ATU 812 The Devil's Riddle

ATU 812

The Devil's Riddle

Aarne–Thompson–Uther tale-type index · Religious Tales · The full type description is not served here; the number and name are the classification facts.

Motifs the recorded variants carry

Help from ogre's grandmother. 6 variants
Test: guessing nature of devil's possessions. 6 variants
Escape from devil by answering his riddles. 6 variants
Riddle: what is sweeter than honey? (Cf. H633.) 6 variants
Riddle: what is softer than swan down? (Cf. H652.1.) 6 variants
Riddle: what is harder than stone? (Cf. H637.) 6 variants
Impossible tasks. 6 variants
Man sells soul to devil. (Faust, Theophilus.) 6 variants
Supernatural helpers. 6 variants
Symbolic meaning of numbers one to seven (ten, twelve). E.g. One: sun; two: Moses' tablets; three: three Maries; etc. 3 variants
Ehod mi yodea (One; who knows?); Le dodici parole della verità, Las doce palabras retorneadas. The numbers from one to twelve are brought into relation with various objects, often of religious significance. 3 variants
Ogre's secret overheard from tree. 2 variants
Ogre's secret overheard by masking as bird. 2 variants
Secrets of animals (demons) accidentally overheard from tree (bridge) hiding place. 2 variants

Type numbers and names after Aarne–Thompson–Uther, via Hagedorn, trilogy (2022), CC-BY-NC-SA; motif links weighted by the dataset’s recorded tale variants. Served as classification facts with attribution.