FAIRY TALES FROM

AROUND THE WORLD

Fairy tale variants are adaptations or alternative versions to traditional fairy tales. There are numerous fairy tale variants that exist throughout our world.

World fairy tales and folk tales may contain similar themes, story elements, and characters, but they are a distinct representation of their own culture.

The stories frequently reveal various aspects of life, such as food, customs, celebrations, dress, and traditions.

Watch and listen to an example of a fairy tale variant. This African folktale is titled "Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters."

SIMILARITIES TO CINDERELLA

Mufaro's Daughters contains several parallels to the traditional Cinderella fairy tale.

The story begins "Once Upon a Time..."
Both stories have main characters, Cinderella and Nyasha, who are both very kind and beautiful.
Both contain the common theme of good vs. evil as demonstrated through characters who are sisters of the main character. The sisters are considered to be "bad" or evil, shallow, and self-serving.
With the help of magic, both Cinderella and Nyasha live happily ever after.

Cinderella's Fairy Godmother provides her with a chariot and a beautiful dress so that she may attend the ball and subsequently, meet her Prince Charming.

Nyasha finds a little garden snake which changed into the king before her eyes. When the King witnessed the kindness Nyasha displayed, he decided to marry her.

At the story's conclusion, readers are reminded of the importance of kindness because you “never know where the king may be."

The moral of the story? In other words, being kind provides rewards in the end!

Cultural Influences

Southern Africa

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters is an African Folktale. The character names in this folktale, just like the character names in traditional fairy tales, are significant. The names in Mufaro's beautiful Daughters are from the Shona language and mean the following: Mufaro (moo-FAR-on) means "happy man" Nyasha (ne-AH-sha) means "mercy," Manyara (mahn-YAR-ah) means "ashamed," and Myoka (nee-YO-kah) means "snake."

In the story, Nyasha grew yams and millet in her garden. There are some native varieties of yams in Southern Africa (where the story takes place). Millet is a grain that is also indigenous to southern Africa. . It was later used to prepare bread for the wedding feast.

Nyasha said, "A great spirit must stand guard here." Also, the king could transform himself into different things, like an old woman or a snake. Witchcraft and spirits are part of traditional Zimbabwe. They can serve various functions, including harming people or seeking revenge.