The dead

2,226 motifs · page 3 of 12

• Ghost chases pedestrian on road. E272.4
• Ghost misleads traveler on road. See similar actions of fairies, witches, Will-o-the-wisp. (Cf. F402.1.1.) E272.5
• Churchyard ghosts. E273
• Ghosts prevent burial of corpse. E273.1
• Gallows ghost. Ghost haunts gallows. E274
• Ghost haunts place of great accident or misfortune. E275
• Ghost haunts mine after tragedy. (Cf. E336.) E275.1
• Ghosts haunt tree. E276
• Ghosts haunt spring. E278
• Malevolent revenants – miscellaneous. E279
• The ghost haunts outside at night in human shape. E279.1
• Ghost disturbs sleeping person. (Cf. E281.2.) E279.2
• Ghost pulls bedclothing from sleeper. E279.3
• Ghost haunts park, terrifies watchers. E279.4
• Ghost violently brands drunkard with "D". E279.5
• Ghost punishes person who molests him. E279.6
• Ghosts blow smithy into air. E279.7
• Ghosts haunt buildings. (Cf. H1411.) E280
• Ghosts haunt house. (It is sometimes hard to tell whether haunters are supposed to be ghosts or familiar spirits of some kind.) E281
• Ghost kills man who stays in haunted house. E281.0.1
• Hungry ghosts haunt house seeking food. E281.1
• Ghostly horse enters house and puts hoofs on breast of sleeper. E281.2
• Ghost haunts particular room in house. E281.3
• Ghosts haunt castle. (Cf. F771.4.5.) E282
• Ghosts haunt church. E283
• Ghost haunts cloister. E284
• Ghost haunts well, prevents drawing water after dark. E285
• Malevolent return from the dead – miscellaneous. E290
• Ghosts protect hidden treasure. E291
• Person burying treasure kills person to supply guardian ghost. E291.1
• Form of treasure-guarding ghost. E291.2
• Ghost in human form guards treasure. E291.2.1
• Ghost animal guards treasure. E291.2.2
• Ghost causes storms. E292
• Ghosts frighten people (deliberately). E293
• Ghost scares thief, prevents theft. E293.1
• Ghost scares card players. E293.2
• Miscellaneous acts of malevolent ghosts. E299
• Ghost causes machinery to run unattended. E299.1
• Ghost prevents removal of box from abbey. The box takes on miraculous weight. E299.2
• Ghost upsets farmers' wagons. E299.3
• Ghost breaks windows. E299.4
• Ghost unties boats, setting them adrift. E299.5
• Friendly return from the dead. E300
• Dead lover's friendly return. (Cf. E210.) E310
• Return from dead to return and ask back love tokens. E311
• Dead relative's friendly return. E320
• Dead husband's friendly return. E321
• Dead husband sends his ring to his wife. E321.1
• Dead husband returns and lives with his wife. He is invisible to others. (Cf. F378.) E321.2
• Dead husband returns, helps wife knit socks, piece quilts. She shows his work as proof. E321.2.1
• Dead man visits his wife every night. E321.2.2
• Dead husband returns, asks wife to make him coffee. E321.3
• Ghost often visits his widow and her new husband. E321.4
• Ghost appears often to wife and daughter. E321.5
• Dead wife's friendly return. (Cf. E221.2.) E322
• Dead wife returns and bears children for husband. E322.1
• Dead wife returns to wake husband. E322.2
• Dead wife returns and asks husband to go with her to spirit world. E322.2.1
• Wife in heaven by day, with husband by night. E322.3
• Dead wife returns in form of bird. E322.4
• Man carries his dead wife with him. E322.5
• Dead wife returns to live with her husband until his death. E322.6
• Dead wife returns to another person to have him write a letter to her husband. E322.7
• Return from dead and remarriage to husband. E322.8
• Man talks to dead wife in grave. E322.9
• Dead mother's friendly return. E323
• Dead mother returns to see baby. E323.1
• Dead mother returns to suckle child. E323.1.1
• Dead mother returns to care for neglected baby. E323.1.2
• Dead mother returns to aid persecuted children. E323.2
• Dead mother (in animal form) returns to aid persecuted children. E323.2.1
• Dead mother called up from grave to give her son charms. E323.3
• Advice from dead mother. E323.4
• Mother returns to search for dead child. E323.5
• Mother returns to encourage daughter in great difficulties. E323.6
• Dead mother makes son strong. E323.7
• Dead child's friendly return to parents. Frequently to stop weeping. (Cf. P230.) E324
• Voice of son answers his mother from the grave only when called by his pet name. E324.1
• Ghost family visits grave of father. E324.2
• Dead sister's friendly return. E325
• Dead brother's friendly return. E326
• Dead father's friendly return. E327
• Dead father returns to daughter to stop her weeping. (Cf. E324.) E327.1
• Dead father returns to encourage daughter in childbirth. E327.2
• Dead father returns to clear son's name of crime. E327.3
• Ghost of father returns to rebuke child. E327.4
• Dead father returns in form of bird. (Cf. E322.4.) E327.5
• Locations haunted by non-malevolent dead. (Cf. E270–E284 for locations haunted by malevolent ghosts.) E330
• Non-malevolent road ghosts. (Cf. E272, E581, E582.) E332
• Ghost appears at road and stream. E332.1
• Person meets ghost on road. E332.2
• Ghost on road asks traveler for ride. (Cf. E581, E582.) E332.3
• Ghost rides on horseback with rider. (Cf. E215.) E332.3.1
• Ghost rides in carriage, disappears suddenly at certain spot. E332.3.2
• Ghost asks for ride in automobile. E332.3.3
• The Vanishing Hitchhiker. Ghost of young woman asks for ride in automobile, disappears from closed car without the driver's knowledge, after giving him address to which she wishes to be taken. Driver asks person at address about the rider, finds she has been dead for some time. (Often driver finds that ghost has made similar attempts to return, usually on anniversary of death in automobile accident. Often ghost leaves some item such as a scarf or a traveling bag in car.) E332.3.3.1
• Deity as ghostly rider. E332.3.3.2
• Non-malevolent churchyard ghost. (Cf. E273.) E333
• Non-malevolent ghost haunts scene of former misfortune, crime, or tragedy. (C.f. E336, E337, E338, E339.) E334
• Ghost haunts scene of former crime or sin. E334.1
• Ghost haunts burial spot. (Cf. E411.1.) E334.2
• Ghost of murdered person haunts burial spot. (Cf. E413.) E334.2.1
• Ghost of person killed in accident seen at death or burial spot. E334.2.2
• Ghost of tragic lover haunts scene of tragedy. (Cf. E337.3.) E334.2.3
• Ghost of person abandoned by faithless lover. (Cf. E211ff.) E334.3
• Ghost of suicide seen at death spot or near by. (Cf. E411.1.1, E431.16.) E334.4
• Ghost of soldier haunts battlefield. E334.5
• Non-malevolent mine ghosts. (Cf. E275.1, E334.5.1, F456.) E336
• Helpful mine ghosts. E336.1
• Mine ghosts annoy miners. E336.2
• Ghost reenacts scene from own lifetime. E337
• Sounds of re-enacted actions. (Cf. E402.) E337.1
• Murder sounds heard just as they must have happened at time of death. E337.1.1
• Sounds of accident re-enact tragedy. E337.1.2
• Sounds of revelry heard. E337.1.3
• Sounds of driving cattle: horse's hoofs, whip-popping, calling to cattle, rattle of spurs: ghost of slain cowboy. E337.1.4
• Re-enactment of tragedy seen. E337.2
• Lovers' tragedy re-enacted. (Cf. E334.5.) E337.3
• Non-malevolent ghost haunts building. See E281, E402. E338
• Non-malevolent ghost haunts house or castle. E338.1
• Non-malevolent ghost haunts church. (Cf. E283.) E338.2
• Non-malevolent ghost haunts cloister. E338.3
• Return from dead to repay obligation. E340
• The grateful dead. E341
• Dead grateful for having corpse ransomed. Corpse is being held unburied because of nonpayment of debts. Hero pays debt and secures burial of corpse. E341.1
• Dead grateful for having been spared indignity to corpse. Kind man has given it burial. E341.1.1
• Dead grateful for food. E341.2
• Dead grateful for prayers. E341.3
• Dead grateful for clothes (shirt). E341.4
• Grateful priest returns to save gambler from devil. E341.5
• Dead return to fulfill bargain. E342
• Dead returns to repair injury. E345
• Dead returns to replace boundary marks he has removed. (Cf. E416.) E345.1
• Dead returns to repay money debt. E351
• Dead returns to restore stolen goods. E352
• Dead man asks that certain girl be married to him because in life he seduced her. E353
• Other reasons for friendly return from the dead. E360
• Return from the dead to stop weeping. E361
• Tear from upper world of mortals falls on departed in lower world. Dead brother sends message of comfort to living. E361.1
• Return from dead to give consoling message. E361.2
• Dead son tells mother that no mortal escapes death. E361.3
• Ghost returns to aid living. E363
• Ghost aids living in emergency. E363.1
• Ghost substitutes for bride on her wedding journey. E363.1.1
• Ghost returns to protect the living. E363.2
• Ghost warns the living. E363.3
• Dead reassures living. E363.4
• Dead provide material aid to living. E363.5
• Ghost of murdered girl appears and lends jewels needed for a ball in exchange for flowers. E363.5.1
• Ghost aids living otherwise. E363.6
• Dead returns to say farewell. E364
• Return from dead to ask forgiveness. E365
• Return of the dead to grant forgiveness. E365.1
• Return from dead to give counsel. (Cf. V229.1.) E366
• Laughing skull advises hero. (Cf. E545.) E366.1
• Hanged man warns youth against visiting sweetheart. Takes youth's place and receives shot meant for him. E366.2
• Talking bones of eaten man advise hero. E366.3
• Return from dead to preach repentance. E367
• Person who has spent two years in hell speaks of importance of religious experience. E367.1
• Saint returns from dead to give blessing. E367.2
• Return from dead to prophesy coming of Christ. (Cf. M363, M364.7.2.) E367.3
• Return from dead to convert to Christianity. E367.4
• Ghost of woman chides unbeliever. E367.5
• Pupil returns from dead to warn master of futility of his studies. E368
• Return from dead to reveal hidden treasure. (Cf. E276, E291, E419.11.2.) E371
• Return from dead to reveal whereabouts of stolen goods. E371.1
• Return from dead to repeat forgotten epic. (Cf. A581, J1563.7.) E371.2
• Poet sings day after his death. (Cf. E342, E546.) E371.3
• Return from the dead to seek hidden treasure. E372
• Ghosts bestow gifts on living. E373
• Money received from ghosts as reward for bravery. A voice says: "I am letting it fall." The man: "Let it." Money falls to the ground. E373.1
• Sword received from summoned dead father. E373.2
• Woman's hand rises from grave and gives man performing vigil letter of salvation. E373.3
• Dead returns to supply tribe with money demanded by landlord. E373.4
• Dead returns to life and tells of journey to land of dead. E374
• Return of the dead to keep promise and tell of land of the dead. Two friends promise each other that the first to die will do so. E374.1
• Return from dead to prevent flight of thief. E375
• Ghost returns to confess misdeed. E376
• Saint returns from dead to exonerate cleric. E376.1
• Return from dead to teach living. E377
• Dead poet leaves grave mound to teach poem to herdsman: latter becomes great poet. E377.1
• Friendly return from the dead – other motifs. E379
• Return from dead to rescue from drowning. E379.1
• Anchorite's body rises out of river in favor to disciple. E379.2
• Return from dead to protect friends. E379.3
• Ghost as confederate of man. E379.4
• Return from dead to make up enough men to perform ritual. E379.5
• Ghost summoned. E380
• Summoning souls punished: in hour of man's death they overwhelm him. E380.1
• Ghost summoned by weeping. E381
• Ghost summoned by pouring blood of sacrifices into trench. E382
• Ghosts summoned by sacred book. E383
• Ghost summoned by music. E384
• Ghost summoned by beating drum. E384.1
• Ghost raised inadvertently by whistling. E384.2
• Ghost summoned by blast on horn (whistle). E384.3
• Vigil of husband at wife's grave calls her forth. E385
• Husband ignored or discouraged by ghost wife. E385.1
• Other means of summoning ghost. E386