Inukpan

Inukpan, also known as Inukpakssua, is a mythical giant in Inuit folklore. Stories depict him as so massive that people could walk on his toe or use his boot-string as a kayak cover. He mistook bears for foxes and crushed them effortlessly. In one tale, he captured five kayakers in his hand, but they escaped his giant home while he slept.

Source:
Tales of the Smith Sound Eskimo
by Alfred L. Kroeber
[The American Folklore Society]
Journal of American Folklore
Vol.12, No.46, pp.166-182
July-September, 1899

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: Inukpan himself is a colossal being, so immense that humans could walk on his toe or use his boot-string as a kayak cover. His interactions, such as mistaking bears for foxes and effortlessly crushing them, highlight the presence of extraordinary beings within the narrative.

Supernatural Beings: Inukpan’s existence and actions transcend the natural world, showcasing the influence of supernatural entities in Inuit mythology. His ability to capture five kayakers in his hand and his enormous dwelling further emphasize this theme.

Cunning and Deception: The captured kayakers exhibit resourcefulness by escaping from Inukpan’s giant home while he sleeps, demonstrating human ingenuity and the use of wit to overcome formidable challenges.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
  - Inuit/Eskimo Lore

Learn more about the Inuit peoples

The same tale is found among the central tribes. The Greenlanders also tell of Inugpait, giants that live across the sea.

Inukpan, also called Inukpakssua, was a very large man, who did not really exist, but whom stories tell about. It is said that he was so large that people could stand on his big toe, and walk about on it, and that the flat skin-thong of his boot-string could be used as a kayak-covering by ordinary men. It is also said that, seeing several bears, he called them only foxes, and, picking them up between his fingers, crushed them dead.

At one time, when he was out in his kayak, he saw five kayakers some distance away. He went after them, soon reached them, and then scooped up all five, kayaks and all, in the hollow of his hand. He took them to his house, which was enormously large, and put them over the lamp. Then, however, he fell asleep, and the men climbed down, went out, and ran home before he awoke.

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The Tunnit

The Tunnit, a legendary giant race, once inhabited Labrador, Hudson Strait, and Baffin Island. Known for their strength but described as slow and unsophisticated by the Inuit, they lived in stone houses and used primitive tools. Tensions arose with the Inuit over resources, leading to violent conflicts. Gradually, the Tunnit were exterminated or assimilated, with archaeological evidence and Inuit traditions preserving their legacy.

Source:
The Labrador Eskimo
by E.W. Hawkes
[Canada, Department of Mines]
Geological Survey, Memoir 91
Anthropological Series no. 14
Ottawa, 1916

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The Tunnit are depicted as giants with extraordinary strength, representing beings beyond ordinary human experience.

Conflict with Authority: Tensions and violent conflicts arose between the Tunnit and the Inuit over resources, leading to the eventual extermination or assimilation of the Tunnit.

Echoes of the Past: The legacy of the Tunnit persists through archaeological evidence and Inuit traditions, highlighting the enduring influence of historical deeds on the present.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
  - Inuit/Eskimo Lore

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Tunnit (Tornit, Baffin island), according to tradition, were a gigantic race formerly inhabiting the northeastern coast of Labrador, Hudson strait, and southern Baffin island. Ruins of old stone houses and graves, which are ascribed to them by the present Eskimo, are found throughout this entire section, penetrating only slightly, however, into Ungava bay. Briefly we may say that there is evidence, archaeological as well as traditional, that the Tunnit formerly inhabited both sides of Hudson strait. The oldest Eskimo of northern Labrador still point out these ruins, and relate traditions of their having lived together until the Tunnit were finally exterminated or driven out by the present Eskimo.

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According to the account given by an old Nachvak Eskimo, the Tunnit in ancient times had two villages in Nachvak bay. Their houses were built on an exposed shore (the present Eskimo always seek a sheltered beach for their villages, where they can land in their kayaks), showing that they had little knowledge of the use of boats. When they wanted boats, they stole them from the Eskimo. From this thieving of kayaks the original quarrel is said to have begun.

For all their bigness and strength, the Tunnit were a stupid slow-going race (according to the Eskimo version), and fell an easy prey to the Eskimo, who used to stalk them and hunt them down like game. They did not dare to attack them openly, so cut them off, one by one, by following them, and attacking and killing them when asleep. Their favourite method was to bore holes in the foreheads of the Tunnit with an awl (a drill in the Greenland story in Rink). Two brothers especially distinguished themselves in this warfare, and did not desist until the last of the Tunnit was exterminated. The Tunnit built their houses of heavy rocks, which no Eskimo could lift. They used the rocks for walls, and whale ribs and shoulder blades for the roof. At the entrance of the house two whale jaw-bones were placed. Ruins of these houses can still be seen, overgrown with grass, with the roof fallen in. They may be distinguished from old Eskimo iglus by the small, square space they occupy.

The Tunnit did not use the bow and arrow, but flint-headed lances and harpoons with bone or ivory heads. They were so strong that one of them could hold a walrus as easily as an Eskimo a seal.

They did not understand the dressing of sealskins, but left them in the sea, where the little sea-worms (?) cleaned off the fat in a short time. The Tunnit dressed in winter in untanned deerskins. They were accustomed to carry pieces of meat around with them, between their clothing and body, until it was putrid, when they ate it.

The Tunnit were very skilful with the lance, which they threw, sitting down and aiming at the object by resting the shaft on the boot. For throwing at a distance they used the throw-stick.

They did not hunt deer like the Eskimo, but erected long lines of stone “men” in a valley through which the deer passed. The deer would pass between the lines of stones, and the hunters hidden behind them would lance them. Remains of these lines of rocks may still be seen.

Their weapons were much larger, but not so well made as those of the Eskimo, as can be seen from the remains on their graves. The men used flint for the harpoon heads, and crystal for their drills. The women used a rounded piece of slate without a handle for a knife. They used a very small lamp for heating purposes, which they carried about them. For cooking they had a much larger lamp than the Eskimo. Until trouble arose between them, the Tunnit and the Eskimo used to intermarry, but after it was found that an alien wife would betray her husband to her people, no more were taken. A Tuneq woman, who betrayed the Eskimo of the village she lived in to the Tunnit, had her arms cut off. After that no women were taken on either side. (The story of this incident is given following in “An Adlit Tale.”)

The Tunnit were gradually exterminated by the Eskimo, until only a scattered one remained here and there in their villages. How these were overcome by stratagems is handed down in the tales of the giant at Hebron, said to be the last of the Tunnit, and Adlasuq and the Giant. The giant allows himself to be bound in a snow-house, and is slain by the Eskimo hunters. This story has attained a mythological character in Baffin island, but is ascribed by the Labrador Eskimo directly to the Tunnit. A story about the Tunnit, giving considerable circumstantial detail, was obtained from a Nachvak woman:

“At Nachvak the Tunnit were chasing a big whale (this was before the time of the present Eskimo). They were in two skin boats, about twenty men and women in each boat. They had the whale harpooned, and were being towed round and round the bay by him. Somehow the line got tangled in one of the boats and capsized. The other boat with the line still made fast to the whale, went to pick up the people in the water, and was capsized too. Another boat came off from the shore, and picked up some of the people in the water. Most of them were drowned.

“They were buried under a hill on a big bank near Nachvak. There are some thirty graves on this bank, with pots, harpoons, and knives buried by the graves. Even the remains of the boats are there. The knives and pots are of stone. The harpoon blades are of flint. The umiaks were much larger than the present boats.” My informant added that there were also remains of bows and arrows. “The bows were of whalebone and the arrows of flint.”

Atdlarneq, the great glutton

Atdlarneq, a skilled hunter, was lured to a mysterious house near a cape, where he encountered three women dressed in yellow. They welcomed him, but their “master” soon arrived—Copper-cheeks, a fearsome figure. Forced to eat an immense amount of food under threat of violence, Atdlarneq cleverly survived by swallowing a grass stalk beforehand. Shaken by the experience, he never ventured southward again.

Source:
Eskimo Folk-Tales
collected by Knud Rasmussen
[Copenhagen, Christiania], 1921

► Themes of the story

Trickster: Atdlarneq uses cunning to survive the ordeal with Copper-cheeks, demonstrating the classic trickster’s reliance on wit.

Mythical Creatures: Copper-cheeks, with his supernatural attributes and formidable nature, represents a being that transcends ordinary human experience.

Trials and Tribulations: Atdlarneq endures the challenge of consuming an immense amount of food under threat, representing a test of endurance and cleverness.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
  - Inuit/Eskimo Lore

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This is told of Atdlarneq: that he was a strong man, and if he rowed but a little way out in his kayak, he caught a seal. On no day did he fail to make a catch, and he was never content with only one.

But one day when he should have been out hunting seal, he only paddled along close to the shore, making towards the south. On the way he sighted a cape, and made towards it; and when he could see the sunny side, he spied a little house, quite near.

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He thought: “I must wait until some one comes out.”

And while he lay there, with his paddle touching the shore, a woman came out; she had a yellow band round her hair, and yellow seams to all her clothes.

Now he would have gone on shore, but he thought:

“I had better wait until another one comes out.” And as he thought this, there came another woman out of the house. And like the first, she also had a yellow hair band, and yellow seams to all her clothes.

And he did not go on shore, but thought again: “I can wait for just one more.”

And truly enough, there came yet another one, quite like the others. And like them also, she bore a dish in her hand. And now at last he went on shore and hauled up his kayak.

He went into the house, and they all received him very kindly. And they brought great quantities of food and set before him.

At last the evening came.

And now those three women began to go outside again and again. And at last Atdlarneq asked: “Why do you keep going out like that?”

When he asked them this, all answered at once: “It is because we now expect our dear master home.”

When he heard this, he was afraid, and hid himself behind the skin hangings. And he had hardly crawled in there when that master came home; Atdlarneq looked through a little hole, and saw him.

And his cheeks were made of copper. [There is a fabulous being in Eskimo folklore supposed to have cheeks of copper, with which he can deliver terrible blows by a side movement of the head. Naughty children are frequently threatened with “Copper-cheeks” as a kind of bogey.]

He had but just sat down, when he began to sniff, and said: “Hum! There is a smell of people here.”

And now Atdlarneq crawled out, seeing that the other had already smelt him. He had hardly shown himself, when the other asked very eagerly: “Has he had nothing to eat yet?” — “No, he has not yet eaten.” — “Then bring food at once.”

And then they brought in a sack full of fish, and a big piece of blubber from the half of a black seal. And then the man said violently: “You are to eat this all up, and if you do not eat it all up, I will thrash you with my copper cheeks!”

And now Atdlarneq began eagerly chewing blubber with his fish; he chewed and chewed, and at last he had eaten it all up. Then he went to the water bucket, and lifted it to his mouth and drank, and drank it all to the last drop.

Hardly had he done this when the man said: “And now the frozen meat.”

And they brought in the half of a black seal. And Atdlarneq ate and ate until there was no more left, save a very little piece.

When the man saw there was some not eaten, he cried out violently again: “Give him some more to eat.”

And when Atdlarneq had eaten again for a while, he did not wish to eat more. But then they brought in a whole black seal. And the man set that also before him, and cried: “Eat that up too.”

And so Atdlarneq was forced to stuff himself mightily once more. He ate and ate, and at last he had eaten it all up. And again he emptied the water bucket.

After all that he felt very well indeed, and seemed hardly to have eaten until now. But that was because he had swallowed a little stalk of grass before he began.

So Atdlarneq slept, and next morning he went back home again. But after having thus nearly gorged himself to death, he never went southward again.

The Ocean-Spider

A kayaker in Godthaab’s fjord encountered a mysterious, perilous phenomenon. Paddling over unexpectedly shallow waters, he recalled legends of the dangerous ocean-spider. Spotting two enormous eyes and a menacing gap below, he realized the creature’s presence. Escaping required exceptional skill, as lesser kayakers might not have survived this harrowing experience. This tale underscores the enduring power of sea myths and the perils of the deep.

Source:
Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo
by Henry Rink
[William Blackwood and Sons]
Edinburgh and London, 1875

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The ocean-spider represents a formidable and legendary sea creature within Inuit mythology.

Conflict with Nature: The kayaker’s perilous encounter highlights the challenges humans face when confronting the unpredictable and dangerous forces of the natural world.

Moral Lessons: The tale serves as a cautionary narrative, emphasizing the importance of respecting nature and heeding traditional wisdom to avoid peril.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
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Abridged version of the story.

A kayaker in the firth of Godthaab once, at a place where no shoal was known to exist, saw the bottom quite close to him.

He then suddenly recollected to have heard old people talking of the ocean-spider, a most dangerous animal to the kayakers.

Presently he discovered a monstrous eye, and at the distance of about a kayak-paddle’s length from it a similar one, and on tearing away from the spot a terrible gap made its appearance.

Indeed, if he had been a less skilled kayaker, he would never have got off alive.

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Malarsuak

Malarsuak searched for his lost sister, finding her among cannibals. He killed a hideous youth, prompting the host to discard the body under a bench. Later, the youth’s mother lamented his death. Malarsuak returned with his family, but the cannibals stole their child. Escaping pursuit by sabotaging sledges, he forgot one, but killed the driver and fled safely.

Source:
Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo
by Henry Rink
[William Blackwood and Sons]
Edinburgh and London, 1875

► Themes of the story

Quest: Malarsuak embarks on a perilous journey to find his lost sister, demonstrating the classic quest motif where a protagonist undertakes a challenging expedition to achieve a significant goal.

Mythical Creatures: During his journey, Malarsuak encounters cannibals, who are often depicted as supernatural or monstrous entities in folklore, highlighting the theme of human confrontation with otherworldly adversaries.

Family Dynamics: The narrative centers on Malarsuak’s determination to rescue his sister and the subsequent familial interactions, emphasizing the complexities and bonds within family relationships.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
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A story from East Greenland

A man named Malarsuak started in search of his lost sister. Travelling by sledge, he came to houses inhabited by cannibals, with one of which he found his sister domesticated. A hideous-looking youth came into the house, whom Malarsuak killed by piercing his head with a bear’s tooth fastened into a stick, whereupon the host threw the dead body under the bench.

Some time after a woman appeared, saying, “Is this not my miserable son here — I mean the one who ought to serve as food for his brothers?” Malarsuak travelled homewards, but came back on a visit, bringing his wife and a little child with him. The cannibals robbed them of their child.

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When going to leave, the brother-in-law tried to persuade him first to cut all the lashings of his place-fellows’ sledges, in order to prevent their pursuing the travellers. Malarsuak took his advice, but happened to forget one of the sledges, which came speeding after him; but he killed the driver and made his escape himself.

Inuarutligak, whose Christian name was Peter Rantholl

This tale recounts the mythical origins and life of the Inuarutligak, a dwarf-elf people from Greenlandic lore. Initially unafraid of humans, they retreated after a deadly feud, using enchanted weapons and extraordinary abilities like reshaping geography and altering size. Their journeys northward introduced encounters with hybrid beings and mysterious creatures. They aged uniquely, rejuvenating by leaping from cliffs five times before succumbing to natural or tragic ends.

Source:
Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo
by Henry Rink
[William Blackwood and Sons]
Edinburgh and London, 1875

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The story introduces the Inuarutligak, dwarf-elf beings with supernatural abilities, and describes encounters with other fantastical entities, such as hybrids with human upper bodies and canine lower bodies.

Conflict with Authority: A significant conflict arises when a human kills an Inuarutligak, leading to a retaliatory killing by the gnomes. This feud results in the Inuarutligak retreating to isolated areas, highlighting themes of vengeance and the consequences of defying societal norms.

Transformation: The Inuarutligak possess the ability to alter geography and their own size, demonstrating their transformative powers. Additionally, their unique aging process, involving rejuvenation through cliff-leaping, underscores themes of physical transformation and the cyclical nature of life.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
  - Inuit/Eskimo Lore

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A tale from North Greenland

In times far back, the ancestors of this same Inuarutligak (viz., fabulous dwarf-islander or mountain-elf) are said to have lived at the southernmost point of the country, at a place called Kutserfik; and this was before they had learned to be shy of human beings. Just about that time a lasting enmity sprang up between them on account of an Inuarutligak being killed by a man; and ever after, they say that the gnomes have resorted to desert places, making hollows in the earth for their abodes, and shunning the society of man. Thirsting for vengeance, they in return killed a man whom they chanced to meet with on one of their excursions. Being sadly in want of proper arms, they found a large willow-bush on the sunny side of the Kutserfik-mount.

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Its form was like a man bending down on his knees and supporting his hand against the ground. From one of its roots they made a weapon not larger in size than a closed fist, shaped like a pistol; and at the end they put a little black stone, with a little red one on the top of it. This instrument, when finished, they named the pointing weapon. Knowing and fearing its killing powers for their own kith and kin, they are said always to have carried it in their hand. At this time the Inuarutligak of our tale was born. His father’s name was Malerke; that of the eldest son Kinavina; of the second, Kook; of the third, Asarfe; and of the fourth, Sersok, of whom we are going to tell. Being given to moving about, his parents and relatives set out on a journey to the north, and travelled on for several years successively, always passing the winter in hollows in the earth, and starting again in the early spring. It is told that they once met with some singular people, whose upper limbs were those of human beings, but below the waist they were shaped like dogs. These creatures were armed with bows, and dreadful to behold, and could catch the scent of man and beast against the wind like animals. One winter they covered the whole inside of their abode under ground with a single skin — that of the large beast called kilivfak, the one with six legs. The story goes that when they had eaten the flesh of this animal, the bones were covered anew with flesh, but only up to the sixth time; and despite its strength and size, they killed it with the above-mentioned instrument, by merely pointing at it. They also knew how to diminish the distance from one place to another, by drawing the various parts of the country closer, and performed this by merely kneeling down together and spreading their arms out towards the mountain-tops; but finding some of them too high to spread their arms over, the foremost crossed the already contracted parts with one long stride, the others one by one following in his tracks. Whenever one of them was unfortunate enough to make a false step, several of them were left far behind for a long time.

After a journey of several years, they arrived at Ikerasarsuak (at the mouth of Wygat Straits), a place where lived Inuarutligaks, as well as Inoruseks. There they settled to wait till the frost should cover the ground with ice and make it possible to join those on the other side. Starting again in spring, and passing several winters at different places, they at length reached Noosak on the continent, and came to their long-wished-for relatives, and there they lived for many winters. People say that at the beginning of the journey to the north the high mountains were still without ice, and Ikerasarsuak without any glacier.

These elves had two different ways of clothing themselves — one suit they had fitting their natural size, and the other was large enough to fit a man. During their wandering they wore their own proper clothes, carrying the large ones with them, ready to put on in case they should get some heavy load to carry. They could then, by beating themselves, reach human size. Their way of regaining their natural appearance was by bending down to enter their cave, and hitting the crown of their heads against the roof, on which they dwindled down to their ordinary smallness.

An angakok at Noosak, whose wife was childless, wanted to buy a child from the Inuarutligaks, and offered to pay for him with three knives, a piece of bearskin, and some whalebones already twisted into fishing-lines. Malerke, on seeing them, grew very desirous of these things; and having got them, he gave the knives to his three sons, but the fourth and youngest he sold in exchange for them. His new father brought him home, and went to hide him behind the house. At night, however, he got inside, and at once slipped into the womb of his mother, on which account it was said that he was in a state of perfect consciousness while he remained in his mother’s womb.

These elves were long in turning old; their youth was renewed five times over. On getting old the first time, they let themselves fall head-long down a precipice, and in this way regained the vigour and elasticity of youth. After repeating this five succeeding times, it was useless to try a sixth. This practice of letting themselves fall down they called Inutsungnartok. They never die young, but only after having undergone their five separate ages, excepting those who are killed by snowslips.

The girl who was stolen by an inlander

A brother and sister, deeply bonded, journeyed to a salmon-fishing river where the sister was abducted by an inorusek, a giant-like figure. Taken to his inland home, she endured harrowing attempts to subdue her spirit, including threats and horrifying warnings from a skeletal figure. Feigning compliance, she eventually escaped, reuniting with her family. Fleeing to a distant island, they vowed never to return to the mainland.

Source:
Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo
by Henry Rink
[William Blackwood and Sons]
Edinburgh and London, 1875

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The story features the inorusek, a larger-than-life being central to the plot.

Cunning and Deception: The girl’s eventual escape is facilitated by her cleverness and ability to feign compliance, demonstrating the use of wit to outsmart her captor and regain freedom.

Family Dynamics: The deep bond between the brother and sister is evident at the story’s outset, emphasizing themes of familial love, loyalty, and the lengths to which family members will go to protect and reunite with one another.

► From the same Region or People

North America
- Arctic Region
  - Inuit/Eskimo Lore

Learn more about the Inuit peoples

This tale appearing somewhat obscure and fragmentary, has been added here only on account of its probable relation to nos. 28 and 30. The details in the different manuscripts of these three stories appear to be more or less confounded and intermixed.

A brother and a sister once lived together, and were very much attached to each other. The sister, who was very desirous of going off for the salmon-fishing, asked her brother to take her up to a salmon river. Not being able to deny her, he put the boat into the sea and went with her to the fishing-place; but when they had landed and discharged the boat, putting all their things on the beach, she climbed a little way up the rocks, and went across a smooth level to the brook. All at once she saw an inorusek (fabulous giant inlander) close beside her. Stupefied with terror, she tried to escape; but he caught hold of her and carried her further and further inland. The others plainly heard her shrieks for help, and hurried off to rescue her; but she was already gone, and her cries soon died away among the mountains. In the meantime the inorusek carried her up through the highlands till they stopped at a place with some huts. He intended to marry her, but first brought her to the house of a neighbour, where he put her down on the ledge and seated himself in front of her.

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She cried incessantly, but whenever she tried to run away, he took hold of her like a little child and put her down again. While she was thus sitting, an old woman peeped across the screen of the ledge, asking her, “What wouldst thou like to eat? dost thou like talu?” and the unhappy girl thought to herself, “I wonder what talu is like!” She soon heard the old woman step down to fetch something, and though still weeping, she peeped through her fingers, and perceived it to be the fat of a deer’s heart they were giving her. However, she would not take it, and the old woman again retired. Then she again asked her, “Wouldst thou like some ernowt?” and the girl still crying, answered, “What may it be like?” This time she saw the old hag produce some common tallow, saying, “Now do eat that and be quiet;” but she would not take that either. Being very disheartened, she continued to weep; and the old woman now menaced her, and threatened to take away her boots, at which she cried still more. Then she heard a rattling noise, and peeping through her fingers, she saw a strange figure, all bones and joints, creeping along the ledge towards her. This creature warned her, saying, “Leave off crying, lest they should treat thee as they did me. I was once like thee; I was stolen and brought to this place, and because I would not leave off crying, they took away my boots and gave me others filled with reptiles, spiders, and vermin. They fastened them on my legs, and when they were taken off, the flesh was all gone.” When the skeleton had done speaking, she cried all the more. The old hag now in an outburst of ill temper and vexation approached; and she saw her holding a pair of boots, in which she observed something crawling about; but the giant took hold of them and flung them away into the corner of the room, and then at length she was able to leave off crying. Her husband, however, kept a close watch upon her, and led her by the hand whenever she wished to go out. One day she said to him, “Don’t go on watching me so; I have no intention of leaving thee now; I like thee very much, and thou mayst safely leave me and go out deer-hunting as usual.” After that she feigned to go behind the house; but she started from her hiding-place and ran up and down hill, and continued running towards the coast until she reached the tent of her parents, where she burst right through the door-curtain, not giving herself time to draw it before entering. She hastened to say, “Let us be off at once and remove to some other place; the inlanders are sure to come and seek me here.” They at once left the mainland to settle down on one of the farthest-off islets; and after that time they never again ventured to pitch their tents on the continent.

The Little Sister of the Giants

Angelita, a beautiful young girl, endures her jealous stepmother’s cruelty after her father’s death. Cast into the jungle, she finds refuge with kind-hearted giants. Her stepmother’s plot to kill her using poisoned slippers succeeds temporarily, but a prince discovers Angelita and revives her. They marry, and Angelita maintains bonds with the giants, who lovingly embrace her new life and family.

Source
Tales of Giants from Brazil
by Elsie Spicer Eells
Dodd, Mead and Co. – New York, 1918

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The giants embody this theme as extraordinary beings with unique qualities.

Cunning and Deception: The stepmother’s plan to rid herself of Angelita highlights deceitful behavior.

Transformation through Love: Angelita’s journey to happiness and love with the prince signifies personal growth and redemption.

► From the same Region or People

South America
- Brazil

Learn more about Brazilian peoples

Once upon a time there was a little girl who was very beautiful. Her eyes were like the eyes of the gazelle; her hair hid in its soft waves the deep shadows of the night; her smile was like the sunrise. Each year as she grew older she grew also more and more beautiful. Her name was Angelita.

The little girl’s mother was dead, and her father, the image-maker, had married a second time. The step-mother was a woman who was renowned in the city for her great beauty.

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As her little step-daughter grew more and more lovely each day of her life she soon became jealous of the child. Each night she asked the image-maker, “Who is more beautiful, your wife or your child?”

The image-maker was a wise man and knew all too well his wife’s jealous disposition. He always responded, “You, my wife, are absolutely peerless.”

One day the image-maker suddenly died, and the step-mother and step-daughter were left alone in the world. They both mourned deeply the passing of the kind image-maker.

One day as they were leaning over the balcony two passers-by observed them, and one said to the other, “Do you notice those beautiful women in the balcony? The mother is beautiful, but the daughter is far more beautiful.” The step-mother had always been jealous of the daughter’s loveliness, but now her jealousy was fanned into a burning flame. The wise image-maker was no longer there to tell her that she was peerless.

The next day the mother and daughter again leaned over the balcony. Two soldiers passed by and one said to the other: “Do you observe those two beautiful women in the balcony? The mother is beautiful, but the daughter is far more beautiful.” The step-mother flew into a terrible rage. She now knew that it was true as she had long feared. The girl was more beautiful than she. Her jealousy knew no bounds. She seized her step-daughter roughly and shut her up in a little room in the attic.

The little room in the attic had just one tiny window high up in the wall. The window was shut, but Angelita climbed up to open it in order to get a little air. The next afternoon she grew weary of the confinement of the little room, so she dug a foothold in the wall where she could stand and look out of the window. Her step-mother was leaning over the balcony all alone when two cavalheiros passed by. One said to the other, “Do you observe the beautiful woman in the balcony?” “Yes,” replied the other. “She is a beautiful woman, but the little maid who is kept a prisoner in the attic is far more beautiful.”

The step-mother became desperate. She ordered the old negro servant to carry the girl into the jungle and kill her. “Be sure that you bring back the tip of Angelita’s tongue, so that I may know that you have obeyed my order,” she said.

Angelita was very happy to be taken out of the little attic room, and set out for a walk with the old negro with a light heart. They walked through the city streets and out into the open country. Soon they had reached the deep jungle. “Where are we going?” the girl asked in surprise.

“We are taking a walk for our health, yayazinha,” replied the old negro.

Soon they were so far in the jungle that the path was entirely overgrown. No ray of light penetrated through the deep foliage. Angelita became frightened. “I’ll not go another step if you do not tell me where you are taking me,” she said as she stamped her little foot upon the ground.

The old negro burst into tears and told Angelita all that her step-mother had commanded. “I could not hurt one hair of your lovely head, much less cut off the tip of your little tongue, yayazinha,” sobbed the old man.

Angelita stood still and thought. “Go back to my step-mother,” she said to the old man. “On the way you will see plenty of dogs. Cut off the tip of a little dog’s tongue and carry it home to my step-mother.”

This is what the old negro did. The step-mother believed him and thought that he had slain her step-daughter according to her command.

Angelita, in the meantime, wandered on and on through the jungle. The big snakes glided swiftly out of her path. The monkeys and the parrots chattered to keep her from being lonely. She wandered on and on until finally she came to an enormous palace. The front door was wide open. She went from room to room, but the palace was entirely deserted. There was not a neat, orderly room in the entire palace.

“I can make these lovely rooms neat and clean,” said Angelita. “They surely need some one to do it!” She found a broom and went to work at once. Soon the whole palace was in order once more. Everything was clean and bright.

Just as Angelita was finishing her task she heard a great noise. She looked out of the door, and there were three enormous giants entering the house. She had never dreamed that giants could be so big. She was frightened nearly to death and scrambled under a chair as fast as she could.

When the giants came into the house they were amazed to find everything in such splendid order. “This is a different looking place from what we left,” said the biggest giant.

“What dirty, disorderly giants we have been, living here all by ourselves,” said the middle-sized giant. “I just realize it, now that I see what our house looks like when it is neat and clean.”

“What kind fairy could have done all this work while we were away?” said the littlest giant, who was not little at all, but almost as big as his enormous brothers.

The three giants fell to discussing the question. They could not guess how their house could have been made so clean. Their voices were so very kind, in spite of being so loud and heavy, that Angelita decided she dare come out from under the chair and let them see who had done the work for them. She quickly crawled out from her hiding place.

“What lovely fairy is this?” asked the biggest giant, looking at her kindly. He thought that she really was a fairy.

“This is the loveliest fairy I ever saw in all my life,” said the middle-sized giant.

“How did such a lovely fairy ever happen to find our dirty, disorderly palace?” asked the littlest giant who was not little at all.

Angelita told the three giants her story. Her beauty and her sweet ways completely entranced them.

“Please live with us always here in our palace in the jungle and be our little sister,” said the biggest giant, and the middle-sized giant and the littlest giant, speaking all at once. Their three big deep voices all together made a noise like thunder.

Angelita lived in the palace with the three giants after that. Every day when they went out to hunt she would take the broom and make the palace neat and clean. They called her “little sister” and loved her with all their big giant hearts.

All was well until a little bird went and told Angelita’s step-mother that she was alive and living in the depths of the jungle with the three giants. When the step-mother heard about it she was so angry that she thought she could never be happy as long as Angelita was living in the world. She consulted a wicked witch as soon as she could find her shawl.

The wicked witch gave the step-mother some poisoned slippers. “These will cause the immediate death of any person who puts them on,” said the wicked witch. Then she showed the step-mother just how to reach the palace where Angelita lived in the depths of the jungle with the three giants.

Angelita’s step-mother followed the directions which the witch had given her and easily found the giants’ palace. Angelita was so happy living with the giants and keeping house for them that she had forgotten what fear was like. She was not frightened at all when she heard some one clap hands before the door one day when the giants were away. She went to the door; and, though she was very much surprised to see her step-mother, she invited her into the house. Her step-mother gave her a loving embrace and kissed her upon both cheeks. “Dear child, it is a long time since I have seen you,” she said. “I have brought you a little gift to show you that I have not forgotten you. It is only a poor, mean little gift, but it is the best I could bring.”

Angelita was touched at her step-mother’s gift and accepted it with hearty thanks. As soon as her step-mother had gone she untied the red ribbon around the package and opened it. Inside was a pair of leather slippers. Angelita looked at the little slippers. They were like the slippers which her dear father, the image-maker, had once brought home to her. “How kind it was in my step-mother to bring these slippers to me,” she said as she put them on.

As soon as the slippers were on Angelita’s feet, she fell dead just as the wicked witch had promised the step-mother she would do. Her step-mother was watching through the window, and when she saw Angelita dead she hurried home in joy. “Now I, alone, am the peerless beauty,” she said.

When the three giants came home to dinner they knew at once that there was something wrong. There were dirty tracks on the floor and dirty finger prints upon the door. “Who made these dirty marks?” said the biggest giant.

“What has happened to our dear little sister that she has not cleaned them away?” asked the middle-sized giant.

“I am afraid there is something wrong with little sister,” said the littlest giant who was not little at all.

They clapped their big hands before the door, but no smiling little sister ran to meet them. They entered the big hall of the palace with a bound. There in the middle of the floor lay Angelita, just as she had fallen when she put on the poisoned slippers which her step-mother had given her.

“What evil, has befallen our dear little sister?” said the biggest giant.

“Who could have slain our little sister whom we loved so much?” said the middle-sized giant.

“Who will keep house for us now that our dear little sister is dead?” asked the littlest giant.

Then the biggest giant and the middle-sized giant and the littlest giant all began to sob so loud that it shook the earth. “Our dear little sister is dead! What shall we do! What shall we do!”

The giants could not go into the city to give their little sister Christian burial, but they built a beautiful casket out of silver and carried it to the path which led to the city. Then they hid themselves to watch and make sure that some one found it to carry to the burying place.

Soon a handsome prince passed by on horseback. He noticed the silver casket at once and opened it. The girl whose still form lay inside was the most beautiful maid he had ever gazed upon. “This dead maid is my own true love,” he said and he carried the silver casket home to his own palace.

He commanded that no one should enter the room where he placed the silver casket, and this aroused the curiosity of his little sister at once. At the very first opportunity she slipped into the room. She opened the casket and was surprised to see the beautiful quiet maid. “You are very lovely,” she said to the still form, “all except your slippers. I think they are very ugly.” With these words she pulled off the leather slippers.

Angelita gave a deep sigh, opened her beautiful eyes, and asked for a drink of water.

The little sister called the prince at once. When he saw Angelita was really alive he could hardly believe the good fortune. He asked that the wedding night be celebrated immediately. Angelita begged that she might go back into the deep jungle and invite the three giants to the wedding. The biggest giant, the middle-sized giant, and the littlest giant who was not little at all, came to the wedding feast. After that they visited their little sister often at her new home; and, when she had children of her own, it was the funniest sight one ever saw to see the biggest giant hold the tiny babes upon his knee.

The Ogre and the Beautiful Woman

A group of hunters discovers the traces of an ogre, but only one ventures to follow them. After a four-day journey, he finds a cave where a captive woman warns of the ogre’s return. The hunter ambushes and kills the ogre, rescues the woman, and takes the ogre’s treasures. Despite disputes among the hunters, the hero returns victorious and marries the woman.

Source
Moorish Literature
   romantic ballads, tales of the Berbers,
   stories of the Kabyles, folk-lore,
   and national traditions
The Colonial Press,
   London, New York, 1901

► Themes of the story

Mythical Creatures: The ogre represents an encounter with a supernatural or monstrous being.

Good vs. Evil: The story depicts the struggle between the virtuous hunter and the malevolent ogre.

Hero’s Journey: The hunter’s transformative adventure highlights his bravery and growth as a hero.

► From the same Region or People

North Africa
- Berber Lore

Learn more about the Berber peoples

Translated by G. Mercier
and Chauncey C. Starkweather

Some hunters set out with their camels. When they came to the hunting-ground they loosed their camels to let them graze, and hunted until the setting of the sun, and then came back to their camp. One day while one of them was going along he saw the marks of an ogre, each one three feet wide, and began to follow them. He proceeded and found the place where the ogre had lately made his lair. He returned and said to his companions: “I’ve found the traces of an ogre. Come, let us seek him.”

“No,” they answered, “we will not go to seek him, because we are not stronger than he is.”

“Grant me fourteen days,” said the huntsman. “If I return, you shall see. If not, take back my camel with the game.”

► Continue reading…

The next day he set out and began to follow the traces of the ogre. He walked for four days, when he discovered a cave, into which he entered. Within he found a beautiful woman, who said to him:

“What brings thee here, where thou wilt be devoured by this ogre?”

“But thou,” answered the hunter, “what is thy story and how did the ogre bring thee here?”

“Three days ago he stole me,” she replied. “I was betrothed to the son of my uncle, then the ogre took me. I have stayed in the cavern. He often brings me food. I stay here, and he does not kill me.”

“Where does he enter,” asked the hunter, “when he comes back here?”

“This is the way,” she answered. The hunter went in to the middle of the cave, loaded his gun, and waited. At sunset the ogre arrived. The hunter took aim and fired, hitting the ogre between the eyes as he was sitting down. Approaching him he saw that he had brought with him two men to cook and eat them. In the morning he employed the day in collecting the hidden silver, took what he could, and set out on the return. On the fourteenth day he arrived at the place where he had left his comrades, and found them there.

“Leave the game you have secured and return with me to the cave,” he said to them. When they arrived they took all the arms and clothing, loaded it upon their camels, and set out to return to their village. Half way home they fought to see which one should marry the woman. The powder spoke between them. Our man killed four, and took the woman home and married her.

The Election of the King Bird (the black-and-white Fishing Eagle)

King Essiya of Old Town, Calabar, once tasked birds with electing a leader through combat. Amid fierce competition, Ituen, the powerful fishing eagle, emerged victorious due to his strength and ferocity. Declared the king bird, he gained symbolic importance, with his feathers believed to bestow courage and luck. Traditions and superstitions surrounding the king bird endure, influencing warfare, trade, and cultural practices in the region.

Source
Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria
by Elphinstone Dayrell
Longmans, Green & Co.
London, New York, Bombay, Calcutta, 1910

► Themes of the story

Cultural Heroes: The black-and-white fishing eagle emerges as a central figure, embodying qualities that lead to its selection as the king bird, a position of cultural significance.

Conflict with Authority: The various bird species vie for dominance, challenging each other’s authority in the quest to become the king bird.

Mythical Creatures: The story features various bird species, with the black-and-white fishing eagle taking on a near-mythical status as the king bird.

► From the same Region or People

West Africa
- Nigerian Lore

Learn more about Nigerian peoples

Old Town, Calabar, once had a king called Essiya, who, like most of the Calabar kings in the olden days, was rich and powerful; but although he was so wealthy, he did not possess many slaves. He therefore used to call upon the animals and birds to help his people with their work. In order to get the work done quickly and well, he decided to appoint head chiefs of all the different species.

The elephant he appointed king of the beasts of the forest, and the hippopotamus king of the water animals, until at last it came to the turn of the birds to have their king elected.

► Continue reading…

Essiya thought for some time which would be the best way to make a good choice, but could not make up his mind, as there were so many different birds who all considered they had claims. There was the hawk with his swift flight, and of hawks there were several species. There were the herons to be considered, and the big spur-winged geese, the hornbill or toucan tribe, and the game birds, such as guinea-fowl, the partridge, and the bustards. Then again, of course, there were all the big crane tribe, who walked about the sandbanks in the dry season, but who disappeared when the river rose, and the big black-and-white fishing eagles. When the king thought of the plover tribe, the sea-birds, including the pelicans, the doves, and the numerous shy birds who live in the forest, all of whom sent in claims, he got so confused, that he decided to have a trial by ordeal of combat, and sent word round the whole country for all the birds to meet the next day and fight it out between themselves, and that the winner should be known as the king bird ever afterwards.

The following morning many thousands of birds came, and there was much screeching and flapping of wings. The hawk tribe soon drove all the small birds away, and harassed the big waders so much, that they very shortly disappeared, followed by the geese, who made much noise, and winged away in a straight line, as if they were playing “Follow my leader.” The big forest birds who liked to lead a secluded life very soon got tired of all the noise and bustle, and after a few croaks and other weird noises went home. The game birds had no chance and hid in the bush, so that very soon the only birds left were the hawks and the big black-and-white fishing eagle, who was perched on a tree calmly watching everything. The scavenger hawks were too gorged and lazy to take much interest in the proceedings, and were quietly ignored by the fighting tribe, who were very busy circling and swooping on one another, with much whistling going on. Higher and higher they went, until they disappeared out of sight. Then a few would return to earth, some of them badly torn and with many feathers missing.

At last the fishing eagle said–

“When you have quite finished with this foolishness please tell me, and if any of you fancy yourselves at all, come to me, and I will settle your chances of being elected head chief once and for all;” but when they saw his terrible beak and cruel claws, knowing his great strength and ferocity, they stopped fighting between themselves, and acknowledged the fishing eagle to be their master.

Essiya then declared that Ituen, which was the name of the fishing eagle, was the head chief of all the birds, and should thenceforward be known as the king bird.

[As the king bird is always very difficult to shoot with a bow and arrow, owing to his sharp and keen sight, the young men, when they want his feathers, set traps for him baited with rats, which catch him by the foot in a noose when he seizes them. Except when they are nesting the king birds roost on very high trees, sometimes as many as twenty or thirty on neighbouring trees. They fly many miles from where they get their food, and arrive at their roosting-place just before the sun sets, leaving the next morning at dawn for their favourite haunts. They are very regular in their habits, and you can see them every night at the same time coming from the same direction and flying over the same trees, generally fairly high up in the air. There is a strong belief amongst many natives on the Cross River that the king bird has the power of influencing the luck or the reverse of a canoe. For example, when a trader, having bought a new canoe, is going to market and a king bird crosses the river from right to left, then if he is unlucky at the market that day, whenever the king bird again crosses that particular canoe from right to left he will be unlucky, and the bad luck will stick to the canoe. If, on the other hand, the bird for the first time crosses from left to right, and he is fortunate in his dealings that day at the market, then he will always be lucky in that canoe the day he sees a king bird flying across the river from the left to the right-hand side.]

From that time to the present day, whenever the young men of the country go to fight they always wear three of the long black-and-white feathers of the king bird in their hair, one on each side and one in the middle, as they are believed to impart much courage and skill to the wearer; and if a young man is not possessed of any of these feathers when he goes out to fight, he is looked upon as a very small boy indeed.