The Mythology and Folklore Database
K33B - Friends abandon a beautiful woman.




85 Myths, Legends and Folktales
80 Unique Narratives for Motif K33B
29 Cultures & Traditions where K33B is told
141 Mythemes Indexed
29 Sub-Motifs of Motif K33B


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 Motif Summary  -   Motifs with Simlar Dispersals  -    Map of Myth Distribution   -   List of Traditions  -   Myths



Source Data from Berezkin's Analytics Catalogue, if using this data please acknowledge and link to it here:
Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.



Summary of Motif

A girl goes with her friends to the forest, to the river; everyone returns home, but she is forced to stay or return. She escapes from a dangerous creature, becomes the wife of a supernatural character, a leader, etc., or dies, but is avenged.

Berezkin category: Adventures: Acts of heroes

This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part group 10, Adventures


K33 has 29 other sub-motifs


K33.  When a malevolent woman pushes another woman into a body of water (a well), the latter drowns or loses her human form, but manages to return to the world of humans. Cf. motif k32m
K33a.  Young siblings (most often a brother and sister) leave home. One of them (rarely: several brothers) accidentally breaks a taboo and is transformed into an animal (usually a hoofed animal) or (rarely) a bird; later, the spell is usually broken.
K33a1.  A woman is thrown into a well (pond, pit, etc.) or becomes a water bird. In the water, she gives birth to a child (twins, triplets) or is thrown into the water with her baby. She is rescued along with her children.
K33a1a.  A woman thrown into the water finds herself in the belly of a fish (whale), but is then rescued.
K33a2.  A brother takes his sister to her fiancé. She cannot hear her brother's words, and the witch distorts them (as if the brother is telling his sister to throw herself into the water, to blind her, etc.). Having got rid of the heroine, the witch replaces her with her own daughter.
K33a3.  A woman, turned into a turtle because of her rival's intrigues, tries to establish contact with her children or husband.
K33a4.  A woman, transformed into a medium-sized forest animal (lynx, wolf, vixen) by the machinations of a rival, tries to establish contact with her children or husband.
K33a5.  A woman who has been turned into a duck (goose) by her rival's scheming tries to establish contact with her children or husband.
K33a6.  A kid (lamb, gazelle, etc.) runs up to a pond into which its owner has pushed it and says that knives are being sharpened and water is being boiled to slaughter and cook it.
K33a7.  After the death of a woman, her daughter or son advises her father to marry a neighbour, teacher, etc., who usually persuades the teenager to give such advice. After marrying the widower, the new wife begins to tyrannise her stepdaughter or stepson.
K33a8.  A woman transformed into a dove by the machinations of a rival tries to establish contact with her children or husband.
K33b.  A girl goes with her friends to the forest, to the river; everyone returns home, but she is forced to stay or return. She escapes from a dangerous creature, becomes the wife of a supernatural character, a leader, etc., or dies, but is avenged.
K33c.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside a fruit or (rarely) a flower, stem, leaf, or egg.
K33c1.  A character thrown into the water is transformed into a flower (usually a lotus).
k33c2.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside a pomegranate.
k33c3.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside an orange or other citrus fruit.
k33c4.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside a pumpkin, eggplant or cucumber.
k33c5.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside an egg.
k33c6.  A young man receives several fruits (eggs, reeds). When he opens the first one, the girl who comes out of it disappears, either because the necessary provisions (usually drinking water) have not been prepared for her, or because the fruit has been cut incorrectly. Only the one who comes out of the last fruit (egg, reed) remains. Cf. motif k33c7.
k33c7.  A young man obtains a fruit from which a girl emerges (rarely: two girls from two fruits, both remain with the young man). There is no episode of the loss of the girls who were in the other fruits. Cf. motif k33c6.
k33c8.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside a nut (walnut or hazelnut, but not coconut).
k33c9.  A young man obtains a girl who is inside an apple.
K33d.  A man discovers that a beautiful girl is hiding under the guise of an ugly hag or under the skin of an animal.
K33d1.  The young man does not know that a beautiful girl is hiding inside the object brought to his house.
K33e.  Newborn children disappear (die) one after another, but are returned to their wife or husband grown up and in good health.
K33f.  Sources of at least two valuable liquid edible products (honey, oil, etc.) are available or imagined. Cf. motif N34.
k33f1.  A person promises to create a source from which a valuable product (most often oil) flows and honestly fulfils their promise (rarely: promises to distribute a large amount of such a product).
K33g.  The person who eats the fruit (leaf, etc.) grows horns (long nose, etc.) or turns into an animal, while the other fruit (leaf, etc.) returns to its normal appearance.
K33h.  A person finds a magical object that grants any wish. This object is stolen. It is returned by animals (which the hero had previously saved).
K33h1.  The hero's wife (mother, servant) is unaware of the magical properties of an object kept in the house and exchanges it for something more attractive, but in reality incomparable in value.

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Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns

MotifSimilarityMotif Summary
F70D99.55%A girl pretends to be a man or a eunuch, or a girl hides a disability, or a man pretends to be a girl. Someone reveals a secret. At the last moment, the hero or heroine magically gets rid of the disability (acquires male or female nature), the informer is disgraced (executed).
M29X99.42%As a result of its stupidity or antisocial behavior, the hyena dies or suffers damage. See the motives in square brackets.
M118B99.34%Climbing inside the animal, the character obtains food there without harming the animal.
L106A99.27%The antagonist makes formally justified but essentially unfair demands on the hero. The hero either fulfils them or is punished by the antagonist. Then the antagonist takes an object or animal belonging to the hero, but cannot return it and is punished equally or more severely.
M56D99.21%The character promises to fill the vessel with small flying living creatures. He bets with them that they will not be able to fill the vessel. Creatures climb inside, the character closes the lid. Cf. K60B motif.
M11999.13%A character repeatedly shows another person the same object or creature; the other person believes that there are as many objects or creatures as the character has shown them. Usually, the character takes care of the other person's young, eats them or they die due to his negligence, or he is hired as a shepherd and eats the other person's livestock. When checked, he shows the parent (the owner of the herd) the same un-eaten young (or the same sheep), and the parent believes that all the young (animals) are safe. In ATU, this is plot 37, but two other plots are included as variants, and the sources are indicated for all three collectively.
M10599.02%The character hides his mother (wife, mother-in-law), but tells another that he has killed or sold her, or demonstratively leads her away to be sold, but lets her escape. See motif M104.
M17298.88%To show that a strong character is his slave, a riding animal, the weak one adjusts so that the strong one takes him along. Those around them are convinced of the truthfulness of the weak one.
H36B98.82%The chameleon is to blame for the fact that man is mortal or that he must labour; he loses the trust placed in him by the deity. See motif H36.
B2G98.81%The chameleon walked on the ground when it had not yet hardened.

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Map of Motif Dispersal

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This motif has been recorded in 29 traditions: Yemen, Arabs of Sudan, Sudanese, Acoli (Acholi), Lur (Alur, Luri), Lango, Amhara; Zay, Harari; Silte, Gogot, Masai, Chagga (Jagga; incl Wasu), Pare, Digo, Kikuyu, Chuka, Embu, Emberre, Mwimbe, Safwa, Mkulwe, Ngonde, Kinga, Nyakusa, Nyamwanga, Ganda, (Ba)Nyoro, Nyankole, Masaba (Gisu), Luia (=Luyia, Haya, Luhya, Bantu Kawirondo; incl. Vugusu, Maragoli), Sakata, Congo (Koongo, Bacongo; incl Vili, Fioti, (Ma)Yombe, MuKunyi), Ndombo, Luango (Loango), Zombo (Sambo), Laadi (Laari), (Ba)Fioti, Woyo (Kiwoyo), Ronga, Boa, Komo, (Ba)Nyanga, Mbole, Mbundu (Umbundu, Kimbundu, Chimbundu, Ovimbundu), Kwanyama, Owambo (=Ambo), Zulu, Swazi, Yambasa, Banen (Tunen), Tiv, Bamum (Bamun), Mungaka (Mgaka, Bali), Beba, Anaguta, Bete (Mbete, Karang), Ekoi, Nyang, Vute (Wute), Jukun, Chamba, Bamileke, Kwotto, Kirri; Denya (Nyang), Cross-River: Efik, Ibibio, Anaang (Anang), Ikom, Abua, Hausa, Biu-Mandara: Margi, Kilba, Bura, Kera, Karekare (Kerri-Kerri), Bachama, Zulgo, Giziga, Hdi, Kapsiki, Mandara (incl Mukulehe, Matakam), Mofu (Mofu-Gudur), Somrai (Sibine, Shibha), Mandingo (Manden, incl San, Samo), Kagoro, Bambara (Bamana), Malinke, Kassonke, Diula, Songhai, Tuareg, Northern Gur (Oti-Volta): Mamprussi, Dagomba, Dagari (Dagara; incl Lodaga), Bassari, Mosi, Nankanse, Konkomba, Moba; Ditammari, Nyende, Bulsa (pl Builsa, Bulo), Bushmen (all groups), Sandawe, Tamil, Muthuvan, Marvar, Tamils, Chuvash, Senufo, Congo


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