The Giants and the Herd-boy
Encyclopedia
The Giants and the Herd-boy is a Bukowniaer fairy tale
collected by Dr Heinrich von Wlislocki in Märchen Und Sagen Der Bukowinaer Und Siebenbûrger Armenier. Andrew Lang
included it in The Yellow Fairy Book.
tended sheep for a lord. One day, he found an injured giant
, who promised to reward him, if he bound up his foot. The herdboy did that, with his own shirt, and the giant took him to a giants' wedding, giving him a belt to make him invisible, and then underground, where he ate a good meal and stole a loaf of bread. The next day, he tried to tear off a piece of bread to eat, but he could not, until he finally bit it. It still did not break, but he found a gold piece dropped from his mouth. He used the gold to buy food.
The lord had a beautiful daughter who was always polite to the herdboy. He decided to give her a bag of gold on her birthday, using the belt to leave it secretly. It gave him so much pleasure that he did it for seven more nights. The eighth night, the girl and her parents watched for who did it, and the herdboy forgot his belt and so was caught. The lord sent him from his service. The herdboy spent his gold on fine clothing and a coach with horses, and returned. They were astounded, and when they heard of his good fortune, agreed that he should marry their daughter.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
collected by Dr Heinrich von Wlislocki in Märchen Und Sagen Der Bukowinaer Und Siebenbûrger Armenier. Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang
Andrew Lang was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him.- Biography :Lang was born in Selkirk...
included it in The Yellow Fairy Book.
Synopsis
An orphanOrphan
An orphan is a child permanently bereaved of or abandoned by his or her parents. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents is called an orphan...
tended sheep for a lord. One day, he found an injured giant
Giant (mythology)
The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
, who promised to reward him, if he bound up his foot. The herdboy did that, with his own shirt, and the giant took him to a giants' wedding, giving him a belt to make him invisible, and then underground, where he ate a good meal and stole a loaf of bread. The next day, he tried to tear off a piece of bread to eat, but he could not, until he finally bit it. It still did not break, but he found a gold piece dropped from his mouth. He used the gold to buy food.
The lord had a beautiful daughter who was always polite to the herdboy. He decided to give her a bag of gold on her birthday, using the belt to leave it secretly. It gave him so much pleasure that he did it for seven more nights. The eighth night, the girl and her parents watched for who did it, and the herdboy forgot his belt and so was caught. The lord sent him from his service. The herdboy spent his gold on fine clothing and a coach with horses, and returned. They were astounded, and when they heard of his good fortune, agreed that he should marry their daughter.