37 stories

Folk tales from around the world

Russian, Norwegian, Chinese, Arabian, Indian and more

Start with Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Surprise me

Thirty-seven folk tales here come from Greece, Norway, Russia, Japan, China, Germany, England and the Arabic tradition of One Thousand and One Nights. Most read aloud in four to ten minutes.

Every culture has its bedtime stories, and they rhyme with each other in surprising ways: a Cinderella in China, a clever tailor in Norway, a bird with nine heads. This collection is the library's world tour.

Where to start with folk tales from around the world

12 of 37 to start with. The full list follows.

7 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The Tortoise and the Hare

In a lush valley, the speedy Hare challenges the steady Tortoise to a race. Hare's confidence soars, while Tortoise…

8 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The Lion and the Mouse

A timid mouse and a mighty lion cross paths in the jungle. When the powerful king of the jungle finds himself in a…

10 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The Elves and the Shoemaker

A kind shoemaker and his wife struggle to make ends meet in their quaint village shop. One morning, they discover their…

13 min Ages 4–8 · Classic Tales Little Red Riding Hood

Little Red Riding Hood sets off through the enchanting forest to deliver a basket of goodies to her sick grandmother…

4 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The Crow and the Pitcher

A thirsty crow searches for water on a scorching day. He finds a pitcher, but the water is too low to reach. With a…

4 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The Grasshopper and the Ants

Grasshopper loves summer fun, singing and dancing, while the busy ants gather food for colder days. When the rain and…

4 min Ages 3–7 · Classic Tales The North Wind and the Sun

The boastful North Wind challenges the gentle Sun to see who is more powerful. They agree to a contest: make a…

6 min Ages 6–10 · Magic Pandora’s Box

Pandora, the first woman, receives a mysterious box from Zeus. Despite warnings, her endless curiosity leads her to…

6 min Ages 4–8 · Classic Tales The Ant and the Grasshopper

Meet Grasshopper, who loves to sing and dance, and Ant, who works hard storing food. As autumn turns to winter…

6 min Ages 5–8 · Classic Tales The Ass and the Lapdog

The strong Ass feels jealous of the small Lapdog's affection from the farmer. When the farmer faces a tough decision…

6 min Ages 4–8 · Classic Tales The Boy Who Cried Wolf

A mischievous boy guarding his flock enjoys tricking villagers with false cries of "Wolf!". They rush to help, only to…

6 min Ages 3–7 · Nursery Rhymes The Enormous Turnip

A kind old man and his wife dream of growing an enormous turnip. When a magic seed sprouts a vegetable bigger than they…

Which traditions these tales actually come from

This collection is not a tour of every storytelling culture, and it would be dishonest to present it as one. It is what the site holds, and it leans heavily on Europe and on Aesop. Here is the real spread.

Aesop, and the Greek myths

Roughly half of the thirty-seven are Aesop retellings: The Lion and the Mouse at seven minutes, The Crow and the Pitcher at four, The North Wind and the Sun at four, and the rest. They are short, they are blunt, and they all end with a point. Two Greek myths sit alongside them: Pandora’s Box and The Golden Touch of King Midas, both six to eight minutes for ages 6–10.

Northern and Slavic tales

Four Norwegian tales give the collection its longest and strangest stories: East of the Sun and West of the Moon at eleven minutes, The Master Maid at nine, The Lad Who Went to the North Wind at ten, and The Three Billy Goats Gruff at nine. From Russia comes The Enormous Turnip, seven minutes and perfect for a three-year-old, and from the wider Slavic tradition The Baba Yaga, ten minutes for ages 5–8.

East Asia, Arabia and Germany

Princess Hase, a Story of Old Japan is seven gentle minutes, and Princess Kwan-Yin retells a Chinese legend in seven. Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves comes from One Thousand and One Nights in five minutes. The German end includes The Pied Piper of Hamelin at five minutes and four Brothers Grimm retellings.

Reading a story from somewhere your child has never been

Let it be strange

The temptation is to explain the country first. Do not. Read the story, let it be strange, and answer the questions it raises afterwards, because a child who asks where Japan is after Princess Hase will remember the answer better than one who was told before page one.

One sentence of context

What does help is saying the name of the tradition in one short sentence as you open: this one is from Norway, this one is thousands of years old and comes from Greece. Our guide to folk tales around the world has the background if a question catches you out, and Aesop and his fables covers the half of this collection that comes from one source.

The same story, told twice

Folk tales travel, and this collection shows how. The Hare and the Tortoise and The Tortoise and the Hare are two versions of one fable, six and seven minutes, and reading both back to back is the quickest way to show a child that a story is not a fixed object. The same goes for The City Mouse and the Country Mouse and The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, and for the two Pied Piper tellings, the straight one and The Pied Piper… and BUTTERFLIES.

Ask which one your child preferred and why. It is the best comprehension question there is, and it does not sound like a test. For more of the same animals, Aesop’s fables holds the shortest stories on the site and mice stories the smallest heroes.

Traditions represented in this collection
Tradition	Roughly	Try first	Minutes
Aesop's fables	About half	The Lion and the Mouse	7
Norwegian	Four tales	The Three Billy Goats Gruff	9
Greek myth	Two tales	Pandora’s Box	6
German	Six tales	The Pied Piper of Hamelin	5
Japanese and Chinese	Two tales	Princess Hase, a Story of Old Japan	7
Arabic	One tale	Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves	5

Every story in folk tales from around the world, A to Z

Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves19 min · Ages 6–10
East of the Sun and West of the Moon11 min · Ages 5–12
Little Red Riding Hood13 min · Ages 4–8
Pandora’s Box6 min · Ages 6–10
Princess Hase, a Story of Old Japan8 min · Ages 4–8
Princess Kwan-Yin10 min · Ages 6–10
The Ant and the Grasshopper6 min · Ages 4–8
The Ass and the Lapdog6 min · Ages 5–8
The Baba Yaga9 min · Ages 5–8
The Boy Who Cried Wolf6 min · Ages 4–8
The Bundle of Sticks7 min · Ages 3–7
The City Mouse and the Country Mouse8 min · Ages 3–7
The Crow and the Pitcher4 min · Ages 3–7
The Elves and the Shoemaker10 min · Ages 3–7
The Enormous Turnip6 min · Ages 3–7
The Fisherman and His Wife9 min · Ages 6–10
The Fox and the Grapes6 min · Ages 4–8
The Fox and the Stork7 min · Ages 3–7
The Golden Touch of King Midas9 min · Ages 6–10
The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs6 min · Ages 3–7
The Grasshopper and the Ants4 min · Ages 3–7
The Hare and the Tortoise6 min · Ages 3–7
The Lad Who Went to the North Wind10 min · Ages 6–10
The Lion and the Mouse8 min · Ages 3–7
The Man and the Wooden God6 min · Ages 6–10
The Master Maid9 min · Ages 4–8
The North Wind and the Sun4 min · Ages 3–7
The Ox and the Frog6 min · Ages 3–7
The Pied Piper of Hamelin17 min · Ages 6–10
The Pied Piper… and BUTTERFLIES!10 min · Ages 5–8
The Three Billy Goats Gruff7 min · Ages 3–7
The Tortoise and the Ducks6 min · Ages 3–7
The Tortoise and the Hare7 min · Ages 3–7
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse8 min · Ages 4–8
The Two Pots6 min · Ages 5–8
The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids8 min · Ages 5–8
Why the Sea is Salt6 min · Ages 4–8

Collections that share these stories

Ranked by how many stories they have in common with this one.

Animal stories 26 shared Adventure stories 18 shared Stories about big feelings 15 shared Forest and woodland stories 4 shared Gentle sleepy stories 3 shared Fairy stories 3 shared Kings and queens 2 shared Fox stories 2 shared

Questions about folk tales from around the world

Which countries are represented in this collection?

Greece, Norway, Russia and the wider Slavic world, Japan, China, Germany, England and the Arabic tradition of One Thousand and One Nights.

How many folk tales are in this collection?

Thirty-seven, most of them four to ten minutes read aloud. About half are retellings of Aesop's fables.

Which folk tale is best for a three-year-old?

The Enormous Turnip, a seven-minute Russian tale with a repeating line that a small child can join in with.

Why are there two versions of the same story?

Folk tales exist in many tellings. Reading The Hare and the Tortoise next to The Tortoise and the Hare shows a child that stories change as they travel.