409 motifs match “about” — showing the first 100; narrow the words for the rest  ·  back to the chapters

• Other stories about stone origins. A979
• How people learned about calculating time and the seasons. A1485
• Quarrel of dog and cat about which was higher caste. A2281.1.2
• Why hare skips about like a leaf. A2479.2
• Crab sings about his captivity. B214.1.8.1
• A small animal (hare, bitch) gives timely warnings to the hero about the trap prepared by his enemy. Animal warning about trap killed. B335.6
• Animals grateful for being given appropriate food. Hero finds dog with hay and horse with meat. He changes it about. B392.1
• Eagle saves man from falling wall. The grateful eagle swoops down and takes the man's hat, and thus gets him away from the wall that is about to fall. B521.2.1
• Kite steals jewels and thus saves condemned man. Innocent man in possession of stolen jewels, is about to be apprehended. Kite carries off the jewels and saves him. B522.2
• Animal spares man he is about to devour. B525
• Animal advises about investment. B562.2
• Tabu: reproaching supernatural wife about her sisters. C31.11
• Tabu: speaking about lost money which is to be regained by witchcraft. The loser cannot refrain from speaking of his loss; the money cannot be recovered. C401.3.1
• Tabu: asking about marvels which one sees. (Cf. C423.2, C491.) C411
• Tabu: not to speak about a certain happening. C420.2
• Tabu: telling children about lake monster. C423.6
• Transformation to likeness of another by sleeping with arms about him under the same mantle. D592
• Attempt to learn about magic object by spying. D830.1
• Boy overhears witches' conversation about magic objects, which he gets possession of. D838.9
• Magic yew rod used by druid to discover whereabouts of woman carried off by fairies to underground retreat. D1311.15.1
• Sword bursts in son's hand when he is about to kill his father. D1317.6.1
• Clairvoyant spring. Lady whose lover is absent to look in spring each day. If she sees his shadow, he is about to marry another. (Cf. D927.) D1323.12.1
• Murdered man's head will cause earth to burn up or sea to boil: must be carried about. (Cf. D1278.) D1549.7
• Drum flies about room. (Cf. D1211.) D1609.1
• Instrument's ornamental figures climb down and run about as harper plays. D1627.1
• Magic island moves about as owner wishes. (Cf. D936.) D1643.3
• Magic pipe travels about. (Cf. D1224.) D1643.4
• Mouse's prayer to gods about her children granted. D1766.1.6
• Magic knowledge about culprit's offense to deity. D1810.0.12
• Dream by a (pregnant) woman about fate of her unborn child. D1812.3.3.8
• Druid divines whereabouts of missing person. (Cf. D1711.4.) D1816.5
• Druid by magic discovers whereabouts of abducted wife. (Cf. F322.2.) D1816.5.1
• Means of bringing about magic forgetfulness. D2004
• Sight of old home reawakens memory and brings about return from other world. D2006.2
• Murder by sympathetic magic. An object or an animal is abused or destroyed to bring about the death of a person. D2061.2.2
• Wild boar reprimanded about its maraudings by saint. The command is obeyed. D2156.4
• Speaking skull tells about previous life, reveals future events, etc. E261.1.2
• 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
• Return from dead to reveal whereabouts of stolen goods. E371.1
• Light remark about what person would do if ghost appeared causes ghost to appear. (Cf. C10, C13.) E386.5
• Concern of ghost about belongings of its lifetime. E419.10
• The living corpse. Revenant is not a specter but has the attributes of a living person. He wanders about till his "second death", complete disintegration in the grave. (Cf. E261.1.3, E268, E461.) E422
• Dead in lower world complain about odor of human visitor. E499.4
• The Sleeping Army. Soldiers killed in battle come forth on occasions from their resting place (hill, grave, grotto) and march about or send their leader to do so. E502
• Soul remains about dead body. E722.3.1.1
• Three fairies sent to queen about to give birth to child. F312.3
• Abuse of fairy gifts brings about their loss. F348.7.1
• Fairy breaks leg of servant girl who tells lies about him. F361.17.4
• Fairies, directed by druid, bring about death of king by causing fish-bone to stick in his throat. F363.1
• Angels as familiar spirits. Act as servants about the house of saints and serve them otherwise. F403.2.2.2
• Dwarfs are superstitious about the three sevens in 1777. (Cf. F451.9.1.3.) F451.3.15.1
• Trolls go about at night. F455.3.6
• Will-o'-the-Wisp hops about. F491.4
• Gorgon. Head turned about, scales of dragon, tusks of swine brazen hands, golden wings. F526.3
• Giant demands girl, but is killed in duel about her. (Cf. F610.3.4.2.1.) F531.5.7.0.2
• Giants and giantesses fight about treasures. F531.6.8.3.1
• Berserk killed in combat about maiden. F610.3.4.2.1
• Baby tied to a mill-stone by strap so he would not wander about; drags stone after him. F611.3.2.2
• Hero catches a giant jug and pitches it about. F636.5
• Marvelous sensitiveness: stitch in side from being told about hearing a man chopping wood. F647.8.1.1
• Wandering island. Moves about at will and sometimes appears and disappears from sea. F737
• Artificial heavens. Placed on pillars of iron. Seven heavens. (1) glass, sun, moon, stars, (2) iron with lake in it, (3) tin with precious stones rolling about (thunder), (4) lead, (5) copper, (6) silver, (7) gold. F792
• Man builds boat and sails about in giant's belly. F911.5.1
• Darkness comes in daytime in order to save life of maiden about to be executed. F965.1
• Madness (rage) from hearing about brother's death. F1041.8.10
• King about to kill foster-son due to his evil explanation of dream; both jump into sea and are drowned. F1041.16.7
• Person lives on after having heart cut free. Heart moves about within his chest. F1096.1
• Witch causes cattle to run about wildly. G265.6.2.1
• Devil abducts girl: has her hang about his neck and he flees to hell. G303.9.5.1
• Satan makes wager with God about mortal's piety. G303.9.8.7
• Devil haunts premises about to be visited by calamity. G303.15.1
• Great head as ogre. Head detached from body pursues or flies about doing damage. G361.2
• Recognition of captive's voice brings about rescue from ogre. Usually captive sings in the bag. G556
• Recognition through story-telling. Telling of a story known to both persons concerned brings about recognition. H11
• Recognition by brother king of lost brother brought about by model of their father's palace which lost brother builds of clay. H16.1
• Recognition of brothers brought about by bouquet of flowers tied as father's gardener used to do. H16.3
• Recognition through picture. Picture is publicly displayed and brings about recognition of lost person. H21
• Recognition by smell of jewels worn about neck. H93.0.1
• Identification by indenture. Each of two persons keeps his half of a contract which has been torn in two. Fitting of the halves brings about recognition. H102
• Hero's power to transform girl to carnation brings about recognition. H151.7
• Combat of unknown brothers brings about recognition. H151.10
• Geese tell of beauty of their mistress and bring about recognition. H151.12
• Seller of trinkets tells of heroine's address of son as "tiger's son" and brings about recognition of true bride. H151.15
• Beating brings about outcry and recognition. H182
• Riddles about flax. H885
• Riddles about naphtha. H886
• Task: bringing bundle of faggots without rope to tie them. Helpful snake coils himself about them. H1023.19
• Quest for beautiful girl about whom parrots are heard speaking. H1214.1
• Man with magic knowledge defeats his competitors in quest by misinforming them about the character of country they will be traveling (for a place where there is no water he makes them bring loads of wood; for a place where water is he makes them bring along loads of water). H1239.4
• Object sought brings about death of assigner of quest. H1248
• Cock feigns death to see what hens will say about him. H1556.1.1
• Sleep before committing suicide. After sleeping you will feel differently about suicide. J21.2.2
• "Do not ask questions about extraordinary things": counsel proved wise by experience. Those who ask question killed. J21.6
• "When in a strange place look about you": counsel proved wise by experience. J21.34.1
• Seducer about to seduce mother of child refrains when child wisely remarks that he is sad because his father has left his mother exposed to such dangers. J122.1
• Account of punishments prepared in hell brings about repentance. J172
• Choice between bad master, bad official, or bad neighbor. Bad master can do evil if he desires to do so; bad official can harm a poor person and complain against him to his master; bad neighbor can betray secret things about his neighbors. Bad neighbor worst. J229.5
• Peacock and crane in beauty contest. Better be able to soar like crane than to strut about like peacock. J242.5
• Apparent beauty may be of the least importance. Ruler admires jewels's beauty but neglects to inquire about their marvelous virtues. J264
• Elephant and ape debate about superiority. Owl gives them task neither can perform and ends futile debate. J461.8