Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
M106F — Guest from the Other World, ATU 1540.
Source data for narratives and traditions is drawn from Berezkin’s Analytical Catalogue. If you use this data, please acknowledge and link to it: Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of motif
OverviewA stranger tells a woman that he has come from the other world. The woman gives him money and belongings with a request to pass them on to her deceased son, husband, etc. Usually, the woman's (new) husband (or son), upon learning of the deception, rides after him, and as a result, the deceiver steals his horse.
Berezkin category: Adventures: Tricks and episodes
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 11, Tricks and competitions won thanks to deception, absurd and obscene behavior.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| J32F | 99.92% | While standing guard, the hero discovers who is stealing fruit (usually apples) from the garden. |
| K80B | 99.91% | The mother or stepmother kills the boy (rarely a girl) and usually feeds her husband, i.e. the child's father, his flesh. The boy is reborn, usually (at first) in the form of a bird that tells the story of what happened. Cf. motif K80A. Traditions in which the boy is killed by his own mother are highlighted in bold. |
| K120 | 99.85% | The girl's father (rarely: stepfather) intends to marry her (since she is the only one who meets the requirements for a bride). Usually, the girl manages to avoid the marriage. |
| M191A | 99.81% | Mice decide to hang a bell around a cat's neck or tail so that they will know when it is approaching. Usually, none of the mice are able to do this. |
| M163 | 99.76% | A man arrives in a country where there are many mice (rats, snakes) but no cats. He sells a cat there and receives a reward. |
| M90A5 | 99.75% | The story mentions the golden fruits (rarely leaves) of a tree, usually golden apples. |
| L114B | 99.75% | After receiving the task or on his own initiative, the trickster enters the character's house (usually that of the cannibal) several times, each time taking one of his belongings or one of his family members. |
| M136B | 99.74% | A man cuts the branch he is sitting on and similar variants (cuts the rope he climbed up on; climbs onto a dry branch that breaks; climbs onto a tree that has been cut down in order to fell it). |
| K67C | 99.72% | The character agrees that under certain conditions another person may tear the skin from his back or cause him some other bodily harm. |
| M138 | 99.72% | At first, everyone was given 20 or 30 years. For animals, this is a long time, but for humans, it is short. Humans received part of the lifespan of animals. |
See the 100 most similar distributions →
Map of motif dispersal
DistributionDrag the map to pan, use the scroll wheel to zoom — choose a texture or projection below
Traditions
82 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 82 traditions: Yemen, Arabs of Levant (Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan); Bedouins of Sinai, Kabylia and other Berber of Northern and Central Algeria: Beni Snous, Beni Menacer (incl Zuav), Shaui, etc.), Amhara; Zay, Harari; Silte, Gogot, Swahili, Midjikenda (incl Giryama), Nyika, Duruma; Ngindo, Kiluguru and other Islamic groups of the Eastern Coast of Africa, Kannada, Lingayat, Halakki, Tamil, Muthuvan, Marvar, Tamils, Hindi-speaking peoples and casts (incl. Teli, Parahiya; incl. Chhattisgarhi) of Northern and West-Central India, Sinhalese; Vedda, Ireland, England, British, Bretons, Spain, Spaniards, Portuguese, Portugal, Basques, Catalan, Maltese, Sardinia, Corsica, Sardinians, Corsicans, France, Dutch, Flemish, Germans: North (Low- and Central German dialects): Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg, Pommern, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony, incl East Frisia and Oldenburg), Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Thüringen, Saxony-Anhalt, Sachsen, Brandenburg, Rügen, Poles, Czech, Czechs, Slovakians, Slovaks, Hungarians, Greeks (modern), Balkarians, Bulgarians, Balkarians, Macedonians, Balkarians, Croatians, Croats; Italians of Dalmatia (if the motif is absent among other Italians), Slovenians, Slovenes, Romanians, Moldavians, Aromanians, Moldovans, Lithuanians, Latvians, Livonians, Estonians, Finns, Karelians, Vepsians, Western Sami, Eastern Sami (including Skolts), Norwegians, Swedes, Danes, Danish, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Persians, Abaza (Abazins), Cherkassians, Adyghe, Kabardin, Ingush, Dargin (Dargwa), incl. Müregin, Khürkilin, Kubachi, Avar, Andi, Akhvakh, Tats, Georgians, Armenians, Crimean Tatars, Karaims, Gagauz, Anatolia Turks, Azeris (Azerbaijanis), Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars, Bashkirs, Mari (Cheremis), Mordvins, Chuvash, Komi (Zyrians and Permyaks), Nivkh, Lkungen (Straits; including Samish, Songish, Sooke, Lummi), Klallam, Arabs (literary tradition; incl. One Thousand and One Nights), Wallons, Picardie, Icelanders, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Early Russian written sources, Italians: Central (Toscana, Umbria, Marche, Lazio), Bhutan, Frisians, Bosnians, Morocco, Berbers of Algeria, Tunisia, Iraq, Bahrain, Yemen, Russian Federation
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