "No, not so good" - "That's bad" - "No, not so bad." One tells the other his house burned down. "That's too bad," answers the other, but the first man says, "No, it's not so bad, because my wife died in the fire."
2. Two godparents (strangers) discuss a coin (saw, pea) which one of them has found (lost). The conversation conveys alternating incidents or commentary. At the end, one tells the other that he killed a wolf which had eaten a wild boar. The other says, "That's good." The first replies, "Yes, it is good, but not very good, because the squire claimed its skin."

additional information:

Baughman 2014A (was 2014). The House Is Burned Down.
MISSOURI: Randolph Turtle 72-73 1957

Nouvelles Recreations No. 75 (online at Hathi; French only)
De Janin, nouvellement marié. Janin s'estoit marié la sienne fois, et avoit pris une femme qui jouoit des manequins, laquelle ne s'en cachoit point pour luy, ne voulant point faire de tort au beau nom de son mary. Quelque jour un des voisins de Janin luy faisoit des demandes, et luy faisoit les responses, en forme d'une assez plaisante farce.
Or ça, Janin, vous estes marié?
Et Janin respondit: O voire!
Cela est bon, disoit l'autre.
Pas trop bon pourtant, disoit Janin.
Et pourquoy?
Elle ha trop mauvaise teste.
Cela est mauvais.
Pas trop mauvais pourtant.
Et pourquoy?
Et pourquoy? C'est une des belles de nostre parroisse.
Cela est bon.
Pas trop bon aussi.
Et pourquoy?
II y a un monsieur qui la vient veoir à toute heure.
Cela est mauvais.
Pas trop mauvais pourtant.
Et pourquoy?
II me donne tousjours quelque chose.
Cela est bon.
Pas trop bon aussi.
Et pourquoy?
II m'envoye tousjours deçà, delà.
Cela est mauvais.
Pas trop mauvais pourtant.
Et pourquoy?
II me baille de l'argent, dequoy je fais grand chere par les chemins.
Cela est bon.
Pas trop bon aussi.
Et pourquoy?
Je suis à la pluye et au vent.
Cela est mauvais.
Pas trop mauvais pourtant.
Et pourquoy?
Je y suis tout accoustumé.
Achevez le demeurant si voulez, ceste cy est à l'usage d'estrivieres.

ATU 2016. Wee Wee Woman

At this site:
Welsh. The Story of Teeny-Tiny
(I hope I can find some more examples)

Z39.2 [ATU 2016] There was a wee wee woman who had a wee wee cow, etc.

ATU 2016. Once there was a teeny tiny woman who had a teeny tiny cow which she milked into a teeny tiny pail. A teeny tiny cat drawnk all the milk. The woman killed the cat (it died), and all the milk flowed back into the pail, etc.

ATU 2019 Pif Paf Poltrie

At this site:
Grimm (Hunt). Pif-Paf-Poultrie
(more to come I hope!)

Z31.1 [ATU 2019] Pif Paf Poltrie. The suitor sent from one relation to the other for consent to the wedding. Each member of a family is assigned a characteristic function; various wooers appear and are rejected until the one which is apparently the most unpromising is chosen.

ATU 2019. A suitor (suitors) with a peculiar name (.e.g Pif Paf Poltrie) asks a father for his daughter's hand in marriage. The father consents and sends the suitor to other relatives, who also consent. The suitor asks the bride about her dowry, which is poor. She asks him what his profession is. He is not a tailor, shoemaker, farmer, carpenter, or smith, but a maker of brooms.

additional information:
Wikipedia: Fair Katrinelje and Pif-Paf-Poltrie

ATU 2021. The Rooster and the Hen

At this site:
Dasent. The Cock and Hen A-Nutting
Wardrop. The Grasshopper and the Ant
(more to come!)

ATU 2021. The Rooster and the Hen. A hen (rooster, cat, other animal, young woman) has a nut (cherry pit, a corn, etc.) stuck in her throat (dies in some other way). A rooster goes to get water for the hen to drink, but the water sends him to get red silk from a bride first. The bride sends him to get a wreath, etc.
Or, the rooster asks for help from various animals (pig, cow, etc.) people (miller, baker, shoemaker, etc.) and/or objects (river, tree, etc.). When the rooster comes back with the water, the hen is already dead.
The rooster buries the hen and then dies from grief. (The hen who had been choking is bumped and the nut becomes dislodged from her throat.)

Z32.1 [ATU 2021] The funeral procession of the hen. Animals one by one join the procession. The funeral carriage breaks down or the procession drowns.

ATU 2021B. The Rooster Strikes Out the Hen's Eye

At this site:
Afanasjev. Rooster and Hen

Z43.2 The cock strikes out the hen's eye with a nut. The cock blames the hazel bush for tearing its knickers, the hazel bush the goat for gnawing at it, the goat the shepherd-boy for not tending it, the boy his mistress for not baking him a bun, the mistress the pig for eating up the dough, the pig the wolf for killing its young.

ATU 2021B: A rooster throws a nut that strikes out the hen's eye. He blames the hazelnut bush, because it tore his pants. The bush blames the goat for eating its leaves. The goat blames the herdsman who did not give him good pasture; the herdsman blames his master for not giving him enough to eat, etc.

ATU 2022B The Broken Egg

At this site:
Afanasjev. The Hen

Z39.5. The hen lays an egg; the mouse breaks it. Sorrowing over his mishap, all show extraordinary behavior: the masters puts an end to it. Final formula: hen strips off feathers, rubbish heap catches fire, oak falls to ground, hare drowns self, magpie twists leg, ox breaks horns, river flows blood, maid breaks pails, housewife scatters dough.

ATU 2022B. The Broken Egg. A hen lays an egg which breaks (a mouse breaks it). All the witnesses show their grief at this misfortune. For example, the hen ruffles her feathers, the rubbish begins to burn, the stairs creak, the oak falls down, the magpie sprains his leg, the ox breaks his horns, the river flows with blood, the maidservant breaks her jug, the housewife smears dough on the wall, etc. The master locks his wife up and the maidservant goes to look for people who are equally stupid, etc.

ATU 2024. Rabbit Borrows Money

At this site:
Beckwith. The Chain of Victims.

Z32.4. Cumulative: master to kill hen. She begs off; he goes to kill rooster... goose, rabbit, toad, tiger. Chinese: Graham. (not online)

ATU Rabbit Borrows Money. A rabbit borrows money from a beetle, a hen, a fox, a dog, a tiger, and a hunter. When the beetle asks for the money back, the rabbit tells him to wait behind to count the money. Instead, the hen eats the beetle, then the fox eats the hen, etc.

ATU 2031A. The Esdras Chain

At this site:
Bible. The Esdras Chain

Z42.1 [ATU 2031A] The Esdras chain: stronger and strongest, wine, king, woman truth.

ATU 2031A. THe Jewish bodyguards of the Persian king Darius discuss the question, what is the strongest thing in the world? The first thinks it is the king; the second, wine; the third, a woman. But the truth is the strongest of all.

ATU 2031B. Abraham learns to worship God

At this site:
Ginzberg. The True Believer
Abraham and Nimrod
Abraham and the Star, Moon, and Sun

Z42.2 [ATU 2031B] Abraham learns to worship God. At nightfall Abraham worships a star, then the moon, then the sun, and finally gives up idolatry.

ATU 2032. The Healing of the Injured Animal

At this site:
Cushing. The Cock and the Mouse
Crane. The Cock and the Mouse
Crane. The Sexton's Nose
La Chanson de Bricou [French; online at Hathi]

ATU 2032: An animal (mouse) is wounded (by another animal) and asks for help. He is told that this will happen only if he brings a particular object (fulfills some other request). The injured animal has to ask someone else for this object. This develops into a chain of demands and counter-requests, until finally someone (thing) agrees without a counter-request. The animal is treated for his injury, or else he dies before all the requests are granted.
In Spanish and Portuguese variants, a toad asks a magpie to throw something ( a nut) down from a tree. The magpie is afraid its beak will break, but the toad promises to repair it. The beak breaks and the toad goes after horsehair to mend it. He is sent to fulfill other requests, until finally someone does not make a counter-request. Everyone in the chain gets what he or she wanted, and finally the toad brings the horsehair to the magpie.

Z43 The cock's whiskers. A mouse throws a nut down and hits the cock on the head. He also steals the cock's whiskers. The cock goes to get an old woman to cure him. The final formula is: Fountain give up water for forest, forest give up wood for baker, baker give up bread for dog, dog give up hairs to cure the cock. (Variant: mouse loses tail.)
Z43.1 Toad asks magpie in tree to throw down a chestnut. Magpie refuses, saying it might break its beak. Toad promises, if that happens, to get a horsehair to tie it up again. Magpie throws chestnut and breaks beak. Toad asks ass for hair, but ass first demands grass; mower demands sheep; shepherd, pup; mother dog, bread; baker, stumps. Toad cuts the stumps and gets the hair.

ATU 2039. Horseshoe Nail

At this site:
Lang. For want of a nail, the shoe was lost
Grimm (Hunt). The Nail

Z45 [ATU 2039] The Horseshoe Nail. For the want of a nail the shoe was lost, for the want of a shoe, the horse was lost, for the want of a horse the rider was lost... and all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

ATU 2039. A merchant on his way home stays at an inn and someone tells him that one of the nails is missing from one of his horse's shoes. At the next inn the shoe has fallen off. nevertheless, the merchant rides on. The horse becomes lame, stumbles, and breaks a leg. The merchant has to carry his goods himself and go home on foot. In some variants the horse of a soldier loses a horse shoe, and in the end a battle and a kingdom are lost.

additional information:

Wikipedia: For want of a nail

ATU 2041. The Bird Indifferent to Pain

At this site:
Parker. The Mango Bird
Crooke-Rouse. The Talking Thrush
Cronise. The Devil Turns Pigeon
Talley. Fishing Simon

Z49.3 [ATU 2041] The bird indifferent to pain. A man catches a mango-bird eating mangoes and strikes it against the roots of a mango tree. The bird cannot be made to say it suffers from the blow. In turn, he puts it in water, strikes it on the ground, a stile, a doorframe, singes its feathers, cuts it up, cooks it, and eats it. The bird always expresses indifference in a cumulative rhyme. At last the bird asks him to look out of the window, whereupon it flies out of his nose and the man dies.

ATU 2043. Where is the warehouse?

At this site:
Bhutan. Oh Brother Moon! Where do you sleep?

Bhutan. Brother Moon! Give me the left-over food.

Newell. Club Fist

Z49.5 Where is the warehouse? the fire burned it down. Where is the fire? The water quenched it. Etc. Type 2018 = ATU 2043.

ATU A game, song or rhyme composed of questions and answers that lead to the next question. Where is the warehouse (God's house)? The fire burned it. Where is the fire? The water quenched it. Where is the water? etc.

Baughman 2018.
ARIZONA (from Essex England): Barnes NMFR 6:21. 1951-1952 (incorporated into a chasing game)
INDIANA Baughman MS (a game)

ATU 2044. Pulling up the Turnip

At this site:
The Big Turnip

Z49.9. Pulling up the turnip. Final formula: the mouse holds onto the cat, the cat holds onto Mary, Mary holds onto Annie, Annie holds onto grandmother, grandmother holds onto grandfather, grandfather holds onto the turnip - they all pull and pull it out.

ATU A man attempts to pull up a turnip. He cannot do it alone, so he calls his wife to help him; she pulls on him, he pulls the turnip, but still the turnip will not come out of the ground. More people and animals are brought in to help. At the end, a long line of helpers pulls on the turnip and it comes out of the ground.

Additional information:
Wikipedia: The Gigantic Turnip

ATU 334 Household of the Witch.

At this site:
Grimm (Hunt). Frau Trude

ATU 334 Household of the Witch. The story includes a series of "gruesome things" and "when the girl tells her godmother what she has seen she is killed (devoured)."

motifs: no motif numbers are given

devil's wife as godmother ranke folktales of germany

ATU 332 Godfather Death.

At this site:
Grimm (Hunt). The Godfather

ATU 332 Godfather Death.

motifs: The Brothers Grimm version has a sequence like that in Frau Trude, which is why I have included this story here.