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The stories are taken from the collections published by Afanasief, Khudyakof, Erlenvein, and Chudinsky. "STORIES contained in the following pages are taken from the collections published by Afanasief, Khudyakof, Erlenvein, and Chudinsky. The South-Russian collections of Kulish and Rudchenko I have been able to use but little, there being no complete dictionary available of the dialect, or rather the language, in which they are written. Of these works that of Afanasief is by far the most important, extending to nearly 3,000 pages, and containing 332 distinct stories — of many of which several variants are given, sometimes as many as five. Khudyakof's collection contains 122 skazkas — as the Russian folk-tales are called — Erlenvein's 41, and Chudinsky's 31. Afanasief has also published a separate volume, containing 33 "legends," and he has inserted a great number of stories of various kinds in his " Poetic views of the Old Slavonians about Nature," a work to which I have had constant recourse."

There are but few among those inhabitants of Fairy-land of whom "Popular Tales" tell, who are better known to the outer world than Cinderella-the despised and flouted younger sister, who long sits unnoticed beside the hearth, then furtively visits the glittering halls of the great and gay, and at last is transferred from her obscure nook to the place of honor justly due to her tardily acknowledged merits. Somewhat like the fortunes of Cinderella have been those of the popular tale itself. Long did it dwell beside the hearths of the common people, utterly ignored by their superiors in social rank. Then came a period during which the cultured world recognized its existence, but accorded to it no higher rank than that allotted to "nursery stories" and "old wives' tales"-except, indeed, on those rare occasions when the charity of a condescending scholar had invested it with such a garb as was supposed to enable it to make a respectable appearance in polite society. At length there arrived the season of its final change, when, transferred from the dusk of the peasant's hut into the full light of the outer day, and freed from the unbecoming garments by which it had been disfigured, it was recognized as the scion of a family so truly royal that some of its members deduce their origin from the olden gods themselves.

The stories contained in the following pages are taken from the collections published by Afanasief, Khudyakof, Erlenvein, and Chudinsky. The South-Russian collections of Kulish and Rudchenko I have been able to use but little, there being no complete dictionary available of the dialect, or rather the language, in which they are written. Of these works that of Afanasief is by far the most important, extending to nearly 3,000 pages, and containing 332 distinct stories-of many of which several variants are given, sometimes as many as five. Khudyakof's collection contains 122 skazkas-as the Russian folk-tales are called-Erlenvein's 41, and Chudinsky's 31. Afanasief has also published a separate volume, containing 33 "legends," and he has inserted a great number of stories of various kinds in his "Poetic views of the Old Slavonians about Nature," a work to which I have had constant recourse.

Ralston collected and translated this collection of stories in a concerted attempt to introduce European and North American audiences to the myriad folk stories which had developed in Russia over many centuries. The tales found in this collection are imbued by vivid descriptions, fast moving and culturally rich narratives, and a keen sense of leaving readers with moral lessons. The book categorizes Russian folklore into six principle parts: We begin with myths and legends selected for their good introductory qualities and moral conclusions, as in The Bad Wife and The Three Kopecks. The second part of the book contains stories about manifestations of evil, such as the infamous Baba Yaga. The third contains tales concerning other manifest beings and entities, for instance Sozh, Dnieper and One-Eyed Likho. In the fourth part, we hear tales of magic, witchcraft and warlocks, such as The Headless Princess. The fifth part contains stories concerning ghosts and vampires, for example the Fox Physician and The Two Corpses. Last of all, Ralston narrates traditional legends of Russian folklore, with particular focus upon the saints of the Russian Orthodox church, and the various demons said to have appeared long ago. An accomplished researcher with a strong affinity for the Russian nation, Ralston was sure to select only the best quality Russian folk stories. This collection is unique for maintaining a sound balance the popularly known with obscure yet high quality examples. Whether you are already an expert in Eastern folklore, or desire a superb introduction to the Russian folk stories, this book is sure to satisfy. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.

William Ralston Shedden Ralston's translation of "Russian Fairy Tales" is a compelling collection of folktales. The beautiful world of Russian folklore is introduced to English-speaker's viewers in this piece of literature. Through these stories, Ralston, an outstanding historian and linguist, brilliantly brings viewers into contact with the rich fabric of Russian culture. The work of literature includes an extensive selection of stories, from humorous adventures to moral fables, all rooted in Russian heritage. Ralston's love of Russian language and culture shines through in his translations, which capture the heart of these stories while remaining authentic. The work of literature serves as a portal into the core of Russia's storytelling tradition, emphasizing the country's distinct narrative style and ideals. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of "Russian Fairy Tales" is both modern and readable.

This compendium of Russian and Muscovite folk and fairy stories is authentic, vivid and complete with original notes and references appended by W. R. S. Ralston. Ralston collected and translated this collection of stories in a concerted attempt to introduce European and North American audiences to the myriad folk stories which had developed in Russia over many centuries. The tales found in this collection are imbued by vivid descriptions, fast moving and culturally rich narratives, and a keen sense of leaving readers with moral lessons. The book categorizes Russian folklore into six principle parts: We begin with myths and legends selected for their good introductory qualities and moral conclusions, as in The Bad Wife and The Three Kopecks. The second part of the book contains stories about manifestations of evil, such as the infamous Baba Yaga. The third contains tales concerning other manifest beings and entities, for instance Sozh, Dnieper and One-Eyed Likho. In the fourth part, we hear tales of magic, witchcraft and warlocks, such as The Headless Princess. The fifth part contains stories concerning ghosts and vampires, for example the Fox Physician and The Two Corpses. Last of all, Ralston narrates traditional legends of Russian folklore, with particular focus upon the saints of the Russian Orthodox church, and the various demons said to have appeared long ago. An accomplished researcher with a strong affinity for the Russian nation, Ralston was sure to select only the best quality Russian folk stories. This collection is unique for maintaining a sound balance the popularly known with obscure yet high quality examples. Whether you are already an expert in Eastern folklore, or desire a superb introduction to the Russian folk stories, this book is sure to satisfy.

The principal source for Russian folk-tales is the great collection of Afanáśev, a coeval of Rybnikov, Kirěyevski, Sakharov, Bezsonov, and others who all from about 1850 to 1870 laboriously took down from the lips of the peasants of all parts of Russia what they could of the endless store of traditional song, ballad, and folk-tale. These great collectors were actuated only by the desire for accuracy; they appended laboriously erudite notes; but they were not literary men and did not sophisticate, or improve on their material. But, before venturing on a brief account of the tales, something must be premised as to the position occupied by folk-tales in the cultural development of a people. In Pagan times, there always existed a double religion, the ceremonial worship of the gods of nature and the tribal deities,—a realm of thought in which all current philosophy and idealism entered into a set form that symbolized the State,—and also local cults and superstitions, the adoration of the spirits of streams, wells, hills, etc. To all Aryan peoples, Nature has always been alive, but never universalized, or romanticized, as in modern days; wherever you were, the brook, the wind, the knoll, the stream were all inhabited by agencies, which could be propitiated, cajoled, threatened, but, under all conditions, were personal forces, who could not be disregarded. When Christianity transformed the face of the world, it necessarily left much below the surface unaffected. The great national divinities were proscribed and submerged; some of their features reappearing in the legendary feats of the saints. The local cults continued, with this difference, that they were now condemned by the Church and became clandestine magic; or else they were adopted by the Church, and the rites and sanctuaries transferred. The memory of them subsisted; the fear of these local gods degenerated into superstition; the magic of the folk-tales becomes half-fantastic, half-conventional, belief in which is surreptitious, usual, and optional. At this stage of disorganization of local custom, folk-tales arise, and into them, transmitted as they are orally and under the ban of the Church, contaminations of all sorts creep, such as mistaken etymologies, faint memories of real history, reminiscences of lost folk-songs, Christian legend and morals, etc. The Russian people have handed down three categories of records. First of all, the Chronicles, which are very full, very accurate, and, within the limits of the temporary concepts of possibility and science, absolutely true. Secondly, the ballads or bylíny; epic songs in an ancient metre, narrating historical episodes as they occur; and also comprising a cycle of heroic romance, comparable with the chansons de geste of Charlemagne, the cycles of Finn and Cuchúlain of the Irish, and possibly with the little minor epics out of which it is supposed that some supreme Greek genius built up the artistic epics of the Iliad and the Odyssey. These bylíny may be ranked as fiction: i.e. as facts of real life (as then understood), applied to non-existent, unvouched, or legendary individuals. They are not bare records of fact, like the Chronicles; imagination enters into their scope; non-human, miraculous incidents are allowable; their content is not a matter for faith or factual record; they may be called historical fiction, which, broadly taken, corresponded to actual events, and typified the national strivings and ideals. The traditional ceremonial songs, magical incantations and popular melodies are of the same date and in the same style.