Myths and Sagas - our-comenius.net

Myths and Sagas
from Europe

European Myths, Sagas and Legends
In the framework of the
Comenius– Project
2004­2007
Different Patrimony – Always European
of the
European Union
1

We are very thankful to the financial support by
which made the printing of this booklet possible
2

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Education and knowledge in all their different forms were in all times
supposition of prosperity, contentment and social appreciation.
In a Europe, growing together more and more, education and knowledge
are already now factors for location – and their importance is growing.
Education will become European, too. PISA­Study, Bologna­Process and a
– in some parts already realised and growing – European employment market show this.
Learning in a very early age more about different languages, other cultures and the people of
other countries can – and has to – help our children to qualify for the European employment
market. Like in other sectors, we see here our strength, chances and future. For this reason,
the European Union supports for decades the exchange of education on all levels. With the
projects COMENIUS for schools, ERASMUS for universities, GRUNDTVIG in education of
adults and some other projects, the European Union supports the development of a Europe of
knowledge, of a lifelong learning, by approving foreign languages, supporting mobility and
intensification of collaboration on European level, getting easier access to information and
the use of modern technologies in education.
3

Like in most of the remarkable programmes of the European Union, engaged people are
important, who realize the chances of a European exchange and engage in it.
This book of stories and sagas, which presents the most famous and popular stories from nine
European countries, is the excellent product of such an engagement. The “Hauptschule
Holderhecke” is successful for many years in their efforts, to give their students an
impression of Europe.
I thank all people involved for their engagement and their work for the European idea. I wish
all of you – the “Hauptschule Berghreinfeld” and their European partners – for the future a
lot of energy, power and success for this and all the following projects.
Dr. Anja Weisgerber
Member of European Parliament
(Original text in German Language )
4

Das “Sokrates­Programm” der Europäischen Kommission
SOKRATES ist das Aktionsprogramm der Europäischen Union zur Förderung der
transnationalen Zusammenarbeit im Bildungsbereich mit einem Gesamtvolumen von 1,85 Mrd.
Euro bis zum Ende des Jahres 2006. Die zweite Phase des Programms wurde am 24. Januar
2000 in einem gemeinsamen Beschluss des Europäischen Parlaments und des Rates in Kraft
gesetzt.
SOKRATES richtet sich an alle Einrichtungen im Bereich des Bildungswesens von der
Vorschule bis zur Erwachsenenbildung. Neben den ­ seit dem 1. Mai 2004 ­ 25 EU­Staaten
beteiligen sich an dem Programm auch die drei EWR­Staaten Island, Liechtenstein und
Norwegen sowie Bulgarien, Rumänien und die Türkei.
SOKRATES für den Schulbereich gliedert sich in die Unterprogramme COMENIUS, LINGUA,
ARION und besteht aus folgenden Einzelaktionen:
COMENIUS 1: Schulpartnerschaften (Das vorliegende Projekt ist Teil dieses
Programmes)
COMENIUS 2: Aus­ und Fortbildung des Schulpersonals
COMENIUS 3: Netzwerke
LINGUA 1: Förderung des Fremdsprachenerwerbs
LINGUA 2: Entwicklung von Hilfsmitteln und Materialien für den
Fremdsprachenunterricht
ARION: Studienbesuche für bildungspolitische Entscheidungsträger
Weitere Informationen auf der Website:
www.kmk.org/pad/sokrates2/index.htm
5

Im Rahmen des
„Comenius“ – Programmes
der Europäischen Union beteiligt sich die
als koordinierende Schule
im Schuljahr 2004 / 2005
an einer Schulpartnerschaft mit Schulen aus
Finnland ­ Frankreich (Martinique) – Griechenland ­ Italien (Sizilien)–
Lettland ­ Norwegen – Polen ­ Portugal
Thema des Projektes:
Verschiedene Kulturen – Gemeinsames Europa
Es handelt sich um das erste von drei Projektjahren.
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Der Austausch von Informationen und der persönliche Kontakt sollen dabei helfen,
Verständnis für den Lebensstil und die Lebensumstände in den Partnerländern zu fördern und
Vorurteile abzubauen.
Die Verständigung ist nur durch die
Anwendung der englischen Sprache
und durch die
Nutzung neuer Kommunikationstechniken
wie Internet und Email möglich.
Im Zentrum dieses Projektjahres stand zunächst der Austausch von Informationen über die
Schulen, Schüler, Städte, Regionen und Länder und organisatorische Fragen wie Entwicklung
eines gemeinsamen Logos. Im zweiten Halbjahr präsentierte jedes Land eine typische Sage
oder Legende sowohl in der eigenen Sprache als auch in englischer Sprache und illustrierte
sie mit Zeichnungen von Schülern.
Weitere Informationen auf der Website unseres Projektes:
www.our­comenius.net
7

Prologue of the book
his brief anthology of myths and sagas is the result of the cooperation between
teachers and pupils, from nine European countries: Finland, France (Martinique), Germany,
Greece, Italy (Sicily), Latvia, Norway, Poland and Portugal, within the framework of a three
year Comenius school project, action 1. It signals the end of the first year’s work; it is one of
the “products” of our versatile partnership.
We quote myths and sagas taken from the rich mythology of each country, from the
exotic Martinique to the birthplace of the European civilization, Greece. But, first of all, we
would like to clarify the slight differences between these two terms: myth and saga.
If myth is defined as a tale concerning gods, or as a secret tale, then it leaves out a
great part of mythology. Anthropologists claim that a myth can be defined as a tale having to
do with the prime principles, with events that took place in the distant past. The specific
character of a myth does not seem to be either in the structure or in the content of a tale,
but in the use or the purpose it serves:
“Myth is a traditional tale with a secondary, fractional reference to something of
collective significance”.
A myth is an attempt to express in words a complex reality in words and to communicate.
Human problems and social rules are expressed in myths. The historic dimension of a myth is
its ability to express events in words and at different historic moments, it can be reexpressed
in a different version.
The European Fairy Tale and the Greek myth alike form a synthesis which is artistically
complete although the patterns of the inner content may vary. The patterns may vary
according to the kind of culture, and new elements are added as civilization evolves.
At the beginning, the word saga used to mean the noise of voices, discussions and
later on, something that concerned everyone, something that was habitually talked
about. The newest sense of this word is related to the narration about a saint’s, a martyr’s or
a hero’s biography, frequently deformed by the popular imagination. Because of its character,
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describing amazing or exceptional events, the saga­under this meaning­particularly
flourished during the medieval ages.
Over the years, it was mingled with other forms of realistic or fictional narrations of
events, which involved persons, places or historical eras. In this broader sense, the saga is
distinct from the historical narration, in which reality can be changed, but not completely
deformed. It can also be distinguished from the fairy tale, which is the narration of unreal
events that happened in non­existent places by imaginary persons. Moreover, a saga can be
dissociated from the myth, which is a short narration about events that have to do with
animals or non living things, which are invented to give a moral command or even a wise,
practical piece of advice. Sagas are to be found in every country, in any epoch. Speaking of
various events and persons, sagas are eventually spread in various places and countries, and
are sometimes incorporated in different cultures, being understandably adapted to events
and persons of those places. This fact explains the maintenance and the spread of so many
sagas beyond chronological or geographical borders.
In this long journey through myths and sagas which constitute an inseparable part of
our cultural patrimony, we wanted to highlight a couple of aspects which seem to have kept
our peoples in contact through ages, since according to Sigmund Freud,
“Myths contain the logic of subconscious; they are the dreams of primitive
humans”
In a violent and impersonal society, deprived of ideals, sensibility, understanding or
solidarity, such European projects can facilitate our aim as educators to try and “build
bridges” among the youth of our countries. By working together with our pupils, banishing and
denouncing every idea of racism, spiritual slavery or fanaticism, we believe that our pupils
should develop a free personality of such qualities as sound judgment, optimism, tolerance
and love for creation. We, as European teachers, consider our duty and responsibility to
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convey to the young people the vision for a truly United Europe without inequality,
injustice and discriminations.
The selection of myths – sagas, the translation in English and their illustration is made by the pupils of the nine schools, under
the guidance of our teachers’ team.
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“Different Patrimony – Always European”
Participating countries
Country School Address
Finland Lauritsalan Koulu
France ­ Martinique
Germany
Greece
Italy
Latvia
LP R. NERIS Cite
Scolaire
Hauptschule
“Holderhecke”
Gymnasium of
Kyparissia
Istituto comprensivo
Pitagora
Rujiena Secondary
school
Norway Stord Ungdomsskule
Poland Gimnazjum nr 22
Portugal
Escola Secundária de
Valongo
11
Hallituskatu 22
53300 Lappeenranta
97290 Marin (Martinique)
Kreuzstraße 59
97440 Bergrheinfeld
Christianoupoleos 57
24500 Kyparassia
Via Fratelli Cervi
95045 Misterbianco
Catania
30, Rigas street, Rujiena,
LV4240 Valmieras raj.
Vikahaugen 20
5411 Stord
ul­Hetmanska 8
40­560 Katowice
Rua Visconde Oliveira do
Paço –
4440 Valongo
Teachers of the
school team
Tea Hall Marjaana
Kati Korhonen
Jaakko Kosonen(Dir.)
Max Steph
Maguy Placide
Bernd Goebel
Ewald Oeftring
Ursula Beckert
Cathrine Pritsa
Vicky Xasterou
Papanikolaou
Sotirios(Dir.)
Sebastiana Caruso
Buzzanca Maria Antonia
Anna Maria Mariani
Antonio Pappalardo(Dir.)
Maruta Berga
Edite Skujina
Anne Marit Steingildra
Mona Bore
Are Søyland
Bjarte Bongom
John Karsten(Dir.)
Ewelina Brzezinska
Joanna Kasperska
Olga Fatek­Zdebel
Marek Zdebel (Dir.)
Isabel Castro

INDEX
1. “Annukka Saarenneito” Finland 19 ­ 25
2. “Cétoute” Martinique (France) 27 ­ 35
3. “Siegfried and Kriemhild” Germany 37 ­ 45
4. “The abduction of Europe” Greece 47 ­ 55
5. “The origin of the volcano of Etna”
“The story of Aci and Galatea”
6. “How the Birds and Animals dug the Bed
for the Daugava”
12
Italy 55 ­ 63
Latvia 65 ­ 73
7. “The Ash­lad who ate a match with the troll” Norway 75 ­ 79
8. “The legend of Bazyliszek” Poland 81 ­87
9. “The secret of Moirama”
“Saga of the of the great rock”
Portugal 89 ­ 97

Finland
Annukka Saarenneito
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Finland
Prologue of the saga
The origins of Finnish written language are in the 16 th century. However, the tradition of
telling stories is ancient.
When the story is in the form of a song and it has a lot of repetition it is easier to
remember. That way it stays alive from generation to generation.
The singing tradition has been very strong especially in Carelia (Eastern part of Finland).
Most probably the culture in Baltic area has influenced the culture in Eastern Finland.
Elias Lönnrot collected the Finnish national epic “Kalevala” from the story tellers in Eastern
Finland in 1830s. That was the first time when the stories got their written form.
Taustatietoa tarinallemme
Suomen kirjakieli on nuori. Sen juuret ovat 1500­luvulla. Tarinoiden kertomisen perinne on
kuitenkin ikivanha.
Kun tarina on laulun muodossa ja siinä on paljon toistoa, se on helpompi muistaa. Tämä on ollut
ainoa keino säilyttää vanhoja tarinoita sukupolvelta toiselle.
Lauluperinne on ollut erityisen vahva Karjalan alueella, mutta myös muualla Itä­Suomessa.
Baltian alueen kulttuurilla on ollut merkittävä vaikutus itäisen Suomen kulttuuriin.
Elias Lönnrot kokosi Suomen kansalliseepoksen ”Kalevalan” itäsuomalaisilta tarinankertojilta
1830­luvulla. Tämä oli ensimmäinen kerta kun tarinat saivat kirjallisen muotonsa.
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Finland
ANNUKKA SUARENNEIDO
libo Annukka suaren neido, olibo Annukka suaren neido. Istuibo suaren sillan piässä,
istuibo suaren sillan piässä. Vuoteli miestä mielehistä sulhazie sulosuida.
1. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis. Rauda suilla, rauda päillä,
rauda bosuilla, rauda päillä. Raudane hattu hardieloilla, raudabo kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka suaren neido. Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat? Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
En tule viel, engä lubua, en tule viel, engä lubua. Vuotan vain miestä mielehistä, sulhazie
sulosuida.
2. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, hobiesuilla, hobiepäillä,
hobiesuilla, hobiepäillä, hobieba hattu hardieloilla, hobiezet kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka, suaren neido, Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat? Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
En tule viel, engä lubua, en tule viel, engä lubua. Vuotan vain miestä mielehistä, sulhazie
sulosuida.
3. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, kuldasuilla, kuldapäillä,
kuldabosuilla, kuldapäillä, kuldabo hattu hardieloilla, kuldabo kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka, suaren neido, Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat, Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
En tule viel, engä lubua, en tule viel, engä lubua. Vuotan vain miestä mielehistä, sulhazie
sulosuida.
15

Finland
4. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, leibäsuilla, leibäpäillä,
leibäbosuilla, leibäpäillä, leibäne hattu hardieloilla, leibäbo kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka, suaren neido, Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat, Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
Jo tulen dai jo i lubuan, jo tulen dai jo i lubuan. Nyt on mies mielehine, sulhane on
sulosuine.
5. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, kuldasuilla, kuldapäillä,
kuldabosuilla, kuldapäillä, kuldabo hattu hardieloilla, kuldabo kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka, suaren neido, Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat, Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
En tule viel, engä lubua, en tule viel, engä lubua. Vuotan vain miestä mielehistä, sulhazie
sulosuida.
6. Nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, nouzibo mies merestä kaunis, leibäsuilla, leibäpäillä,
leibäbosuilla, leibäpäillä, leibäne hattu hardieloilla, leibäbo kihlat kindozissa.
Hoi Annukka, suaren neido, hoi Annukka, suaren neido, Jogo tulet, jogo lubuat, Jogo tulet,
jogo lubuat?
Jo tulen dai jo i lubuan, jo tulen dai jo i lubuan. Nyt on mies mielehine, sulhane on
sulosuine.
16

nnukka Saarenneito is a young girl.
Four men are trying to marry her.
The first man
brings iron,
the second man
brings silver,
Finland
Annukka Saarenneito
Finland
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the third man
brings gold
and the last man
brings dark bread.
Annukka chooses
the last man.
Finland
… And they live happily together for all their lives.
This saga is written in an old Carelian dialect. It is often sang and performed in Orthodox wedding.
The tune is familiar from Finnish national epic Kalevala.
18

France (Martinique)
CETOUTE
19

France
Prologue
“Poisson la lune” and the tropical whale, you glan glan, Thérébenthine, Cécenne and the
devilwoman: here are some of the marvellous characters (or malicious) who populate the
tales and legends of the islands of the Antilles. "Cétoute" is one of these stories of the
islands, this soft country without winter where the sea is phosphorescent and where fishes
fly.
Poisson la lune et la baleine tropicale, you glan glan, Thérébenthine, Cécenne et la diablesse :
voilà quelques­uns des personnages merveilleux (ou méchants) qui peuplent les contes et
légendes des Antilles. "Cétoute" est une de ces histoires des îles, ces doux pays sans hiver où
la mer est phosphorescente et où les poissons volent.
20

France
CETOUTE
Cétoute était le dernier­né d'une famille de 13enfants, ce qui lui valut son nom.
La maman était si pauvre qu'elle l'enveloppa dans des feuilles de balisiers, puis
lui accrocha au cou un talisman: "Epi sa, ou ké bat' Satan" dit­elle.
La marraine, une riche dame patronnesse demanda l'enfant. Elle avait beaucoup
de filleuls ­ par esprit de charité disait­elle ­ et ils vivaient tous sur une
habitation à 3 pitons et 2 savanes, à l'est de la mer. De temps en temps, elle
les quittait pour aller à " l'ilett" rendre visite à son mari. Et chaque fois, elle emmenait un
enfant, pour qu'il apprit à travailler. Cétoute n'en avait jamais vu aucun revenir.
La marraine avait soin qu'ils fussent toujours bien nourris et ils vivaient librement. Chaque
matin, ils passaient la rivière pour se rendre dans la savane et traire les vaches. Une heure
après, on leur servait du chocolat brûlant parfumé de cannelle. On tuait souvent le cabri, et
toujours le cochon à Noël. Les enfants partaient fouiller les choux caraïbes, les ignames et en
remplissaient de larges paniers. On faisait cuire tout cela et on le mangeait avec de la viande
salée ou de la morue. Ils partaient à la pêche, relevaient les nasses remplies de poissons, de
langoustes et d'oursins. C'est là que Cétoute fit la connaissance d'un bébé requin et ils
devinrent de grands amis: ils faisaient ensemble des parties de nage et le requin lui apprenait
les courants.
21

France
Mais malgré cette liberté, Cétoute n'était pas heureux: il n'aimait pas sa marraine. Elle lui
inspirait de la répulsion et il ne se sentait pas à l'aise lorsqu'elle partait loin. Il ne comprenait
pas.
Un jour qu'elle avait été à " l'ilett", elle lui apporta un de ces matétés crabes qui faisait les
délices de Cétoute. Ca sentait le piment et avait ce goût sucré­salé qui fait qu'on n'est jamais
rassasié. Cétoute suçait la pince lorsqu'il s'aperçut qu'elle était étrange. Il
regarda:.....Horreur! C'était un doigt! Soudain, il comprit: Marraine, c'était la diablesse et les
enfants qu'elle mène à l'îlet, elle les tue et elle les mange!
Maintenant, Cétoute avait son plan et en parla au requin: ils décidèrent d'aller à l'îlet. Un
matin, il se cacha près de l'anse aux palétuviers où sa marraine garait son canot. La marraine
arriva. Elle portait une grande robe blanche et sa tête était attachée d'un madras blanc, le
vrai costume de la diablesse. Quand elle se déchaussa, Cétoute vit qu'elle avait un pied de
bouc. Elle poussa le canot à la mer, sauta dedans, prit un fouet, et le fouetta en criant: "
Taiaut! Kigilié!" et le canot bondit sur les vagues. Cétoute plongea derrière, à cheval sur le
requin et la suivit jusqu'aux abords de l'îlet. Il la vit arriver à l'anse et jeter le fouet à un
dragon vert. Alors, accourut un géant noir, qui fumait une pipe. Au fond du canot était un sac
et dans ce sac, ligoté pour être mangé, un des filleuls de la marraine.
Lorsque la marraine revint, elle s'endormit d'un sommeil de plomb et Cétoute profita pour
réveiller ses petits camarades endormis: "Z'enfant! doubout! lévé!" Tous quittèrent la maison
et Cétoute les mena près du palétuvier où le requin les attendait...Cétoute embarqua ses
camarades, saisit le fouet et il cria "Taiaut! Kigilé!".
Le requin ouvrait la route et bientôt, ils aperçurent l'îlet avec ses falaises noires à pic, ses
rochers en forme de monstres et la plage bordée de cocotiers.
Sur l'îlet, se détachait une silhouette qui allait et venait, intriguée: c'était le mari de la
diablesse, le géant noir. Pour mieux voir, il grimpa sur la falaise. Son pied glissa, il s'écroula et
s'écrasa contre les rochers.
22

France
Pendant ce temps, la marraine se réveillait. Elle constata la disparition des enfants et courut
à la plage: son canot aussi avait disparu. Elle poussa un cri de rage, se précipita sur le canot
des enfants et mit les voiles. Elle était tellement en colère qu'elle ne pensa pas aux brisants
et, juste devant l'îlet, la barque se fendit en deux et la diablesse plongea. Depuis ce jour,
juste à cet endroit, un gouffre bouillonne et le géant, transformé en statue de pierre, est
condamné à l'entendre gémir éternellement.
Restait le dragon vert. A sa place était un beau jeune homme que la mort de la diablesse avait
délivré. Il accueillit les enfants et ceux­ci revinrent chercher leurs parents. Ils s'installèrent
dans l'île, y construisirent des cases, une église, une école, des rhumeries. On réserva pour le
requin nu bassin sur la côte. Il vient s'y reposer de ses longs voyages et rapporte des
nouvelles. Grâce à lui, on apprit qu'il y avait des malades abandonnés de tous parce qu'ils
étaient recouverts de plaies. Les habitants furent d'accord pour les soulager et leur
donnèrent un coin de l'île. Depuis, ils y vivent en paix au lieu­dit le "coin des lépreux".
Ce texte est tiré du livre « Contes et Légendes des Antilles » de Thérèse GEORGEL
23

France
CETOUTE
Cétoute* was the youngest child of a family of 13 children that’s why he was given
that name. His mom was so poor that she wrapped him in “balisiers”leaves then
hung round his neck a talisman. "With that on, you will defeat Satan" she said.
The godmother, a rich patroness asked for the child. She had many godchildren
– out of charity she would say ­ and they lived all on in a large house with 3 peaks
and 2 savannas in the east of the sea. From time to time she would leave them to go to "the
ilett" to pay a visit to her husband. And each time she would take a child along with her so
that he could learn how to work. Cétoute had never seen any of them come back. The
godmother made sure they were always well nourished and they lived freely. Every morning
they crossed the river to go the savannas and to milk the cows. One hour later, hot chocolate
with cinnamon flavour would be served to them.
At Christmas time they often killed a kid and would always killed a pig. The children would go
to dig up Caribbean cabbages, yams and filled large baskets with them. All that was cooked
and eaten with either salted meat or cod. They would go fishing, raise the bow nets filled
with fish, lobsters and sea urchins: That’s where Cétoute became acquainted with a baby
shark and they became good friends. They swam together and the shark taught him the
streams.
24

France
In spite of this freedom, Cétoute was not happy: He did not love his godmother. She
inspired to him repulsion and he did not feel at ease when she went far away. He did not
understand.
One day that she had been to "the ilett", she brought him one of these “matétés” crabs that
Cétoute was so fond of. It smelt pepper and had this sweeten­salted taste which makes that
one is never satisfied. Cétoute was sucking the grip when he realized that it was strangely
shaped. He looked at it: …how dreadful! It was a finger! Suddenly, he understood.
Godmother was the devil woman and the children she leads to the small island… ­ she kills
them and she eats them!
Now Cétoute had his plan and spoke about it with the shark. They decided to go to the small
island.
One morning he hid close to the mangrove cove where his godmother parked her boat. The
godmother arrived. She was wearing a large white dress and her head was wrapped up in
white Madras, the true costume of the she­devil. When she took her shoes off, Cétoute saw
that she had a goat’s foot. She pushed the boat into the sea, jumped inside, took a whip and
gave the boat a whipping while shouting: "Taiaut! Kigilié!" and the boat leapt on the waves.
Cétoute plunged behind sitting on the shark‘s back and followed her to the shore of the small
island. He saw her arriving at the cove and throwing the whip at a green dragon. Then a
black giant who was smoking a pipe rushed up.
At the bottom of the boat was a bag and in this bag, tied up to be eaten, one of the
godmother’s godchildren.
When the godmother returned, she fell asleep of a heavy sleep and Cétoute made the most
of it. He woke up his small comrades who were sleeping: "Z' child! Stand up! Get up!" They
all left the house and Cétoute led them to the mangrove where the shark was waiting for
them... Cétoute took on board his comrades, grabbed the whip and shouted "Taiaut! Kigilé!"
The shark opened the road and soon they could see the small island with its black cliffs, its
monsters­shaped rocks and its coconut­lined beach.
25

France
Against the small island a silhouette stood out, going to and fro intrigued: it was the husband
of the she­devil, the black giant. he climbed on the cliff in order to see better. His foot
slipped, he collapsed and was crushed against the rocks.
Meanwhile, the godmother awoke. She noted that the children were missing and ran to the
beach. Her boat was missing too. She shouted out of rage, rushed into the children’s boat
and set sail. She was so angry that she did not think of the reefs and, right in front of the
small island, the boat was split into two and the she­devil sank. Since that time, just at that
point, a pit has been bubbling and the giant, who’s been turned into a stone statue, is
condemned to hear it groaning eternally.
Remained the green dragon. Instead of him there was a beautiful young man who had been
delivered from the spell by the she­devil’s death. He accommodated the children and the
latter returned to seek their parents. They settled in the island,. They built their houses, a
church, a school and rum distilleries.
They reserved for the shark a basin on the coast. He comes there to rest after his long
trips and brings back news. Thanks to him they learnt that some sick people had been
abandoned by all because they were covered with wounds. The inhabitants agreed to relieve
them and gave them a part of the island. Since then, they‘ve been living there peacefully at
the place called "leprous corner".
* Cétoute means that‘s all in Creole.
This text is from the book "Tales and legends of the Antilles", Thérèse GEORGEL
26

Germany
Siegfried und Kriemhild
27

Germany
Prologue
Die Sage von „Siegfried und Kriemhild“ ist Bestandteil der
„Nibelungensage“, eine der berühmtesten und ältesten
deutschen Sagen, entstanden im 13. Jahrhundert. Diese Sage
und ihre Helden haben Ähnlichkeit mit nordischen Sagen aus
Island („Edda“) und Norwegen, in denen der Held „Sigurd“
ebenfalls den Drachen („Fafnir“) besiegt und Brunhilde erlöst
und in denen von Verrat und Rache am burgundischen
Königshof berichtet wird. Die Person des Siegfried ist
historisch nicht genau zu definieren, aber bereits Karl der
Große schätzte um das Jahr 800 diesen Sagenstoff. Das
Reich der Burgunder mit dem Zentrum Worms bestand
wirklich und ging um das Jahr 435 unter. Die Namen der
Könige Gunter, Giselher und Gernot sind belegt. Die
überlebenden Burgunder wurden durch den römischen
Heermeister Aetius südöstlich des Genfer Sees angesiedelt.
Von dort breiteten sie sich Richtung Lyon aus. Diese Gegend
in Frankreich heißt heute "Burgund" (Bourgogne). Etzel
(Attila) war Hunnenkönig seit 445. Er drang mit seinem Heer
im 5. Jahrhundert von Ungarn nach Westen vor. 451 erstürmten sie zunächst Metz, dann
verloren die Hunnen allerdings gegen den römischen Feldherrn Aetius auf den Katalaunischen
Feldern (heutige Champagne, bei Troyes). Attila starb 453 nach der Hochzeitsfeier mit der
Burgunderin Ildiko.
Die Geschichte der Nibelungen wurde oftmals verfilmt und ist das zentrale Motiv der vier im
„Ring des Nibelungen“ zusammengefassten Opern von Richard Wagner.
Folgende Schülern der HSH arbeiteten mit:
Zeichnungen: Karina Mecajewa M7, Daniela Wahler 9a, Lisa Pasler M10,
Deutscher Text: Simone Then M8
28

Germany
Siegfried und Kriemhild
iegfried, ein Held, der schon in vielen Kämpfen seine Tapferkeit bewiesen hatte, lebte zu
Xanten am Niederrhein. Durch das Bad im Blut eines getöteten Drachens wurde Siegfried bis
auf eine Stelle am Rücken, auf die ein Blatt gefallen war, unverwundbar. Eines Tages hörte er
von der schönen Kriemhild, welche mit ihren drei Brüdern Gunther, Gernot und Giselher in
Burgund, zu Worms am Rhein, lebte. Er beschloss dorthin zu reisen und Kriemhild zu heiraten.
Da seine Taten überall bekannt waren, wurde er herzlichst
empfangen. Einige Zeit später bedrohten die Könige von
Sachsen und Dänemark das Land der Burgunder. Um seine
Treue und Freundschaft zu beweisen, besiegte Siegfried
die Angreifer. Bei dem Fest, welches zum Sieg über die
beiden Könige veranstaltet wurde, begegnete er endlich
seiner angebeteten Kriemhild und war sofort von ihrer
Schönheit angetan. So versprach ihm Gunther, sie ihm zur
Frau zu geben, wenn Siegfried ihm helfe, Brunhild, die
stolze, schöne und sehr starke Königin Islands, die jeder
Bewerber in einem Wettkampf besiegen müsse, für sich zu
gewinnen. Beide machten sich auf den Weg zu ihr und
gleich bei ihrer Ankunft wurde alles zum Kampfe
vorbereitet. Mit der Hilfe Siegfrieds, der mit seiner
Tarnkappe unsichtbar war und für Gunther die schweren
Waffen führte, besiegten sie Brunhild und traten
zusammen mit ihr die Heimreise an. Dort heirateten die beiden Paare. Als Gunther seine
Gattin in der Hochzeitsnacht in den Arm nehmen wollte, fesselte diese ihn und hängte ihn an
einen Nagel an der Wand. Wieder löste Siegfried das Problem mit seiner Tarnkappe. Bald
darauf zogen Siegfried und Kriemhild nach Xanten.
29

Germany
Nach vielen Jahren lud Gunther auf Verlangen von Brunhild die beiden zu einem großen Fest
nach Worms ein. Als Kriemhild und Brunhild zusammensaßen, kam es zwischen ihnen zum
Streit, der damit endete, dass Kriemhild Brunhild aus Stolz, Leichtsinn und Angeberei die
Wahrheit über das Verhältnis von Siegfried und Gunther erzählte. Obwohl sich Siegfried bei
Brunhild und Gunther wegen des Verhaltens seiner Frau entschuldigte, meinte Hagen, ein
treuer Diener Gunthers, dieses Benehmen müsse gerächt werde und so schmiedete er einen
Mordplan.
Er gab vor, die Könige von Sachsen und Dänemark wollten
erneut Krieg und wieder bot Sigfrid seine Hilfe an. Aus
Angst, Siegfried könnte etwas zustoßen, vertraute Kriemhild
Hagen Siegfrieds verwundbare Stelle an und markierte diese
mit einem Kreuz auf seinem Gewand. Unter einem Vorwand
veranstaltete man eine Jagd, bei der Siegfried, während er
aus einer Quelle trank, von hinten von Hagen erstochen
wurde. Kriemhild fand ihren Mann am nächsten Morgen tot
vor ihrer Tür. Aus Angst, sie könne mit dem Verschenken des
Schatzes der Nibelungen, den Siegfried erworben hatte,
viele Sympathien gewinnen, stahl Hagen diesen und versenkte
ihn bei Nacht im Rhein.
Eines Tages hielt der mächtige Hunnenkönig Etzel um die
Hand Kriemhilds an. Nach einiger Bedenkzeit willigte die von
Rachegedanken besessene Kriemhild ein und zog zu ihrem neuen Gemahl nach Ungarn.
Viele Jahre später lud Kriemhild ihre Verwandten zu einem Fest dorthin ein, um Rache für
ihren verstorbenen Mann zu nehmen. Im Verlauf der Feier stürzten sich die Parteien
aufeinander und es begann ein furchtbarer Kampf, in dem fast alle Ritter starben. In ihrer
Rachsucht schlug Kriemhild sogar ihrem letzten lebenden Bruder noch den Kopf ab, um von
Hagen das Versteck des Schatzes zu erfahren, was dieser aber nicht tat. Am Ende des
Kampfes waren alle bis auf Etzel tot.
30

Germany
Siegfried and Kriemhild: Prologue
The “Nibelungenlied” (the "Song of the Nibelungs") was
the most popular epic poem in medieval German written
during the early 13th century. The “Nibelungenlied” was
another version of the Nibelungen cycle from the
Icelandic and Norwegian works (Edda), in which the hero
Sigurd also fights the dragon (Fafnir) and frees Brunhilde.
Like the Icelandic saga, the story was a tale of the cycle
of betrayal and revenge in the cursed Burgundian royal
family. There is no absolut sure historical background
about the person of Siegfried, but already Charles the
Great loved the Sigurd story around the year 800. The
empire of the Burgunds with its center in the city of
Worms really existed and was destroyed in the year 435.
We know that the kings Gunter, Giselher and Gernot
existed in reality. The surviving Burgunds were settled
southeast of the Lac Leman by the roman general Aetius.
Starting from this region, they moved in direction to the city of Lyon. This region in France
is called “Bourgogne” today . Etzel (Attila) was king of the Huns since 445. Coming from
Hungary, his army conquered central Europe. In 451 they took several cities, but then they
were defeated by the roman general Aetius near Troyes (Champagne). Attila died in 453 in
the night of his marriage with the Burgundian Lady Ildiko.
The “Song of the Nibelungs” was often filmed and is the central motive of the four operas of
the “Ring of the Nibelungs” composed by Richard Wagner.
The following students of HSH worked on the German contribution:
Drawings: Karina Mecajewa M7, Daniela Wahler 9a, Lisa Pasler M10,
German text: Simone Then M8
31

Germany
Siegfried and Kriemhild
iegfried, a hero, who had shown his braveness in many fights, lived in Xanten at the river
Rhein. Bathing in the blood of a killed dragon, his skin became invulnerable except of one
place at his back, where a leave has been fallen. One day, he heard about the beautiful Lady
Kriemhild, who lived with their brothers Gunther, Gernot und Giselher, in the city of Worms
in the country of Burgund at the river Rhein. He
decided to travel there and to marry her. Beeing a
famous and glorious hero, he was welcomed in
Worms. Kriemhild`s brothers approved of the
marriage, if the hero would help Gunther win
Brunhild, the queen of Island in marriage. Soon they
travelled to Island, where every man, who wanted to
marry Brunhild, had to fight with her. Siegfried
helped Gunther defeating the warrior­queen, using
his magic cloak, “Tarnkappe”. Brunhild thought she
was contesting Gunther. There was a double
wedding. Whereas Siegfried's marriage was happy,
Gunther was humiliating. When Gunther had tried to
make love to his new wife, Brunhild fought him,
bound the king, and hanged the king up on the wall.
Again, Siegfried had to secretly overcome Brunhild
for Gunther. When Brunhild finally submitted to
husband, Siegfried stole her ring and girdle and gave them to Kriemhild. The ring and girdle
became symbols of their deception over Brunhild. A short time later, Siegfried and Kriemhild
moved to Siegfried`s hometown Xanten.
32

Germany
Ten years later, Gunther invited them to a festivity in Worms. Brunhild was curious of
Siegfried's status, because when she had first met Siegfried and Gunther, they had told her
Siegfried was her husband's vassal. Yet, Gunther and his brothers treated Siegfried as an
equal. Soon the two ladies got into a quarrel and Kriemhild told Brunhild that Siegfried was
the man who overcame her strength in the contest. Kriemhild proved this, by revealing the
ring and the girdle that Siegfried had taken from Brunhild. Outraged and humiliated,
Brunhild demanded punishment for Siegfried and Kriemhild. Hagen agreed. Together with
Gunther, they plotted Siegfried's assassination. Hagen tricked Kriemhild into revealing
Siegfried's weakness, and then they lured the hero into woods, on the pretence of a hunting
trip. As Siegfried drank water from the spring, Hagen hid the hero's sword, before plunging
a javelin into Siegfried's back.
Many years later, the mighty king of the Huns, Etzel, wanted to marry the widow Kriemhild
and at length she gave her consent, always thinking to get
a chance for revenge. She went to Hungaria and after
some years, a son was born. Kriemhild asked her husband
to invite the Burgunds to a big festival to Hungaria. They
accepted the invitation and came to the festival. In one
of the nights, Kriemhild`s men attacked the guests and a
terrible fight started for some days and nights and at
the end nearly all the knights were killed. At the end
Kriemhild even murdered her brother Gunther, because
he didn`t tell her where the treasure of the Nibelungs
was hidden and showed his head to her worthest enemy,
Hagen. When he saw, that his friend was killed, he was
not willing to tell her the place of the treasure and for
this reason, Kriemhild smote off the head of Hagen. One
of the leaving knights could not bear what she had done and killed her with his sword. King
Etzel was one of the few persons left, but the kingdom of the Burgunds was completely
destroyed.
33

Greece
THE ABDUCTION OF EUROPE
34

Greece
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35

Greece
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36

Greece
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37

Greece
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38

Greece
Prologue of the myth
Europa’s grandfather is Poseidon himself and her grandmother is Libya, who
gave birth to twin–sons, Velos and Aginor. Velos became the king of North
Africa and was married to Nile’s daughter. Aginor went to Asia and became
king of Syria. He got married to Telephassa. Europa is Aginor and
Telephassa’s daughter. She has three brothers: Cadmus, Phoenix, and Kylix.
As we can see the myth connects the areas where there were developed
advanced prehistoric civilizations, which were bound to change the course of
the human race.
There are several
versions of this myth,
which belongs to Crete
and was already widely
spread in the 15 th
century b.C. The predo
minant version is the
one that says the
princess was abducted
from her homeland,
Phoenicia, by Zeus, the
supreme God, trans
formed into a white
bull (taurus). She was
then taken to Crete.
Zeus knew the island
very well, as when he
was a new–born kid, he
had been taken by his
mother Rhea, to escape
39

Greece
his father, Cronus, who ate his sons so as not to be deprived of his throne. Zeus and Europa
remained together and lived as a couple for quite a long time. They gave birth to three sons:
Minos, Sarpidon and Rhadamanthys. Zeus eventually abandoned Europa and went back to
Hera, a loyal wife to an errant husband! Before doing so, however, he made Europa marry
Asterios, who was then the king of Crete. Asterios adopted Zeus’s three sons and when he
died, Minos, Europa’s son, was bound to be his successor as well as the founder of the
civilization which was named after him and is ever since known as Minoan Civilization. This
civilization was the earliest one on European soil and had reached its zenith by the beginning
of the late Bronze Age.
Although there is a lot to be said concerning the myth of Europa, the origin of her very name
is actually still unknown to us. It may have been the Semitic word “ereb”, which means
“darkness” (the greek equivalent “”), or “sunset”. The only thing that is known is the
name of the princess as heard, understood and uttered by the Achaeans, when they first
arrived and settled down in Crete in the 15 th century b.C. Since then her name has beeh
“Europa” and it is etymologically associated with the greek adjective “”, which
denotes someone who can see and be seen at a distance. This is regarded to have been a
prophetic significance for Europe (“nomen omen”), if we are to accept what Epictitus, the
Stoic philosopher, said regarding the importance of words themselves: “
” (= Education should start from getting to know the words
themselves).
This association between Europe – the Continent – and Europa – the princess – leads to the
conclusion that what we now call European Civilization originates in a certain point from the
Minoan Civilization. Therefore, we all share a common cultural heritage.
The drawing of the book cover and the myth illustrations were made by our students­members of the
Greek Comenius group­ Sambaziotis Athanasios and Islamay Pranvera.
40

Greece
THE ABDUCTION OF EUROPE
n the coast of Sidon, somewhere in Syria, a group of young girls are
enjoying spring. The girls are playing along the shore and are weaving wreaths.
Among them is Europe, the princess. She is having a basket and picking up
flowers. There are also the king’s herds of cows grazing along the seashore. The king is
Aginor, Europe’s father. There suddenly appears god Mercury, who has been sent by his
father Zeus in order to lead the herds to the shore. Soon Aginor’s herds are by the calm sea
where the girls are still playing.
Europe is very beautiful this morning. She is lively and happy. She is running through the
meadows until suddenly she meets a strongly built bull. It is snow­white with only a black
stripe between his horns. But even his horns are nothing like the other bulls’ ones; they are
very small and shiny, like small precious stones.
The bull approaches the girls, who
get frightened. When, however, they
realize that the bull is not only
beautiful but tame as well, they pick
up the courage to play with him. They
stroke him and adorn him with
flowers. Europe, the young princess, is
even more coura geous than the
others and mounts the tame bull. All
of the sudden, the bull changes his
manners. Full of vigor and strength,
he rushes towards and into the sea
and begins swimming off riding over the waves. The other girls get scared and run away.
Europe clings onto the bull and holds him by the horns, while in her left hand is still the
basket of flowers.
41

Greece
Her tunic is fluttering in the wind, and she is looking at her country’s coast which is
left behind. Her long journey has just started. The bull goes on swimming across the immense
sea. Europe, on the other hand, scared and pale, cannot understand how all this has happened.
She has no idea that this very bull, she is riding is Zeus himself, who, enchanted by her
beauty and transformed into a bull, has abducted her from Sidon. The voyage across the open
sea looks magic! While the beautiful bull is swimming, sea­ nymphs, Nereid’s are dancing along,
Tritons­ Poseidon’s sons­ are blowing into their huge shells, and Poseidon himself emerges
from the sea bottom to give his wishes to his disguised brother! It is a real funfair!
After a while they arrive at the south
coast of Crete at the port of Levine. Zeus leads
beautiful Europe to the cave of the Holy mountain
Diktaion Andron. There Hores have made the
wedding bed and there the Holy Wedding takes
place. This marriage will give Crete a king, Minos,
Zeus’s spawn.
After the holy intercourse, Europe falls in
a sweet sleep and can still hear the song of the
waves. In her dream, however, she can hear the
rustling sound of grass denoting somebody
approaching. Indeed, someone is coming near!
It is Talos, the copper giant, the strong and agile guard of Crete. Europe gets
frightened! She has never seen anyone like him before! This very giant will protect her as well
as Crete. It is Zeus present to her and her new country. Zeus also gives her two more
presents: a gold dog which will always find its game and a quiver containing arrows which will
never miss their target! From now onwards Europe will be Cretan and later on, the Queen of
Crete.
42

Italy
The origin of the volcano of Etna
43

Italy
Prologue
a Sicilia, l’isola più grande d’Italia, è una terra solare, ricca di tradizioni e leggende; la
maggior parte delle quali legate al mare, alla sua conformazione geografica e al vulcano Etnamontagna
tanto amata ma anche tanto temuta.
Misterbianco, paese ai piedi dell’Etna sede dell’Istituto Comprensivo Pitagora, ama il
Vulcano che giganteggia ora ostentando il suo manto bianco ora la sua lava rossa. Quasi a
racchiudere in sé i colori della bandiera italiana : bianco per la neve, rosso per il fuoco e verde
per i suoi boschi.
I nostri giovani alunni, spinti dal progetto Comenius, hanno scelto di veicolare
attraverso questo testo due leggende non a caso ispirate dal loro Vulcano.
44
Buona lettura a tutti!
icily, the biggest Isle in Italy is a sun shining land rich of traditions and legends; most
of them are connected to the sea, its geographic shape and to the Volcano “Etna” a mountain
so loved but even so feared.
Misterbianco, a country at the foot of Etna, residence of the Institute Comprehensive
Pitagora, loves the Volcano which rises like a Giant, showing both its white blanket of snow
and its red Lava.
It seems to contain the colours of the Italian flag: white for the snow, red for the
fire and green for its woods. Our young pupils, stimulated by Comenius project have chosen to
communicate, through this book, two legends inspired by their Volcano.
Let’s enjoy these pleasant readings!

Italy
Le origini del monte Etna
era una volta una ragazza di nome Etna, con la pelle bianca come la neve, le labbra rosse
come il fuoco e gli occhi neri e profondi come la notte. Etna era diventata presto
orfana.viveva da sola e gli unici amici che aveva erano gli animali e le piante. Gli abitanti del
villaggio vicino pensavano che praticasse arti magiche. Ogni vola che succedeva una disgrazia,
al villaggio credevano che fosse stata lei e mandavano dei ragazzacci a romperle i vetri delle
finestre e ad uccidere i suoi animali. Un giorno al villaggio scoppiò un tremendo incendio e,
dopo aver spento il fuoco, tutti gli abitanti del villaggio andarono da Etna a darle una
lezione. Accortasi che stavano per arrivare, Etna scappo’ su per la montagna. Sfinita per la
stanchezza, in camicia di notte e con i piedi insanguinati, cadde in un crepaccio. La
montagna arrabbiata tramutò il sangue della fanciulla in pezzi di roccia incandescente. Gli
abitanti del villaggio spaventati, corsero giù verso la pianura e quella fu solo la prima
eruzione fra tante altre e si formò il vulcano che vediamo oggi: l'Etna.
45

Italy
The origin of the volcano of Etna.
nce upon a time, lived a girl called Etna, with skin as white as snow, lips as red as fire
and eyes as black as night. Etna had become an orphan when she was very young. She lived
alone and her only friends were animals and plants. The inhabitants of the village closeby
thought that she practised magic arts. When something awful happened, the villagers
thought that she had been the cause and they sent some ruffians to break the windows in
her house and to kill her animals. One day at the village a terrible fire broke out and
after having put it out, all the villagers went to Etna’s house to give her a lesson. Realising
that they were arriving, Etna ran off up the mountain.
Dead tired after the long walk, in her nightgown, her feet covered in blood, she fell into a
cleft. So the angry mountain transformed the young girl’s blood into many piece of
incandescent rock. The frightened villagers ran towards the plain and that was just the first
of many eruptions of the volcano that we see today known as Etna.
46

Italy
La leggenda di ‘Aci e Galatea’
na tra le più conosciute leggende legate al mito dell'Etna, è la storia di Aci e Galatea.
C'era una volta un pastorello di nome Aci e una ninfa di nome Galatea. I due si innamorarono
a prima vista e si incontravano spesso in una grotta chiamata " Grotta delle
Colombe". Polifemo che era anch'egli innamorato di Galatea si ingelosì molto. Durante
l'assenza della ninfa cominciò a scagliare dei massi giganteschi contro il pastorello
colpendolo gravemente. Galatea trovò Aci in una pozza di sangue, ormai senza vita. Gridando
agli dei di vendicare l'innamorato, Aci fu trasformato in un fiume;così i due trascorsero la
loro vita insieme nel mare in cui il fiume sfociava.
47

Italy
The story of Aci and Galatea.
ne of the most well known legends about the myth of Etna is “ the story of Aci
and Galatea”.
Once upon a time there was a young shepherd named Aci and a nymph named Galatea.
The two youngsters fell in love all at once. They met in a cave named Dove Cave. Polifemo, who
loved Galatea, became very jealous. During the nymph’s absence, Polifemo started to
thow enormous stones at the young shepherd, hurting him very seriously. Galatea
found Aci, dead in a pool of blood. Shouting to the Gods, Galatea demanded revenge. The
loved young Aci was transformed into a river so the two young lovers spent their lives
together in the sea into which the river flowed. From this legend derive Acitrezza’s
stacks and all the towns which start with the name “Aci”; Aci Castello, Acitrezza,
Acicatena, Acireale and Aci Sant’Antonio.
48

Latvia
K putni un zvri Daugavu raka
How the Birds and Animals Dug the Bed for the Daugava
49

Latvia
Prologue
atviešu folklora ir bagta sav žanru daždb un satura daudzveidb. Viens no
plaškajiem un nozmgkajiem vsttjas folkloras žanriem ir teikas, kas izaugušas no sava
laika cilvku tieksmes izzint un izprast apkrtjs pasaules norises.
Plaša un tematiski daudzveidga ir teiku
grupa, kur tiek apliecinta latviešu
zemnieka svargk atzia, ka visa
pamat ir darbs – visu vrtbu radtjs
un mrs. Š ajs teiks galvens
darbojošs btnes ir personificti dabas
tli – Dievs un Velns. Viu abu kopga
darba rezultt veidojas zeme, dzv un
nedzv daba.
Daudzveidgs teiks ir skaidrojums par
upju izcelšanos. Populra un msdiens
vai katram brnam pazstama ir teika
par Daugavas rakšanu. Msu varenk
upe Daugava ir radusies visu dzvo
radbu – zvru, putnu, zivju u.c. – kopg,
pc Dieva ierosmes veikt darba
rezultt.
Dievs izraktaj grav ar zelta kausu
ieljis deni, nordjis, uz kuru pusi tam tect un nosaucis jauno upi par DAUGAVU.
50

Latvia
K putni un zvri Daugavu raka
ad Dievs jau bijis radjis kokus, zvrus, putnus, zivis, tad Daugavas vl nebijis. Un zvri,
putni, sav va dzvodami, jau skuši ildoties. Dievam tas nepaticis; td sasaucis visus zvrus,
putnus, zivis pie darba, licis rakt Daugavu. Sankuši ar visi, visi. Un zais ar lapsu, veiklkm kjm,
tli mrojuši upei ceu:
zais lcis pa priekšu,
lapsa atkal pa zaa
pdm ar kuplo asti
ievilkusi robežas.
Kurmis, zemes uris, pa
ievilkto robežu dzi nis
pirmo vagu, bet psis
vagu pataisjis lielku;
lcis atkal, k jau
stiprinieks, klp jiem
vien grbis zemes un
bris gubs. Ar citi
zvri, putni strdjuši,
ko nagi nes, un t drz
vien Daugavas grava
bija izrakta.
Un, kamr tur ar tiem
citiem runjis, Dievs paclis acis, ieraudzjis vienu pa koku zariem lkjam, svilpojam, t bija
vlodze. Dievs vaicjis: "Nu, ko tad tu te lk? Vai tu nemaz nestrdji?"
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Latvia
"Kur tad nu es tik rupju darbu strdšu, man jau smalki svrki mugur; iekpu gan up,
gribju skt, bet apskatjos, kur tad manas dzeltens bikses, ts samaitjušs, un
apdomjos labk nek nedart."
"T, t! Tad dzeltenie svrki tev vairk par aunumu nek par labumu. Nu labi, paturi
tad sev savus dzeltenos svrkus un ts pašas bikses ar visiem dubiem, cik todien,
iekpjot vien, notaisjušs; bet mžam tev nebs brv dzert skaidra dens ne no upes, ne
no avota, ne ar da, ar rasas lsm, kas uz akmeiem, tu dzisinsi slpes."
Un vl šo baltu dienu lietus putniam šis sods jnes; kad, negaisam tuvojoties, citi
putni sen jau apklusuši, tad viš vien vl žli raud par savu toreizjo lepnbu.
Pc tam Dievs ar zelta kausu grav ieljis deni, nordjis, uz kuru pusi bs tect, un
nosaucis jauno upi par Daugavu.
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Latvia
Prologue
he Latvian folklore is rich in its genre diversity and variety of form. One of the
most important and extensive heralds of folklore genres are sagas which have been nursed by
the people’s inclination in each epoch to find out
and comprehend the processes of the
surrounding world.
The group of creation sagas is diverse and broad
which testifies Latvian peasants’ most essential
wisdom that the essence of the Universe is work
– the creator and measurement of all the values.
These sagas present two main personified
characters – God and Devil. As a result of their
common work the Earth and all living and
inanimated things are created.
Latvian sagas give manifold explanations how the
rivers were created. One of the most popular
and well­known legends is the saga telling how
our largest and most beloved river the Daugava
was dug. Even every child knows that the
riverbed was made by joint effort of all living
creatures – animals, birds, fishes, etc., aspired
and conducted by God. Finally God with his
mighty hand poured the water out of a golden cup into the riverbed, pointed the direction
which the new stream should take and named the river the DAUGAVA.
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How the Birds and Animals Dug the Bed for the Daugava*
ong, long ago all the birds and animals made a big fuss and caused a lot of trouble in
the world, that is why God decided to give them some work to do. He called all the birds and
animals together and told them to dig a bed for the river Daugava.
Soon they set to work, and the rabbit said that he would run ahead and show them where the river
bed was to be. This he did, but like all rabbits he ran in circles, and that is why there are so many
loops and turns to the Daugava. Just behind the rabbit came the mole who worked hard and dug
the first furrow. And he was richly rewarded by God, getting a coat of shiny black velvet that
he wears to this day.
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Latvia
All the birds and animals did their bit and all of them got rewarded by God. The only one
who refused to do anything was the oriole.
"Oh, it is such a dirty job! I don't want to stain my beautiful yellow skirt! The water
that falls from the sky is enough for me," she said indignantly, "I don't need a river that flows
over the ground."
"Ahh! You lazy bird!" God turned really angry, "Let you wear your yellow skirt forever!
Let you always be thirsty and call for rain!" From then on the oriole was never to get any river
water at all to drink, and would have to do with dew and raindrops on the leaves.
After having completed their hard work all the birds and animals asked God to come and
see the new river bed.
God raised his hand and poured water into the bed from a golden cup, told the stream
which way to flow and called the new river the DAUGAVA.

Norway
Oskeladden som kappåt med trollet
The Ash­lad who ate a match with the troll
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Norway
Oskeladden som kappåt med trollet
et var ein gong ein bonde som hadde tre søner. Det var smått for han, og gamal og
skrøpeleg var han, og sønene hans ville ikkje ta seg til noko. Til garden høyrde det til
ein stor, god skog, og ein dag ville faren at sønene skulle hogge ved, og sjå til å få betalt noko av
gjelda.
Langt om lenge fekk han dei med på det,, og den eldste skulle gå først. Da han var kommen bort i
skogen og hadde teke til å hogge på ei skjeggete gran, kom eit stort, digert troll til han.
”Dersom du høgg i min skog,” sa
trollet, ”skal eg drepe deg!” Da
guten høyrde det, kasta han
øksa og la heim att best han
kunne. Han kom reint
andpusten heim og fortalde det
som hadde hendt han. Men
faren sa han var eit
harehjerte; trolla hadde aldri
skremt han frå å hogge da han
var ung, meinte han.
Dagen etter skulle den andre
sonen av stad, og da gjekk det
nettopp like eins. Da han vel
hadde hogge nokre hogg i
grana, kom trollet til han med
og sa: ”Dersom du høgg i min
skog, skal eg drepe deg!” Guten torde snautt sjå på han; han kasta øksa og tok til sprangs liksom
broren, og vel så fort. Da han kom heim att, vart faren sinna og sa at aldri hadde trolla skremt
han, da han var ung.
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Tredje dagen ville Oskeladden i veg. ”Ja du,” sa dei to eldste, ”du skal vel greie det, du, som aldri
har vore utom stovedøra.” Han svara ikkje større på det, Oskeladden, men bad om å få dugeleg
niste med seg. Mora hadde ikkje suvl, og så hengde ho på gryta og skulle breste litt til han; det
fekk han i skreppa og la av garde.
Da han hadde hogge ei lita stund, kom trollet til han og sa: ”Dersom du høgg i min skog, skal eg
drepe deg!” Men guten var ikkje sein; han sprang bort i skogen etter osten og kreista han så mysa
skvatt. ”Teier du ikkje still,” skreik han til trollet, ”så skal eg klemme deg som eg klemmer denne
kvite steinen!” ”Nei, kjære, spar meg!” sa trollet, ”Eg skal hjelpe deg å hogge!” Ja, på det vilkåret
sparte guten han. Trollet hogg så det mona, og dei fekk felt og avhogge mange tylfter om dagen.
Da det leid mot kvelden, sa trollet: ”No kan du følgje med heim, det er nærare til meg enn til deg.”
Ja, guten vart med, og da dei kom heim til trollet, skulle han gjere opp varmen på grua, medan
guten skulle gå etter vatn til grautgryta; men det stod to jernbytter der, så store og tunge at han
ikkje orka å lee dei eingong. Så sa guten: ”Det er ikkje verdt å ta med desse fingerbøla; eg går
stad etter heile brønnen eg.”
”Nei, kjære vene,” sa trollet, ”eg kan ikkje miste brønnen min. Gjer opp varmen, så skal eg gå etter
vatn.”
Da han kom tilbake med vatnet, kokte dei opp ei dugleg stor grautgryte. ”Det er det same,” sa
guten, ”vil du som eg, skal vi kappete.” ”Å ja!” svara trollet; for det tenkte han alltid han skulle stå
seg i. Ja, dei sette seg til bords. Men guten stal seg til å ta skinnskreppa og knyte framføre seg,
og så auste han meir i skreppa enn han åt sjølv. Da skreppa var full, tok han opp tollekniven sin og
rispa ei flengje i skreppa. Trollet såg på han, men sa ikkje noko.
Da dei hadde ete ei god stund til, la trollet bort skeia. ”Nei, no orkar eg ikkje meir,” sa han. ”Du
skal ete!” svara guten. ”Eg er snautt halvmett, eg. Gjer du som eg gjorde, og skjer hol på magen, så
et du så mykje du vil.” ”Men det gjer vel grueleg vondt?” spurde trollet. ”Å, ikkje noko å tale om,”
svara guten. Så gjorde trollet som guten sa, og så kan ein vel vite han sette livet til. Men guten tok
alt det sølvet og gullet som i berget fanst, og gjekk heim med. Med det kunne han saktens få
betalt unna noko på skulda.
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Norway
The Ash­lad who ate a match with the troll
nce upon a time there was a farmer who had three sons; his means were small, and he
was old and weak, and his sons would not take to nothing. A fine large wood belonged to
the farm, and one day the father told his sons to go and hew wood, and try to pay off some of
his debts.
Well, after a long talk, he got them to set off, and the eldest was to go first. But when he had
got well into the wood, and began to hew at a mossy old fir, what should he see coming up to him
but a great sturdy troll. “If you hew in this wood of mine,” said the troll, “ I’ll kill you!” When
the lad heard that, he threw the axe down, and ran off home as fast as he could lay legs to the
ground; so he came home quite out of breath, and told them what had
happened, but his father called him “hare­heart”, ­no troll would ever
have scared him from hewing when he was young, he said.
Next day the second son’s turn came, and he fared just the same. He
had scarce hewn three strokes at the fir, before the troll came to
him too, and said:
“If you hew in this wood of mine, I’ll kill you.” The lad dared not so
much as look at him, but threw down the axe, took to his heels, and
came scampering home just like his brother. So when he got home,
his father was angry again, and said no troll had ever scared him
when he was young.
The third day The Ash­lad wanted to set off. “You, indeed!” said the
two elder brothers; “you’ll do it bravely, no doubt! You, who have
scarce ever set your foot out of the door.” The Ash­lad said nothing
to this, but only begged them to give him a good store of food. His
mother had no cheese, so she set the pot on the fire to
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Norway
make him a little, and he put it into a scrip and set off. So when he had hewn a bit, the troll
came to him too, and said: “If you hew in this wood of mine, I’ll kill you.” But the lad was not
slow; he pulled his cheese out
of the scrip in a trice, and squeezed it till the whey spurted out. “Hold your tongue!” he cried to
the troll, or I’ll squeeze you as I squeeze the water out of this white stone.” “Nay, dear friend!”
said the troll, “only spare me, and I’ll help you to hew.” Well on those terms the lad was willing to
spare him, and the troll hewed so bravely, that they felled and cut up many, many fathoms in the
day. But when even drew near, the troll said: “Now you’d better come with me, for my house is
nearer than yours.” So the lad was willing enough; and when they reached the troll’s house, the
troll was to make up the fire, while the lad went to fetch water for their porridge, and there
stood two iron pails so big and heavy, that he couldn’t so much as lift them from the ground.
“Pooh!” said the lad, “it isn’t worth while to touch these finger­basins. I’ll just go and fetch the
spring itself.” “Nay, nay, dear friend!” said the troll; “I can’t afford to lose my spring; just you
make up the fire, and I’ll go and fetch the water.” So when he came back with the water, they
set to and boiled up a great pot of porridge. “It’s all the same to me,” said the lad; “but if you’re
of my mind, we’ll eat a match!” “With all my heart,” said the troll, for he thought he could surely
hold his own eating. So they sat down; but the lad took his scrip unawares to the troll, and hung
it before him, and so he spooned more into the scrip than he ate himself; and when the scrip was
full, he took up his knife and made a slit in the scrip. The troll looked on all the while, but never
said a word. So when they had eaten a good bit longer, the troll laid down his spoon, saying, “Nay!
But I can’t eat a morsel more.” “But you shall eat,” said the youth; “I’m only half done; why don’t
you do as I did, and cut a hole in your paunch? You’ll be able to eat then as much as you please.”
But doesn’t it hurt one cruelly? Asked the troll. “Oh,” said the youth, “Nothing to speak of.”
So the troll did as the lad said, and then you must know very well that he lost his life; but the
lad took all the silver and gold that he found in the hillside, and went home with it, and you may
fancy it went a great way to pay off the debt.
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Poland
LEGENDA O BAZYLISZKU
THE LEGEND OF BAZYLISZEK
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Poland
Prologue
Prezentowana legenda jest dobrze znana polskim uczniom,
poniewa popularyzuj j podrczniki szkolne. Jest to synna
legenda z Warszawy epoki Renesansu. "Bazyliszek" jest
wyrazem znanym w jzyku polskim, które czsto jest uywane
jako nazwa restauracji urzdzonych w podziemiach.
This legend is known by many children and teenagers in Poland,
because of popularizing it in students" books. It is a very
famous legend telling about Renaissance Warsaw ­ our capitol
city. "Bazyliszek" is a popular word in Polish language and it
often appears as a name of underground restaurants.
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Poland
LEGENDA O BAZYLISZKU
pisywane wydarzenia miay miejsce w szesnastym wieku w
Warszawie, stolicy Polski. Ich gównymi bohaterami s Maciek i
Halszka, syn i córka patnerza Melchiora Ostrogi, oraz skazaniec
Jan lzak.
Patnerz, jak co dzie, zajty by w swojej kuni wytwarzaniem
zbroi. Jego pracy przyglday si dzieci, ale szybko si znudziy,
wic poprosiy ojca, by pozwoli im uda si na Rynek. Patnerz
zgodzi si, zabroni jednak odwiedzania opuszczonego domostwa
przy ulicy Krzywe Koo.
Na penym gwaru Rynku odbywa si festyn. Wród tumu spotkay
dzieci swojego przyjaciela Walka. Niebawem caa trójka ruszya w
stron Krzywego Koa. Zatrzymaa si przy ruinach zakazanego
domostwa. Pamitajc o przestrogach patnerza, Maciek i Halszka
dugo wzbraniali si przed wejciem, jednak kolega skusi ich obietnic
skarbu, rzekomo znajdujcego si w piwnicach. Jednake inna bya
rzeczywisto od wyobrae. W podziemiach mieszka smok Bazyliszek.
„Niby to kogut, niby w. Gow mia koguci (…), nogi zakoczone apami
o ostrych, olbrzymich pazurach. Ale najstraszniejsze byy oczy
potwora.” Na kogo spojrza, zabija wzrokiem.
Poniewa bram prowadzc do lochu pierwszy otworzy Waldek, zgin
na miejscu od spojrzenia Bazyliszka. Halszka i Maciek zdyli si ukry.
Wkrótce rodzestwo usyszao nawoywania. To suca Agata szukaa dzieci, gdy zbliaa si
pora obiadu i rodzice niepokoili si zbyt dug nieobecnoci. Niestety i j Bazyliszek ugodzi
j swym straszliwym wzrokiem.
Tymczasem zrozpaczona ona patnerza, dowiedziawszy si o wydarzeniach z udziaem jej
dzieci, zacza szuka pomocy. Spotkaa si ze sawnym i uczonym mdrcem Hermenegildusem i
bagaa go, aby uwolni jej dzieci i zabi Bazyliszka. Hermenegildus myla dugo a wreszcie
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Poland
wymyli sposób, w jaki mona pozby si potwora. Poradzi, by
znale miaka, który obwieszony lustrami odway si wej do
lochu.
W midzyczasie na jednym z placów Warszawy zebra si tum,
eby zobaczy publiczn egzekucj. Skazanym by Jan lzak,
którego oskarono o zabicie towarzysza podróy. I ju szykowano
Jana na mier, kiedy nagle zjawi si burmistrz i przerwa
egzekucj przedstawiajc niezwyk ofert skazacowi. Mianowicie
obieca Janowi wolno, jeli spotka si oko w oko z Bazyliszkiem.
Jan zgodzi si, bo nie mia nic do stracenia. Tak wic mczyzna
woy lustrzan zbroj i ruszy w drog.
Zszed do lochu, a Bazyliszek poleg na
miejscu ujrzawszy swoje odbicie w lustrze.
W taki oto sposób uratowano dzieci patnerza, a Warszaw uwolniono
od okrutnego potwora. Po czasie okazao si równie, e Jan jest
niewinny, a wyrok wydany na niego by pomyk sdu.
W rzeczywistoci Jan nie zabi, a jedynie pobi swojego towarzysza
podróy, który skutecznie udawa trupa.
Do dzisiaj we wspóczesnym jzyku polskim funkcjonuje idiom
„bazyliszkowy wzrok”, który oznacza grone, nienawistne spojrzenie.
Na podstawie „Klechdy domowe czyli najpikniejsze legendy polskie”
Artur Oppman (Or­Ot) „Bazyliszek”
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Poland
THE LEGEND OF BAZYLISZEK
he story of Bazyliszek takes place in Warsaw in the 16 th
century. The main characters are Maciek and Halszka – the
daughter and the son of an armourer called Melchior Ostroga
and the condemned man Jan lazak.
One day the armourer was as always busy with making
armour in his smithy. His children watched his efforts, but they
got bored very quickly, so after a while they asked him to let
them go to the market square. The armourer agreed, however
he forbade them to see a desolete house on Krzywe Koo Street.
As it was the day of fete, the market square was very noisy. Walking around the place the
children met their friend Waldek. Soon the three ran towards Krzywe Koo Street and
stopped at the ruins of the mysterious house which they were not
allowed to enter. Halszka and Maciek remembered their father’s
warnings about the place. They denied when Waldek continued
persuading them to go into it until he told them a story about an
alleged treasure hidden in the dungeon of the building. They did not
know how wrong they were! The truth was that in the basement lived
the monster called Bazyliszek. ‘He looked as if he was half a rooster
and half a snake. He had rooster’s head (...), long and thin neck (...) and
his legs ended with paws with huge sharp claws. But nothing was
scarier than the monster’s eyes.’ A person he looked at was
immediately killed with Bazyliszek’s terrible look.
Since Waldek was the first to open the dungeon gate, he died at once of the monster’s
glance. Luckily, Halszka and Maciek managed to find a hiding place somewhere in the house.
Soon they heard a voice calling their names. It was Agata – their servant. She was looking for
the children as it was about to dine and the parents started to worry about them. They were
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Poland
out too long. Unfortunately, Agata could not escape from Bazyliszek’ s chilling look and she
perished, too.
In the meantime, when the armourer’s wife learnt what happened
to their children, she desperately looked for help. She met with a very
famous and learned wise man called Hermenegildus and begged to set
Halszka and Maciek free and kill Bazyliszek. Hermenegildus was
thinking long and finally he found the way to get rid of the monster. He
advised the woman to find a brave soul who would not be scared to go
down to the dungeon wearing mirrors on his body instead of armour.
At the same time at one of Warsaw squares people gathered to see
a public execution. The condemned man was Jan lzak who was
accused of his travel companion’s murder. He was just being prepared
for death, when suddenly the mayor turned up and interrupted the event with an unusual
offer. Namely, he promised to release Jan if he faced Bazyliszek’s eyes. As Jan had nothing
to lose, he agreed. He put mirror armour on his body and set off. When he went down to the
dungeon and Bazyliszek saw himself in the mirror, the monster
died immediately of his own reflection. In that way both the
armourer’s children were saved and the whole city of Warsaw was
at last free from the cruel monster. After a time it turned out
that Jan lzak was innocent and he was sentenced by mistake of a
judge. In fact, the companion was not killed but only beaten by Jan
and he cheated to be dead. From that time on everyone in Warsaw
lived happily without any fear of monsters.
Even today in contemporary Polish, there is an idiom ‘Bazyliszek’s look’ which means a
dangerous and hateful glance.
Based on „Klechdy domowe czyli najpikniejsze legendy polskie”
by Artur Oppman (Or­Ot) „Bazyliszek”
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Portugal
endas de Valongo
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Portugal
Prologue
No Norte de Portugal, próximo do Porto, fica a cidade de Valongo.
Esta cidade estende­se ao longo de um vale, junto à Serra de Santa Justa, onde ocorrem
vestígios da exploração de ouro. São longas e tortuosas galerias, designadas na região por
“Fojos”, rasgadas nos quartzitos da Serra pelos antigos Romanos e pelos Árabes, que hoje são
refúgio de morcegos, salamandras e de espécies vegetais raras.
Não admira pois que acerca destas terras sejam contadas inúmeras lendas, onde a
imaginação popular é misturada com a realidade histórica.
Algumas dessas lendas foram recolhidas por alunos e professores da Escola Secundária
de Valongo.
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Portugal
O segredo da Moirama
Conta­se de boca em boca, que quando os Moiros foram expulsos destas terras, pelas
hostes dos reis cristãos, os Mouriscos cantavam a sua desgraça, revelando na sua cantiga a
enorme riqueza que brotava no subsolo da serra, segredo ocultado até então, dos povos que
aqui habitavam e que viviam principalmente da agricultura e pastorícia:
“Serras da Cuca­Ma­Cuca
Grande pena me deixais
Atirais com o ouro às cabras
E não sabeis com o que atirais”
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Portugal
enda do penedo
Em tempos que já lá vão, depois dos Mouros terem sido expulsos para a Moirama, contase
que muitos tesouros teriam ficado escondidos na Serra de Santa Justa, nesses tempos
conhecida por Serra da Cuca­Ma­Cuca.
Andando um grupo de raparigas a apanhar achas, viram na serra um penedo gigantesco com a
seguinte inscrição:
“Quem este penedo virar, muita riqueza há­de achar”
Logo as raparigas desceram a serra afogueadas para contar a sua descoberta. Reuniram
todos os mancebos e homens fortes da terra e resolveram ir ver a inscrição com os seus
próprios olhos. Ávidos de riqueza, todos empurraram o penedo com quanta força tinham, que
primeiro vacilou mas depois lá se moveu um quarto de volta.
Mas ao invés de riquezas, do outro lado do penedo, encontraram apenas uma inscrição
que dizia:
“Fizeste bem em me virar… Que eu deste lado já não podia estar…”
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Portugal
agas from Valongo
Valongo is a recent town close to the big city of Porto situated in the north of Portugal.
It is placed in a valley, near Santa Justa Mountain, where vestiges of the exploitation of
gold can be found. There you can find long and sinuous galleries which are called “Fojos”.
These were building by the Romans and later by the Arabs and today they house bats,
salamanders and other rare vegetables species. No wonder that many sagas were told about
these places as a result of the combination between history and people's imagination. Some
of these sagas were compiled by students and teachers of the Secondary School of Valongo.
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The secret of Moirama 1
It is told that when the Moors were expelled from this land by the Christian kings, the
Moorish people sang their disgrace, revealing the enormous wealth of their land in their song.
This was a secret not known by the people that inhabited the place and that lived mainly from
farming:
“Mountains of Cuca­Ma­Cuca
Great pity you let us know
You throw gold to your goats
Not knowing what you throw”
1 Moirama was the name given to the land of the Muslims.
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Portugal
aga of the of the great rock
A long time ago, after the expel of the Moors to the Moirama it is told that many
treasures were hidden in the mountain of Santa Justa (then named mountain of Cuca­Ma­
Cuca).
One day, when a group of girls were picking up wood they saw a great rock in the
mountain with the following inscription:
"Those who this rock turn aside, a lot of wealth will find"
Immediately the girls went down to town running to tell the others about their findings.
They gather together all young and strong men and went to see the rock and its inscription.
With the idea of wealth in their minds they pushed the rock with all their strength. At
first it didn't move but then they succeeded in moving it. But instead of wealth, they found
another inscription, on the other side of the rock:
"It was nice of you to turn me aside, cause I could no longer here hide…"
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