' (or ', ) is an early collection of German folk stories retold in a satirical style by Johann Karl August Musäus, published in five volumes between 1782 and 1787.

Stories

Publication and translation

' was first published in five volumes between 1782 and 1787 by C. W. Ettinger in

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the Gotha (district), district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine House of Wet ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

. After Musäus' death in 1787, his widow requested

Christoph Martin Wieland Christoph Martin Wieland (; 5 September 1733 – 20 January 1813) was a German poet and writer. He is best-remembered for having written the first ''Bildungsroman'' (''Geschichte des Agathon''), as well as the epic ''Oberon'', which formed the ba ...

publish a re-edited version of the tales, which he did as ' (1804–1805). It has been reprinted many other times in Germany, including 1787–8, 1795–8, 1912, 1965, and 1976.

English translations

The first English translation was ''Popular Tales of the Germans'' (1791) by

Thomas Beddoes Thomas Beddoes (13 April 176024 December 1808) was an English physician and scientific writer. He was born in Shifnal, Shropshire and died in Bristol fifteen years after opening his medical practice there. He was a reforming practitioner and t ...

, which contained five of the stories: "Richilda", "The Book of the Chronicles of the Three Sisters", "The Stealing of the Veil", "Elfin Freaks" (""), and "The Nymph of the Fountain". This book was published anonymously, and the translation was traditionally attributed to William Beckford. In the early

nineteenth century The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium. The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolish ...

, some

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

translations of the ''Volksmärchen'' were translated into English. "The Lost Veil" and "Melechsala" were translated in ''Tales'' (1805) from Isabelle de Montolieu's ''Recueil de contes'' (1803), and an abridged version of "

The Spectre-Barber "The Spectre-Barber" (german: Stumme Liebe: "Silent Love", also translated under the titles "Dumb Love", "The Dumb Lover", and "Mute Love") is a short story, written by Johann Karl August Musäus included in his satirical retellings of collected fo ...

" ("") was translated in ''

Tales of the Dead ''Tales of the Dead'' was an English anthology of horror fiction, abridged from the French book ''Fantasmagoriana'' and translated anonymously by Sarah Elizabeth Utterson, who also added one story of her own. It was published in 1813 by White, Jo ...

'' (1813) from

Jean-Baptiste Benoît Eyriès Jean-Baptiste Benoît Eyriès (; 24 June 176713 June 1846) was a French geographer, author and translator, best remembered in the English speaking world for his translation of German ghost stories '' Fantasmagoriana'', published anonymously in 18 ...

' '' Fantasmagoriana'' (1812). A number of direct translations were published in the 1820s, following the interest in German fairy stories caused by the

Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among th ...

's ''

Children's and Household Tales ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'', originally known as the ''Children's and Household Tales'' (german: Kinder- und Hausmärchen, lead=yes, ), is a German collection of fairy tales by the Grimm brothers or "Brothers Grimm", Jacob and Wilhelm, first publis ...

''. This included two stories in ''

Popular Tales and Romances of the Northern Nations ''Popular Tales and Romances of the Northern Nations'' is an anthology of translated German stories in three volumes, published in 1823. Publication The book was announced as being prepared for publication in January and February 1823. All thre ...

'' (1823), one of the "Legends of Rübezahl" in ''Endless Entertainment'' (1825), one story in

Thomas Roscoe Thomas Roscoe (Liverpool 23 June 1791 – 24 September 1871 London) was an English author and translator. Life The fifth son of William Roscoe, he was born in Toxteth Park, Liverpool in 1791, and educated by Dr. W. Shepherd and by Mr. Llo ...

's ''The German Novelists'' (1826), three of the "Legends of Rübezahl" with extensive footnotes in ''The Odd Volume'' (1826), with another story in ''The Odd Volume: Second Series'' (1827), three stories in

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, ...

's ''German Romance'' (1827), and the "Legends of Rubezahl" in ''Foreign Tales and Traditions'' (1829), and "The Spectre Barber" in ''The Decameron of the West'' (1839). The 1840s saw a revival of interest in German traditions following the marriage of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

to Prince Albert of

Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha), or Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (german: Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha, links=no ), was an Ernestine, Thuringian duchy ruled by a branch of the House of Wettin, consisting of territories in the present ...

in 1840, which may have led to the subsequent new translations of Musäus' work. This included ''The Three Sisters: A Story'' (1842), "Libussa" in ''Tales from the German'' (1844), two stories in ''Legends of Rubezahl, and Other Tales'' (1845), two in ''The Enchanted Knights; or The Chronicle of the Three Sisters'' (1845), seven in ''Select Popular Tales from the German of Musaeus'' (1845), two in ''The Nymph of the Well and The Barber's Ghost'' (1848), one appended to ''Schinderhannes, the Robber of the Rhine'' (1848), ''Melechsala'' (1848), one in ''Tales of Fairy Land'' (1849), a light-hearted free verse poem version of the "Chronicles of the Three Sisters" as ''The Arm! – the Sword! – and the Hour! Or, the Legend of the Enchanted Knights'' (1850), ''The Stolen Veil; or, the Tale à la Montgolfier'' (1850), and two in ''Libussa, Duchess of Bohemia; also The Man Without a Name'' (1852). A number of new translations were published in the 1860s, including ''The Three Sons-in-Law'' (1861),

Mark Lemon Mark Lemon (30 November 1809, in London – 23 May 1870, in Crawley) was the founding editor of both ''Punch'' and '' The Field''. He was also a writer of plays and verses. Biography Lemon was born in Marylebone, Westminster, Middlesex, ...

's ''Legends of Number Nip'' (1863), and a new translation by him of the "Chronicles of the Three Sisters" in ''Fairy Tales'' (1868). A few more followed, such as one in ''Wonder-World Stories'' (1877), all five "Legends of Rübezahl" in ''Number Nip; or the Spirit of the Giant Mountains'' (1884), Harriet Pinckney Huse's ''Roland's Squires'' (1891), "The Treasure Seeker" in

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University o ...

's ''

The Crimson Fairy Book ''The Langs' Fairy Books'' are a series of 25 collections of true and fictional stories for children published between 1889 and 1913 by Andrew Lang and his wife, Leonora Blanche Alleyne. The best known books of the series are the 12 collections ...

'' (1903), one ''Volksmärchen'' Rübezahl tale in his ''

The Brown Fairy Book ''The Langs' Fairy Books'' are a series of 25 collections of true and fictional stories for children published between 1889 and 1913 by Andrew Lang and his wife, Leonora Blanche Alleyne. The best known books of the series are the 12 collections ...

'' (1904), two stories in ''Magic Casements: A Second Fairy Book'' (1907), and an abridged version of the first of the "Legends of Rübezahl" in ''The Greatest Adventure Stories Ever Told'' (1945). More recently, Janet Ritch translated ''The Elopement'' (1989), and

Jack Zipes Jack David Zipes (born June 7, 1937) is a professor emeritus of German, comparative literature, and cultural studies, who has published and lectured on German literature, critical theory, German Jewish culture, children's literature, and folklore. ...

translated "Libussa" in ''Spells of Enchantment: The Wondrous Fairy Tales of Western Culture'' (1991).

French translations

They were also translated into French a number of times, including as ''Contes populaires des Allemands'' (1803) by J. Lefèvre, a translation of two of the stories by Isabelle de Montolieu (1803), and another complete translation with an introduction by

Charles Paul de Kock Charles Paul de Kock (May 21, 1793 in Passy, Paris – April 27, 1871 in Paris) was a French novelist. Although one of the most popular writers of his day in terms of book sales, he acquired a literary reputation for low-brow output in poor taste ...

(1826) among others.These include: * containing the five "Legends of

Rübezahl Rübezahl ( pl, Liczyrzepa, Duch Gór, Karkonosz, Rzepiór, or Rzepolicz; cs, Krakonoš) is a folkloric mountain spirit (woodwose) of the Giant Mountains (''Krkonoše'', ''Riesengebirge'', ''Karkonosze''), a mountain range along the border betw ...

" with two additional ones from other authors * containing "Rubezahl", "Damon-Amor", "La nouvelle matrone d'Éphèse", "Le Chercheur de trésors", "Ondine" and "Melechsala" * * * * containing "Légendes de Rübezahl", "L'Hospitalité du chevalier Bronkhorst" and "Chroniques des trois soeurs"

Notes

English translations

Books

References

{{reflist 1782 books 1783 books 1784 books 1786 books 1787 books Book series introduced in 1782 Collections of fairy tales German folklore