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Stith Thompson Motif Index
About this index and how to read it
Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature classifies recurring narrative elements in folktales, myths, legends, ballads and related traditional narratives. Each entry below gives Thompson's motif reference and the description recorded in the index.
The index is large, so this browser displays 250 entries per page. You can search by motif reference or by words in the description, restrict the results to one of Thompson's main letter categories, and click motif references mentioned inside descriptions to follow cross-references. Individual motif pages also show any ATU tale types whose concordance explicitly cites that Thompson reference.
All
A
Mythological Motifs
B
Animal Motifs
C
Motifs of Tabu
D
Magic
E
The Dead
F
Marvels
G
Ogres
H
Tests
J
The Wise and the Foolish
K
Deceptions
L
Reversals of Fortune
M
Ordaining the Future
N
Chance and Fate
P
Society
Q
Rewards and Punishments
R
Captives and Fugitives
S
Unnatural Cruelty
T
Sex
U
The Nature of Life
V
Religion
W
Traits of Character
X
Humor
Z
Miscellaneous Groups of Motifs
| Thompson reference ▲ | Description |
|---|---|
| E431.8 | Dog buried alive to prevent ghosts from walking. *Fb "hund" I 677a. |
| E431.9 | Ashes of dead thrown on water to prevent return. Levy-Bruhl L'âme primitive 332ff.; Icelandic: *Boberg; Finno-Ugric: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 386, Mansikka Religion der Ostslaven (Helsinki, 1922) 220, 231; Jamaica: *Beckwith MAFLS XVII 266 No. 72. |
| E431.9.1 | Head of corpse thrown on water to prevent return. Icelandic: Boberg. |
| E431.9.2 | Corpses thrown in water to prevent return. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E431.10 | Corpse buried under stone so that sun will not shine on him again. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 305 No. 1. |
| E431.10.1 | Corpse buried under stones. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E431.11 | Coin placed in mouth of dead to prevent return. *Fb "død" I 228a; Wesselski Archiv Orientální I 77; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E431.12 | Pins stuck in soles of dead man's feet to prevent return. Fb "død" I 228a. |
| E431.13 | Corpse burned to prevent return. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E431.14 | Tall wall around grave to prevent return. Icelandic: Eyrbyggja saga ch. XXXIV 14 in ASB VI, Boberg. |
| E431.15 | People touch corpse before burial to avoid seeing ghost of dead person after burial. England: *Baughman. |
| E431.16 | Burial of suicide to prevent walking. (Cf. E334.7, E411.1.1, E441.) |
| E431.16.1 | Suicide buried head (or face) downward. (If corpse moves it. only goes deeper into ground.) England: *Baughman. |
| E431.16.2 | Suicide buried with stake through heart (body). (Cf. E442.) England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E431.16.3 | Suicide buried at crossroads. (Cf. E434.4.) England: Baughman. |
| E431.17 | Criminals buried at crossroads to prevent walking. (Cf. E434.4.) Wales: Baughman. |
| E431.18 | Body cut up and buried in vessels, buried in bag. England: Baughman. |
| E431.19 | Burial of corpse at midnight to prevent walking. England: Baughman. |
| E431.20 | Coffin with iron band made to keep corpse from returning as tiger. Chinese: Graham. |
| E432 | Ghost deceived. |
| E432.1 | Haunting ghost deceived so that he cannot find road to return. Jellinek Zs. f. Vksk. XIV 323. |
| E432.2 | Dead man visiting wife deceived by wife's absurd actions—"no more absurd than ghost visiting wife". (Cf. E321.2, E474.) Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3547; Balys Ghosts. |
| E432.3 | Woman drying hair scares soul returning from the dead. Eskimo (Greenland): Rink 452. |
| E433 | Ghosts placated by sacrifices. India: Thompson-Balys; Africa (Ekoi): Talbot 7, 9. |
| E433.1 | Mould put on table for the dead. Fb "muld" II 619a. |
| E433.2 | Possessions buried with dead. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E433.3 | Animals sacrificed so that dead have food on way to other world. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E433.4 | Ghosts pleased by human sacrifices. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E433.4.1 | Ghosts killed by sacrifice of buffaloes. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E434 | Magic protection against revenants. Irish myth: Cross. |
| E434.1 | Hiding from ghosts under church bell. *Fb "kirkeklokke" II 131a, "gjenganger" I 443b. |
| E434.2 | Hiding from ghosts in pulpit. Fb "predikestol" II 882b. |
| E434.3 | Ghosts cannot cross rapid stream. *Fb "gjenganger" I 443b; U.S.: Baughman. |
| E434.4 | Ghosts cannot pass crossroads. (Cf. E431.16, E431.17.) Fb "korsvej" II 277a. |
| E434.5 | Steel as protection against revenants. Fb "stеl" III 647a. |
| E434.6 | Keys as protection against revenants. (Cf. D1176.) Wimberly 255. |
| E434.7 | Knives as protection against revenants. (Cf. D1173.) Wimberly 255. |
| E434.8 | Ghost cannot pass cross or prayerbook. (Cf. D1266.) Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 335b s.v. "Geister"; Icelandic: Boberg. |
| E434.8.1 | Ghost cannot harm person wearing a cross. England: Baughman. |
| E434.9 | Candle light protection against ghost. Icelandic: Bárdar saga Snaefellsáss, ed. Vigfússon 1860, 42—43, Boberg. |
| E434.10 | Ghost cannot cross new door sill. U.S.: Baughman. |
| E436 | Ghost detected. |
| E436.1 | Ghost detected by strewing ashes. Their footprints remain in the ashes. Fb "spor" III 500a; Gaster Germania XXV (1880) 290ff.; Dh III 153; Hdwb. d. Abergl. III 297; Güntert Kalypso 75; Kruyt Het Animisme 398; Mansikka Religion der Ostslaven (Helsinki, 1922) 181, 184. |
| E436.2 | Cats crossing one's path sign of ghosts. North Carolina: Brown Collection I 677. |
| E436.3 | Bats flying in house sign of ghosts. North Carolina: Brown Collection I 677. |
| E437 | Revenants banished. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E437.1 | Revenants banished to glaciers and uninhabited places. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 296 No. 27. |
| E437.2 | Ghost laid in body of water. England, Ireland, Wales: *Baughman. |
| E437.3 | Ghost driven into body of dead crow, buried under path. England: Baughman. |
| E437.4 | Ghost laid under stone. England: *Baughman. |
| E437.5 | Ghost laid under tree. England: Baughman. |
| E437.6 | Ghost laid and confined inside building. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E437.7 | Ghost laid and confined in sheepfold. England: Baughman. |
| E439 | Other protection against revenants. |
| E439.1 | Revenant forced away by shooting. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 335b s.v. "Geister"; Africa (Cameroons): Mansfield 227. |
| E439.2 | Dwarfs magically keep ghosts from rising. Icelandic: Göngu Hrolfssaga 337. |
| E439.3 | Dog saves man from malevolent living corpse. Dog killed, man safe. (Cf. B524.1.1.) Lithuanian: Balys Legends Nos. 698f. |
| E439.4 | Seeds of poppy poured into revenant's mouth. Lithuanian: Balys Ghosts. |
| E439.5 | Revenant forced away by fire. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E439.6 | Ghosts cannot come near spayed bitch. England: Baughman. |
| E439.7 | Ghost will not approach a light left burning. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E439.8 | Ghost will vanish if seer walks around it nine times. (Cf. D1791, D1273.1.5.) England: Baughman. |
| E439.9 | Ghost will not return if door is removed and hung backwards. (Cf. D1783.) England: Baughman. |
| E439.10 | Ghost will not come near person who anoints self with new honey. U.S.: Baughman. |
| E440 | Walking ghost "laid". *Jellinek Zs. f. Vksk. XIV 324; *v. Negelein ibid. XIV 20ff.; Irish: Beal XXI 332; Icelandic: *Boberg; Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 53 No. 400A*; Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 114 No. 6. |
| E441 | Ghost laid by reburial. Icelandic: Boberg; Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 115 No. 12; Finnish: Aarne FFC XXXIII 39 No. 12; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3590; U.S.: Baughman. Cf. Gaster Exempla 222 No. 175. |
| E441.1 | Ghost laid when leg is buried. Fb "løse" II 517a. |
| E441.2 | Ghost laid by placing stones in throat of the corpse. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. |
| E441.3 | Corpse exhumed and heart cremated to lay ghost. Africa (Bena Makuni): Torrend Specimens of Bantu Folklore 72. |
| E442 | Ghost laid by piercing grave (corpse) with stake. (Cf. D712.10, E431.16.2.) *Fb "pæl" II 904ab, "jærn" II 61a; England, U.S.: *Baughman; Icelandic: *Boberg; Irish myth: Cross; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3546B, Legends No. 698, Ghosts; S. A. Indian (Cashinawa): Métraux BBAE CXLIII (3) 686. |
| E442.1 | Hunting woman beaten with sticks of rowan-tree and ankles of corpse tied with branches of same tree. Lithuanian: Balys Ghosts. |
| E442.2 | Ghost laid by burial outside village on far side of stream, with four iron nails driven into the corners of the grave. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E443 | Ghost exorcized and laid. *Fb "bande" IV 24a, "Jesus" II 41a; Tobler 65; Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 115 No. 11; Finnish: Aarne FFC XXXIII 39 No. 11; Finnish-Swedish: Wessman 7 No. 51, 27 No. 243; New York: Jones JAFL LVII 251; West Indies: Flowers 430. |
| E443.0.1 | Laying ghost causes great storm. (Cf. D2141.) England: *Baughman. |
| E443.0.2 | Protection during ghost-laying ceremony. England: Baughman. |
| E443.1 | Ghost laid by blessing grave. Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 115 No. 10. |
| E443.2 | Ghost laid by prayer. Fb "løse" II 517b; Icelandic: Boberg; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 336 s.v. "Geister, Erlösung". |
| E443.2.1 | Ghost laid by saying masses. Irish: O'Suilleabhain 95, 99, Beal XXI 330, 332; Scotch: Macdougall and Calder 319; English: Wells 61 (Awntyrs off Arthure at the Terne Wathelyne); U.S.: Baughman (E341.3.2.). |
| E443.2.1.1 | The dead man: "Sell my golden teeth and pay for a mass for my soul." Lithuanian: Balys Ghosts. |
| E443.2.2 | Ghost laid by formulistic prayer. England: *Baughman. |
| E443.2.3 | Ghost laid by confessor to priest. Irish: O'Suilleabhain 99. |
| E443.2.4 | Ghost laid by priest (minister). England, Ireland, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E443.2.4.1 | Ghost laid by group of ministers. By prayer and services, usually with "bell, book, and candle" or some modification of the procedure. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E443.3 | Ghosts exorcized by name. Fb "navn" II 675b. |
| E443.4 | Ghost laid by raising a cross. Icelandic: Boberg; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 336 s.v. "Geister, Erlösung". |
| E443.5 | Ghost laid by adjuring it to leave "in the name of God." Wales: Baughman. |
| E443.6 | Ghost laid by baptizing children in its presence. England: *Baughman. |
| E443.7 | Ghost laid by fasting. England: Baughman. |
| E443.8 | Ghost laid by Bible. England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E443.9 | Ghost laid by consecrated water. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E444 | Ghost laid by talisman. Breton: Sébillot Incidents s.v. "fantфme"; Eskimo (Mackenzie Area): Jenness 62. |
| E445 | Ghost laid by barring off. |
| E445.1 | Ghost comes through certain crevice: when this is barred she never returns. Tobler 92. |
| E446 | Ghost killed and thus finally laid. N. A. Indian (Sioux): Dorsey RBAE XI 491f., (Fox): Jones PAES I 101 No. 7, (Osage): Dorsey FM VII 26 No. 21; Eskimo: Kroeber JAFL XII 181, (Greenland): Holm 55, Rasmussen III 182. |
| E446.1 | Corpse magically killed and laid. N. A. Indian (Tlingit): Swanton BBAE XXXIX 248 No. 86. |
| E446.2 | Ghost laid by burning body. *Fb "spøgelse" III 522a, "brænde" IV 69a.—Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E446.2.1 | Ghost laid by burning lock of hair. Spanish Exempla: Keller. |
| E446.3 | Ghost laid by decapitating body. Icelandic: *Boberg; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3546A, Legends No. 621. |
| E446.3.1 | Ghost laid by beating body to pieces. Irish: O'Suilleabhain 99. |
| E446.4 | Slain ghost carried off by other ghosts. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E446.5 | Ghost laid by pushing it into water. S. A. Indian (Cashinawa): Métraux RBAE CXLIII (3) 685. |
| E451 | Ghost finds rest when certain thing happens. |
| E451.1 | Ghost laid when crime has been confessed. (Cf. E412.5.) Fb "løse" II 517a. |
| E451.1.1 | Corpse cannot be laid until after he has confided the secret of magic charms. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E451.2 | Ghost laid when penance is done. (Cf. E411.0.2.1.) Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 336 s.v. "Geister, Erlösung". |
| E451.3 | Ghost laid when vow is fulfilled. (Cf. E415.3.) Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 336 s.v. "Geister, Erlösung"; Danish: Kristensen Danske Sagn V (1897) 266ff., (1934) 196ff.; Icelandic: Boberg; India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E451.4 | Ghost laid when living man speaks to it. Fb "løse" II 517a; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 336 s.v. "Geister, Erlösung". |
| E451.4.1 | Ghost asked to identify self "in name of God." U.S.: Baughman. |
| E451.5 | Ghost laid when treasure is unearthed. Fb "løse" II 517b; India: Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda (Cf. E371ff.). |
| E451.5.1 | Money must be distributed to beggars so that ghost may be laid. Lithuanian: Balys Ghosts. |
| E451.6 | Beggar's ghost laid when pig bought with money taken from him is brought to his grave. Sinks in grave. Lithuanian: Balys Index No. *842. |
| E451.7 | Bearded woman ghost laid by shaving her. Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3560; Livonian: Loorits FFC LXVI 72 No. 216. |
| E451.8 | Ghost laid when house it haunts is destroyed or changed. U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E451.9 | Ghost laid when revenge is accomplished. Korean: Zong in-Sob 122f. |
| E451.10 | Ghost laid when rest of poem is recited. Japanese: Ikeda. |
| E452 | Ghost laid at cockcrow (dawn). Fb "spøgelse" III 519b, "kok" IV 272b; Köhler-Bolte III 581; Wimberly 248.—Breton: Sébillot Incidents s.v. "coq"; Scotch: Campbell Tales II 94—112 passim; English: Child II 228, V 294; Finnish, Swedish: Wessman 1 No. 6; India: *Thompson-Balys; Melanesian, Polynesian: *Dixon 141 n. 24; Kai (German New Guinea): ibid. 144; N. A. Indian (Seneca): Curtin-Hewitt RBAE XXXII 96 No. 7, (Teton): Dorsey AA o.s. II (1889) 151. |
| E452.1 | Dead quiescent during day. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E452.2 | Ghost invisible during day. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E453 | Ghost transformed into animal. (Cf. D100, E423.) England: *Baughman. |
| E454 | Ghost is laid by giving it a never-ending or impossible task. (Cf. H900, H1010.) England, U.S.: *Baughman. |
| E456 | Man raises corpses and gets their shrouds, then "lays" them again. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E459 | Other exorcism practices. |
| E459.1 | Ghost demands a body and soul before it will agree to be laid. Monk provides cock and sole of shoe. England: Baughman. |
| E459.2 | Ghost laid when bones are brought to home country from foreign soil. England: Baughman. |
| E459.3 | Ghost laid when its wishes are acceded to. England: Baughman. |
| E459.4 | Ghost bound and jailed. England: Baughman. |
| E459.5 | Ghost laid at midnight. U.S.: Baughman. |
| E459.6 | Ghost laid by burying bell from church in one pond, the clapper in another. If the two ever come together again, the ghost can walk. England: Baughman. |
| E459.7 | Ghost laid when his skull is thrown into the Ganges. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E460 | Revenants in conflict. |
| E461 | Fight of revenant with living person. (Cf. E261.1.3.) Fb "spøgelse" III 520b; Irish myth: *Cross; Icelandic: *Boberg; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3542, Legends No. 882; N. A. Indian (Teton): Dorsey AA o.s. II (1889) 150, (Passamaquoddy): Leland Algonquin Legends 349, (Seneca): Curtin-Hewitt RBAE XXXII 96 No. 7. |
| E461.1 | Revenant challenged to combat. Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 298 No. 12; Wales: Baughman. |
| E461.2 | Fight of living person with dead in the grave. Andrews MPh X 601ff.; Icelandic: Herrmann Saxo II 367ff., MacCulloch Eddic 309—11, *Boberg. |
| E462 | Revenant overawed by living person. *Fb "student"; Icelandic: Boberg; Welsh: Baughman. |
| E463 | Living man in dead man's shroud. Refuses to let corpse return to grave before he tells how to resuscitate woman living man has killed. Estonian: Aarne FFC XXV 114 No. 7; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3543. |
| E464 | Revenant tricked or jeered into a bottle, corked up and put in safe place. (Cf. D2177.1.) England: *Baughman. |
| E465 | Revenant rewards its conqueror. Irish: Curtin Myths and Folklore of Ireland (Boston, 1889) 127; Egypt (ancient): Petrie II 87. |
| E467 | Revenants fight each other. *Krappe Balor 145ff.; Fb "spøgelse" III 520b; Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E467.1 | Two dead men struggle over living man. Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3548, Balys Ghosts. |
| E470 | Intimate relations of dead and living. |
| E471 | Ghost kisses living person. *Fb "gjenganger" I 444a. |
| E472 | Revenant sleeps in same bed with living but without contact. U.S.: Baughman. |
| E474 | Cohabitation of living person and ghost. This usually involves sexual relations. (Cf. E321.2, E322.6, E339, E378.) Liebrecht 49; Aly Volksmärchen bei Herodot (Göttingen, 1921) 153; H. Schreuer Zs. d. vgl. Rechtswissenschaft XXXIII (1916) 350 n.; Corsican: Ortoli 332; India: Thompson-Balys; Icelandic: Boberg; New Hebrides: Codrington 379; N. A. Indian (Tlingit): Swanton BBAE XXXIX 249 No. 86, (Teton): Dorsey JAFL I 68, (Blackfoot): Wissler and Duvall PaAM II 154 No. 10 (head of murdered woman continues to live with husband), Grinnell Blackfoot Lodge Tales (New York, 1923) 70, (Hopi): Voth FM VIII 33, (Zuсi): Cushing 48 No. 2, (Thompson River): Teit JE VIII 281 No. 46, (Quileute): Farrand-Mayer JAFL XXXII 268 No. 12, (Klickitat): Alexander N. Am. 147; Eskimo (Greenland): Rink 454, Rasmussen III 84; Africa (Ekoi): Talbot 280. |
| E474.1 | Offspring of living and dead person. (Cf. E322.1, T540.) *Fb "barn" IV 27a; Tupper and Ogle Walter Map 98; Irish myth: Cross. |
| E477 | Body in coffin moves so as to make room for his recently deceased friend. *Loomis White Magic 92. |
| E480 | Abode of the dead. Irish myth: *Cross; Jewish: *Neuman. |
| E480.1 | Abode of animal souls. (Cf. E730.1.) Jewish: *Neuman. |
| E480.2 | Three worlds of dead. Hawaii: Beckwith Myth 155, 160. |
| E480.3 | Men must enter spirit world armed. S. A. Indian (Brazil): Oberg 110. |
| E481 | Land of the dead. *Types 470, 471; *Köhler-Bolte II 224ff.; *Encyc. Rel. and Ethics II 680ff.; **Wiedeman Die Toten und ihre Reiche im Glauben der alten ägypten (Leipzig, 1910); A. Jeremias Hölle und Paradies bei den Babyloniern (Leipzig, 1903); Dickson 94f. n. 78; Feilberg DF X 1; Herbert Catalogue of Romances III 585; Finnish: Kalevala rune 16; India: Thompson-Balys; N. A. Indian: *Alexander N. Am. 274 n. 10; Africa: Werner African 180ff., (Ekoi): Talbot 7, 59, 226, 240, (Benga): Nassau 208 No. 33. |
| E481.0.1 | Spain as land of the dead. (Cf. F130.2.) Irish myth: *Cross. |
| E481.0.2 | Quarrel of dead and living causes removal of dead to own land. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E481.1 | Land of dead in lower world. *Krappe Etude 45ff.; **M. Landau Hölle und Fegefeuer in Volksglauben, Dichtung, und Kirchenlehre (Heidelberg, 1909); Krappe Revue Celtique XLIX (1932) 96—102; Icelandic: *Boberg; Greek: Fox 146, Grote I 62; Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 72; Jewish: *Neuman, Gaster Thespis 183, 187f.; Siberian: Holmberg Siberian 485; Buddhist myth: Malalasekera I 199f.; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 200f.; Tonga: Gifford 183; Melanesia: Wheeler 33, 47; Papua: Ker 81; Hawaii: Beckwith Myth 146, 155; N. A. Indian: *Alexander N. Am. 274 n. 10; S. A. Indian (Metaco): Métraux MAFLS XL 24. |
| E481.1.1 | Old woman ruler of dead in lower world. (Cf. A481.9.) Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 75. |
| E481.1.2 | Houses in lower world of dead. (Cf. F163, F220.) Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 74. |
| E481.2 | Land of dead across water. Icelandic: Boberg; Siberian: Holmberg Siberian 486; N. A. Indian (Haida): Swanton JE V 34. |
| E481.2.0.1 | Island of the dead. *Meyer Der irische Totengott und die Toteninsel (Stzb. d. preussischen Akad. d. Wissenschaften XXXII [1919] 537); *Krappe Balor 102; Irish myth: *Cross; Hawaii: Beckwith Myth 72. |
| E481.2.1 | Bridge to land of dead. Type 471; *Fb "bro" IV 62b; Wimberly 110ff.; Ward Catalogue of Romances II 399, 420, 607, Herbert ibid. III 279; Moe Samlede Skrifter III 212, 226ff.; Frazer Immortality III 150; Icelandic: *Boberg; Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 74; India: *Thompson-Balys; Persian: Carnoy 344; Kachin: Scott Indo-Chinese 265; N. A. Indian: Brinton Myths of the New World (New York, 1868) 248, Skinner PaAM XIII 86. |
| E481.2.1.1 | Frightening thing at bridge to land of dead. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E481.2.1.2 | Unstable bridge to land of dead. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E481.2.2 | Boat to land of dead. Icelandic: De la Saussaye 292, *Boberg; Irish myth: Cross; Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 75. |
| E481.3 | Abode of dead in mountain. Patch PMLA XXXIII 614 n. 48; Icelandic: *Boberg; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 335b s.v. "Geister"; Gaster Oldest Stories 156. |
| E481.3.1 | Abode of the dead in hills, barrows. Icelandic: *Boberg. |
| E481.3.2 | Abode of the dead in stones. Icelandic: MacCulloch Eddic 312. |
| E481.4 | Beautiful land of dead. (Rosengarten). Icelandic: *Boberg; Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 79f. |
| E481.4.1 | Avalon. (Cf. F323.) Happy otherworld where dead are healed. Irish myth: *Cross; English: Wells 31 (Geoffrey of Monmouth), 33 (Layamon's Brut), 50 (Le Morte Arthure); Hartland Science 204 (Olger the Dane). |
| E481.5 | Ghost lives midway between heaven and earth. Fb "spøgelse" III 519b. |
| E481.6 | Land of dead in one of the cardinal directions. |
| E481.6.1 | Land of dead in north. Icelandic: Boberg; Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 77f.; N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 101. |
| E481.6.2 | Land of dead in west. (Cf. A692.1.) Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 77f.; Irish myth: *Cross; N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E481.6.3 | Land of dead in east. Icelandic: Boberg. |
| E481.7 | Icy inferno. (Cf. E481.6.1.) Krappe études 46 n. 2. |
| E481.8 | Land of dead in sky. India: *Thompson-Balys; Cook Islands: Beckwith Myth 76. |
| E481.8.1 | Account book of men summoned to death kept in heaven. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E481.8.2 | Moon as land of dead. Samoa: Clark 181. |
| E481.8.3 | Venus as land of dead. Africa (Fang): Trilles 136. |
| E481.8.4 | Dead in house of cloud. Eskimo (Greenland): Holm 79. |
| E481.9 | King of world of dead. (Cf. E481.1.1.) Irish myth: Cross (E481.1.1.1); Icelandic: Boberg; India: Thompson-Balys; Africa (Baholoholo): Einstein 216. |
| E482 | Land of shades. Everything is done by unseen people. Type 425; Tegethoff 14; *Siuts 218ff.; Ward Catalogue of Romances II 425 (Voyage of St. Brandon); N. A. Indian: *Thompson Tales 339 n. 221. |
| E485 | Land of skulls. Africa (Ekoi): Talbot 275. |
| E485.1 | Land of skeletons. Eskimo (Cumberland Sound): Boas BAM XV 230. |
| E487 | Glowing beds of dead. Youth in land of dead puts staff into one of the beds. The iron glows and the wood burns. Irish: O'Suilleabhain 63, 102, Beal XXI 324, 333; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 309 No. 7. |
| E489 | Abode of the dead—miscellaneous. |
| E489.1 | Dead awaken after three days to new life and great wisdom. Fb "død" I 228a. |
| E489.2 | Life in land of dead contrary to ours. People grow younger and smaller till they become nothing and are reborn. Finnish: Holmberg Finno-Ugric 73. |
| E489.3 | Forgetting Charon's fee. Philosopher forgets to put coin in mouth before death (Charon's fee). Charon: "Don't you know the custom?" Answer: "Yes, but I couldn't put off dying for a quarter!"—Italian Novella: Rotunda. |
| E489.4 | Man's spirit in land of dead prophesies his own future death. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E489.5 | Dancing in afterworld. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E489.6 | Culture hero gambles with ruler of the afterworld: result, death or increase in game. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 85. |
| E489.7 | Judas Iscariot appears in midst of sea on rock washed alternately by fiery and icy waves. (Cf. Q560.2.3.) Irish myth: *Cross. |
| E489.8 | Why living cannot go to land of the dead. Chinese: Graham. |
| E489.9 | In land of dead the dead walk on grass without bending it and on mud without sinking. (Cf. F973.2.) Chinese: Graham. |
| E489.10 | Land of dead "in Abraham's bosom". Jewish: *Neuman. |
| E489.11 | Inhabitants of land of dead have great thirst. Jewish: *Neuman. |
| E490 | Meetings of the dead. |
| E491 | Procession of the dead. *BP III 472 n. 1; Fb "gjenganger" I 443b, "Nytеrsaften" II 707b; Finnish-Swedish: Wessman 23 No. 204; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 323 Nos. 100, 105, 326 Nos. 15, 17; *Geiger Archives suisses des Traditions Populaires XLVII 71—76; West Indies: Flowers 431; Pochulata: Boas JAFL XXV 226; Spanish: Boas ibid. 251; India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| E492 | Mass (church service) of the dead. Held at midnight. *BP III 472, 545; Krappe Balor 116ff., 121 n. 11, JAFL LX 159ff.; *Fb "død" I 228a, "kirke" II 125b; *Grunwald Hessische Blätter f. Vksk. XXX—XXXI 316; Danish: Kristensen Danske Sagn II (1895) 280ff., (1928) 176ff.; Norwegian: Solheim Register 17; Icelandic: Boberg; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3558; Jewish: *Neuman; New York: Jones JAFL LVII 242. |
| E493 | Dead men dance. *Fb "spøgelse" III 520a, "danse" IV 93a, "sjæl" III 214b, "kirkegaard" II 128b; Swiss: Jegerlehner Oberwallis 335 s.v. "Geister"; England, U.S.: *Baughman; N. A. Indian (Pawnee): Grinnell 192, (Hupa): Goddard UCal I 239 No. 25, (Luiseсo): DuBois UCal VIII 154, (Zuсi): Cushing 48 No. 2, (Cherokee): Mooney RBAE XIX 252 No. 5, 331 No. 78, (Kwakiutl): Boas and Hunt JE III 106; Africa: Werner African 188f. |
| E494 | Ball game in lower world. (Cf. E577.1.) N. A. Indian (Thompson River): Alexander N. A. Myth 137; *Icelandic: Boberg. |
| E495 | Wedding of the dead. Finnish-Swedish: Wessman 23 No. 208. |
| E495.1 | Ghostly marriage party. India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E495.2 | Marriage (ceremony) to a ghost. India: *Thompson-Balys. |
| E496 | Ghosts gathered on a bridge. *Fb "bro" IV 62b. |
| E497 | Fighting warriors show the way of their past life and of their death. Icelandic: Boberg. |
| E499 | Meetings of the dead—miscellaneous. |
| E499.1 | Gay banquet of the dead. (Cf. E541.) England, U.S.: *Baughman; N. Y.: Jones JAFL LVII 241. |
| E499.2 | Orchestra of ghosts. U.S.: Baughman. |
| E499.3 | Pot so heavy with ghosts that girl cannot lift it. (Cf. D1317.10.) India: Thompson-Balys. |
| E499.4 | Dead in lower world complain about odor of human visitor. N. A. Indian (California): Gayton and Newman 99. |
| E500 | Phantom hosts. |
| E501 | The Wild Hunt. (Cf. F282.) (Die Wilde Jagd, Das Wütende Heer, Odinsjæger, Chasse Fantastique.) A ghostly hunter and his rout continue the chase. **Plischke (bibliography); **Schweda; *Wahner Der Wilde Jäger in Schlesien; Lorentzen; Brunk Der wilde Jäger im Glauben des pommerschen Volkes (Zs. f. Vksk. XIII 179); *Zingerle 589f. (bibliography): Jacobsen Harlekin og den vilde Jæger (Dania IX 1); Heilberg Theodorich som den vilde Jæger (Dania IX 239); Olrik Odinsjægeren i Jylland (Dania VIII 139); *Fb "Odinsjæger" III 730ff.; RTP II 156, VI 291, VII 175, 328, VIII 566, IX 91, 411, XIII 186, 695f.; XIV 83, XVI 453, 531, XVII 504f.; Hartland Science 234ff.; Wehrhan 84; Walhouse FL VIII (1897) 196; *O. Höfler Kultische Geheimbünde der Germanen Bd. I: Das germanische Totenheer (Frankfurt a. M., 1934); Tupper and Ogle Walter Map 234. Musical treatments: Raff Symphony No. 3 (1869); J. Triebensee "Die wilde Jagd" (opera, Budapest, 1824); H. Payer "Der wilde Jäger" (opera, Vienna, 1806); V. E. Nessler "Der wilde Jäger" (opera, Leipzig, 1881); M. J. Beer "Der wilde Jäger" (cantata, Olmütz, 1888); A. Schultz "Der wilde Jäger" (opera, Brunswick, 1887); Müller-Reuter "Hackelberends Begräbnis" (choral ballad, 1902); C. Franck "Le Chasseur Maudit" (symphonic poem, 1883). For classical parallels see H. Hepding Attis 124; Gruppe Griechische Religionsgeschichte (1907) 1290 n. 2; Samter Geburt, Hochzeit, Tod 206 n. 5.—Irish: *Cross; Beal XXI 322; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. 3518; Norwegian: *Solheim Register 17. |
| E501.1 | Leader of the Wild Hunt. *Rühlemann passim. |
| E501.1.1 | King as wild huntsman. (Cf. E501.1.7.) Schweda 38; *Fb "Odins jæger" II 731b; Hartland Science 234, 236; RTP XVII 504f. |
| E501.1.2 | Nobleman as wild huntsman. Schweda 38; Fb "Odins jæger" II 731b. |
| E501.1.3 | Rich man as wild huntsman. Schweda 38. |
| E501.1.4 | Forester as wild huntsman. Schweda 38. |
| E501.1.5 | Freemason as wild huntsman. Schweda 38. |
| E501.1.6 | Saint as leader of wild hunt. RTP XVII 504f. |
| E501.1.7 | Historic or romantic hero as leader of wild hunt. Plischke 41; RTP XVII 504f. |
| E501.1.7.1 | King Herla as wild huntsman. *Liebrecht 28; Tupper and Ogle Walter Map 18. |
| E501.1.7.2 | Theodoric as wild huntsman. *Heilberg Dania IX 239, Nyrop ibid. X 177; BP IV 140; Oesterley No. 190. |
| E501.1.7.3 | Wild Edric as leader of Wild Hunt. England: *Baughman. |
| E501.1.8 | Woman as leader of wild hunt. Favorites are Herodias, Diana, Frau Holle.—Plischke 47; Schwartz Zs. f. Vksk. VII 231. |
| E501.1.8.1 | Herodias as leader of wild hunt. Zachariae Zs. f. Vksk. XXII (1912) 238 n. 7; Germania XVI (1871) 217; Dunlop-Liebrecht 474 n. 170; Grimm Deutsche Mythologie 599; La Tradition IV 69; *Kloss MLN XXIII 82; *Grunwald Hessische Blätter f. Vksk. XXX—XXXI 317. |
| E501.1.8.2 | Artemis as leader of wild hunt. Gruppe Griechische Religionsgeschichte 840 n. 5, 1292. |
| E501.1.8.3 | Hecate as leader of wild hunt. Pauly-Wissowa s.v. "Hekate"; Rohde Psyche II 84. |
| E501.2 | Participants in wild hunt. |
| E501.2.1 | Knights in wild hunt. Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.2 | Ladies in wild hunt. Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.3 | Witches in wild hunt. (Cf. G200.) Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.4 | Courtisans in wild hunt. (Cf. E501.5.1.2.) Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.5 | Churchmen in wild hunt. Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.6 | Soldiers in wild hunt. Plischke 29. |
| E501.2.7 | Unbaptized children in wild hunt. Plischke 30; *Fb "udøbt" III 960a. |
| E501.3 | Wild huntsmen wander because of sin. Schweda 38. |
| E501.3.1 | Wild huntsman wanders because of cruelty. Schweda 38. |
| E501.3.2 | Wild huntsman wanders because of suicide. Schweda 38. |
| E501.3.3 | Wild huntsman wanders because of parricide. Harow RTP XX 369. |
| E501.3.4 | Wild huntsman wanders because of unshriven death. Schweda 38. |
| E501.3.5 | Wild huntsman wanders for failure to keep fast day. Plischke 29. |
| E501.3.6 | Wild huntsman wanders for hunting on Sunday. *Fb "Søndag" III 741a, "Odins jæger" II 731b. |
| E501.3.7 | Wild huntsman wanders because he wished to continue hunt after death. Fb "jagt" II 36, "jagen" II 35; RTP XIII 695f. |
| E501.3.8 | Wild huntsman wanders for disturbing church service. Plischke 34. |
| E501.3.9 | Wild huntsmen cannot die until evil in world has been made right and things return as they had been. England: Baughman. |
| E501.3.10 | Wild huntswoman wanders because of murder of daughter. England: Baughman. |
| E501.4 | Animals follow wild huntsman. |
| E501.4.0.1 | Animals in wild hunt reincarnation of murdered person. Plischke 31. |
| E501.4.1 | Dogs in wild hunt. Schweda 25; England: Baughman; Irish: O'Suilleabhain 50f., 56, Beal XXI 318f. |
| E501.4.1.1 | Enormous pack of dogs in wild hunt. Overcome people by their mass. Plischke 32. |
| E501.4.1.2 | Dogs with fiery tongues in wild hunt. Schweda 25; *Schwartz Zs. f. Vksk. VII 232; Fb "Odins jæger" II 732a; England: Baughman. |
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