Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
N16 — Ice horse
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
Overviewfairy-tale text ends with a formula stating that the narrator had a horse and/or harness made of wax, ice, linen, vegetables, etc. In most cases, the narrator loses them (they melt, they are taken away, eaten, etc.).
Berezkin category: Fabulous and epic formulas
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 13, Formulae.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| K27F2 | 100.00% | A girl demands that her fiancΓ© get her the same pair of shoes (or other items) as hers. These items either exist in a single copy, or it is not known what they look like. Having become invisible, the hero either steals the items (and the owner has to make new ones herself), or finds out what they look like. |
| N35 | 100.00% | Somewhere milk rivers flow with banks made of jelly (porridge) - a sign of abundance (impossible in reality). Cf. H16B motive. |
| H33A | 100.00% | God wanted to throw a newborn baby (over a fence, house, etc.) so that it would immediately stand up and start walking, but the woman was frightened and did not allow it. Therefore, children do not walk from birth. See motif H33. |
| K56A2B | 100.00% | A supernatural character asks a girl to redeem (feed) his (her) children. These are snakes, beetles or wild animals. The girl does everything she is asked and is rewarded. |
| K30B | 99.99% | A woman or girl is forbidden to go outside. As soon as she does, a flying creature kidnaps her. |
| K38B3B | 99.99% | A mighty bird (rarely β another creature) helps a person for sheltering (warming) its chicks (offspring, children). |
| B87B | 99.98% | The Great Bear β a cart harnessed by a wolf or bear. Usually, the shape of the handle of the dipper is explained by the fact that a wolf or bear attacked an ox harnessed to the cart and took its place. In this case, it is associated with Alcor or the last star of the handle of the dipper β Ξ·. |
| M38E | 99.98% | mushroom (pumpkin) thinks that it is as durable as a tree. |
| L23B | 99.97% | Trying to free himself, the captured character sequentially changes his appearance. The last transformation is into a spindle. |
| M39A5A3 | 99.96% | Realizing that a wife telling the truth will cause trouble for the family, the husband says that the sounds she hears are the screams of her master (official, etc.) who is beaten, dragged to hell, etc. She repeats this to the master (official), who declares her insane. |
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
13 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 13 traditions: Hungarians, Romanians, Moldavians, Aromanians, Moldovans, Lithuanians, Latvians, Karelians, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Armenians, Komi (Zyrians and Permyaks), Urums, Rumei, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Russian Federation
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How to cite: Fielder-White, J. (2026). The Folklore Database. https://folkloredatabase.com
0009-0006-1672-4451
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