Related Guides
Dictionaries & Encyclopedias
- A Companion to Folklore A Companion to Folklore presents an original and comprehensive collection of essays from international experts in the field of folklore studies. Unprecedented in depth and scope, this state-of-the-art collection uniquely displays the vitality of folklore research across the globe.
- The Cambridge Companion to Fairy Tales In this Companion, international scholars from a range of academic disciplines explore the historical origins, cultural dissemination and psychological power of fairy stories, and offer model interpretations of tales from a variety of traditions and sources, including Charles Perrault, the Brothers Grimm and the One Thousand and One Nights.
- Dictionary of American Folklore Discover the delightful tales, characters, and themes of classic American storytelling in this comprehensive Dictionary of American Folklore. Ever wonder the origins of the fairy tales, myths, and legends passed down from generation to generation throughout America’s long history? From Paul Bunyan to Johnny Appleseed, Marjorie Tallman covers it all in an engaging voice sure to please readers of all ages.
- African American Folklore : an Encyclopedia for Students Inspired by the author's passion for African American culture and vernacular traditions, African American Folklore: An Encyclopedia for Students thoroughly addresses key elements and motifs in black American folklore--especially those that have influenced American culture.
- The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales Researchers from scholars to the general public will find this reference source an excellent starting place to find definitions, summaries, authors, artists, and regional and historical overviews of fairy tales, past and present.
- Encyclopedia of American Folklife This encyclopedia explores the rich and varied cultural traditions of folklife in America. Entries cover major cities and urban centers; new and established immigrant groups as well as Native Americans; U.S. states and territories; social issues, such as education and intellectual property; and expressions of material culture, such as homes, dress, food, and crafts.
- Dictionary of Chicano folklore This illustrated volume brings together a wealth of lore, legend, historical information, and modern day versions of traditional rituals. Information is presented in concise, clear A–Z entries listed by their Spanish names with English translations.
- The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Folklore Contains over seven hundred entries on African American folklore, including music, art, foodways, spiritual beliefs, and proverbs.
- The East Asian Story Finder : A Guide to 468 Tales from China, Japan and Korea, Listing Subjects and Sources A reference guide to 468 stories and folktales from China, Japan, and Korea, this book aims to lead storytellers, folklorists, teachers, and librarians to both popular and lesser-known East Asian stories.
- A Dictionary of Asian Mythology This dictionary features stories of revered deities, sacred places, key events and epics, with many recurring themes and traditions. Entries address the key mythologies of the regions we now call India, China, Tibet, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and Japan, and broad overviews of specific cultures and their mythic traditions round out the coverage.
- Encyclopedia of Jewish Folklore and Traditions This multicultural reference work on Jewish folklore, legends, customs, and other elements of folklife is the first of its kind.
- The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales Folk and fairy tales exist in all cultures and are at the heart of civilization. The most comprehensive work of its kind, this massive Encyclopedia gives students and general readers a broad, accessible, multicultural survey of folk and fairy tales from around the world. Edited by one of the foremost authorities on the subject, the Encyclopedia draws on the work of numerous expert contributors and covers a broad range of themes and motifs, characters and character types, genres, individuals, national traditions, and other topics.
- Larousse dictionary of world folklore More than 1500 concise and colourful entries that give details on festivals, rites of passage, plant and herblore and theories about folklore are included in this comprehensive dictionary.
- "Folklore," in Routledge International Handbook of Food Studies Folklore offers perspectives on food that approach it as a powerful site for meaning making, in an arena in which individuals and communities express their identities and beliefs as well as construct relationships and boundaries.
- Storytelling Encyclopedia: Historical, Cultural, and Multiethnic Approaches to Oral Traditions Around the World This is the first definitive reference work to address the substantive elements of oral storytelling, a form of communication that dates back to the dawn of humanity. It is an A to Z collection of over 700 entries covering such major storytelling elements as motifs, character types, tale types, place names, and creation mythologies and storytelling techniques of cultures around the world.
- Encyclopedia of Christmas Nearly 200 alphabetically arranged entries covering all aspects of Christmas, including folk customs, religious observances, history, legends, symbols, and related days from Europe, America, and around the world
- Encyclopedia of Easter, Carnival, and Lent This reference work contains more than 150 alphabetically arranged entries that cover all aspects of Easter, Carnival, and Lent. These entries cover the holidayʼs history, myths, legends, customs, religious observances, related holidays, and symbols from around the world.
- The Dictionary of Imaginary Places Describes and visualizes over 1,200 magical lands found in literature and film, discussing such exotic realms as Atlantis, Tolkien's Middle Earth, and Oz.
- A Dictionary of Superstitions This is a fascinating dictionary covering the wide range of folk beliefs that have survived into our own age. Each superstition is illustrated by quotations tracing its development through the centuries. Entries tell of the traditional significance of animals, colours, days, and the elements; rituals to be observed at certain seasons or when faced with natural and unnatural occurrences; cures, taboos, and the uses to which people have put everyday objects in pursuit of good fortune or knowledge of the future.
- "Pedia" Books Encyclopedic in nature and miniature in form, books in this series explore the wonders of the natural world, from A to Z. These brief compendiums cover wide ground in thoughtful, witty, and endlessly fascinating entries on the science, natural history, and culture of their subjects.
- Nectar & ambrosia : an encyclopedia of food in world mythology The book covers the major food groups, beverages, herbs and spices; mythological concoctions such as Soma, the immortal drink of Indian legend; and foods of myth, such as Chinese moon cakes. A valuable introduction explains the connections among myth, food and ancient cultures; the rites and rituals of hunting, planting and harvesting; and taboo foods, edible offerings, forbidden fruits, fasts and feasts.
- The Yanagita Kunio Guide to the Japanese Folk Tale Translation of Nihon mukashibanashi meii by the prominent Japanese folklorist. 347 tale types.
- Dictionary of plant lore Knowledge of plant names can give insight into largely forgotten beliefs. Many plant names derived from superstition, folk lore, or primal beliefs. This fully revised edition of Elsevier's Dictionary of Plant Names and Their Origins contains over 30,000 vernacular and literary English names of plants.
- A Dictionary of English Folklore An absorbing and entertaining guide to English folklore and an authoritative reference source on such legendary characters as Cinderella, Jack the Giant Killer, and Robin Hood. The dictionary gives entertaining and informative explanations of a wide range of subjects in folklore and includes articles on oral and performance genres such as cheese rolling, morris dancing, and rushbearing, superstitions such as crossing fingers and wishbones, beliefs like fairy rings and frog showers, and calendar customs from April Fool's Day to St. Valentine's Day.
Handbooks
- Handbook for folklore and ethnomusicology fieldwork This handbook provides an overview of fieldwork approaches relevant to folklorists, ethnomusicologists, and those in allied fields who explore artistic and communicative practices as they manifest in lived social environments. Recognizing that folklorists, ethnomusicologists, and others utilize multiple research strategies—including but not limited to archival and library research, literary analysis, and quantitative surveys—our focus is explicitly ethnographic fieldwork methods and not these other approaches
- The Meanings of "Beauty and the Beast" : A Handbook "The Meanings of "Beauty and the Beast" provides expert commentary on the tale and on representative critical approaches and contemporary adaptions. This books also includes a variety of original source materials and twenty-three colour illustrations."
