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The Princess Who Could Not Keep a Secret
The Princess Who Could Not Keep a Secret (Turkish: Sır Saklamayan Padişah Kızı) is a Turkish fairy tale published by Turkish folklorist Saim Sakaoğlu, about a princess who marries a youth in snakeskin, loses him due to her breaking his trust, and goes after him at his mother's home, where she is forced to perform hard tasks for her.
The tale belongs to the international cycle of the Animal as Bridegroom or The Search for the Lost Husband, wherein a human princess marries a supernatural husband, loses him, and goes on a quest to find him. It is also distantly related to the Graeco-Roman myth of Cupid and Psyche, in that the heroine is forced to perform difficult tasks for a witch or her mother-in-law.
The tale was originally collected from an informant named Fazıl Mağa, from the region of Gümüşhane, and published by Turkish folklorist Saim Sakaoğlu. It was translated to German by Adelheid Uzunoğlu-Ocherbauer as Die Prinzessin, die kein Geheimnis für sich behalten konnte ("The Princess who could not Keep a Secret").
A poor couple have no children, and the old woman asks her husband to bring them a son, even if it is a snake. The old man earns their living by gathering firewood and selling it in the market. One day, the man brings home a bundle of firewood with a snake inside. Thanking God for having a son, the old couple feed and take care of the animal, and wherever the snake sleeps, a gold bar appears. Time passes, and the snake tells his father to go to the Sultan and ask for his eldest daughter in marriage with Mindilhava (the snake's name). The old man goes to the sultan's palace and sits on a stone reserved for suitors. The sultan takes the old man in and agrees with the proposal, but sets as a condition that a certain mountain must be moved next to the castle. Mindilhava fulfills the task; the sultan's eldest daughter is guided to a room, where she waits for her bridegroom: a snake comes into the room, but she returns to her father's palace. The sultan then says she should have waited a bit more. The snake then asks his father to go for the sultan's middle daughter; this time, the sultan orders that the river Tschoruh must flow next to his palace. The snake fulfills the second task; but the middle daughter also rejects her snake bridegroom. Finally, the snake asks for the sultan's youngest daughter, and this time he has to provide seven camels carrying loads of gold. The snake does and the third princess is guided to the room. She accepts the snake as her destiny, and shares the bed with the snake for three nights. On the fourth night, the snake takes off its skin and becomes a handsome youth, so handsome the sultan's daughter passes out.
After six months, her elder sister suggests they invite their sister to see if she is still alive. The princess goes, and her father summons a jirit tournament, to which his snake son-in-law is invited. The snake, in human form, tells his wife he will take part in the festivities, but she must not tell anyone about his true identity. On the first day, he rides a fiery red horse with red clothes; on the second day, a black horse with black clothes; and on the third a white horse on white clothes. The princess's sisters mock her for her snake husband and admire the jirit rider, but on the third day she reveals the secret; a sudden storm rages and her husband disappears. She wears iron shoes and walks with an iron cane. On her journey, she meets a dervish who tells her she will reach a spring at the end of the way, where her husband's sister will come fetch water, and she must drop his ring on the water jug. It happens as the dervish advises: her husband recognizes the ring and goes to the fountain to get his wife. He explains that his mother is a Dev, with breasts fallen over her shoulders, so she should suckle his mother's breasts to avoid being devoured.
His dev-mother believes the princess is just a girl who lost her way, and suggests to her son they should take her a goose-herd. Meanwhile, Mindilhava (the man) has been betrothed to his cousin, and the Dev-mother orders the princess to go to his aunt to fetch instruments for the upcoming wedding. Mindilhava advises his human wife to go there and fetch a sooty box over the stove, and flee as quickly as she can. The princess gets the box, but, on the way, she opens the box and the instruments escape. Mindilhava comes and orders the instruments to return to the box. Next, the Dev-mother orders the princess to fetch bird feathers for a blanket. Mindilhava takes the princess to the top of a mountain and summons all the birds for them to give their feathers. Lastly, during the wedding, the Dev-mother dips the princess's body in wax and places ten candles on her fingers, and takes her to Mindilhava's room. The princess utters to herself for her fingers to "burn with love" for Mindilhava, and he hears it. He takes the candles and places them in his cousin's fingers, then takes the princess, two razors and flees with her on a horse.
The next morning, Mindilhava's mother opens the room and discovers her niece has burnt to death. His aunt chases after them, and the pair throws behind the razors to delay her. Next, his sister comes after them, and Mindilhava shapeshifts the princess into a tree and himself into a dervish to trick her. Lastly, his own Dev-mother goes after them; Mindilhava creates a lake and turns himself and the princess into ducks. The Dev-mother comes and asks the ducks how they got there, and the ducks answer that she should tie two millstones around her neck and swim. The Dev-mother does that and drowns. The princess and Mindilhava go back to the Sultan's realm.
Sakaoglu classified the tale, according to the Turkish Folktale Catalogue (TTV), as Turkish type TTV 98. In the Typen türkischer Volksmärchen ("Turkish Folktale Catalogue"), by Wolfram Eberhard and Pertev Naili Boratav, type TTV 98, "Der Pferdemann" ("The Horse Man"), corresponds in the international classification to tale type AaTh 425. In a later book, Boratav stated that the Catalogue registered 25 variants, but six more had been collected since its publication.
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The Princess Who Could Not Keep a Secret
The Princess Who Could Not Keep a Secret (Turkish: Sır Saklamayan Padişah Kızı) is a Turkish fairy tale published by Turkish folklorist Saim Sakaoğlu, about a princess who marries a youth in snakeskin, loses him due to her breaking his trust, and goes after him at his mother's home, where she is forced to perform hard tasks for her.
The tale belongs to the international cycle of the Animal as Bridegroom or The Search for the Lost Husband, wherein a human princess marries a supernatural husband, loses him, and goes on a quest to find him. It is also distantly related to the Graeco-Roman myth of Cupid and Psyche, in that the heroine is forced to perform difficult tasks for a witch or her mother-in-law.
The tale was originally collected from an informant named Fazıl Mağa, from the region of Gümüşhane, and published by Turkish folklorist Saim Sakaoğlu. It was translated to German by Adelheid Uzunoğlu-Ocherbauer as Die Prinzessin, die kein Geheimnis für sich behalten konnte ("The Princess who could not Keep a Secret").
A poor couple have no children, and the old woman asks her husband to bring them a son, even if it is a snake. The old man earns their living by gathering firewood and selling it in the market. One day, the man brings home a bundle of firewood with a snake inside. Thanking God for having a son, the old couple feed and take care of the animal, and wherever the snake sleeps, a gold bar appears. Time passes, and the snake tells his father to go to the Sultan and ask for his eldest daughter in marriage with Mindilhava (the snake's name). The old man goes to the sultan's palace and sits on a stone reserved for suitors. The sultan takes the old man in and agrees with the proposal, but sets as a condition that a certain mountain must be moved next to the castle. Mindilhava fulfills the task; the sultan's eldest daughter is guided to a room, where she waits for her bridegroom: a snake comes into the room, but she returns to her father's palace. The sultan then says she should have waited a bit more. The snake then asks his father to go for the sultan's middle daughter; this time, the sultan orders that the river Tschoruh must flow next to his palace. The snake fulfills the second task; but the middle daughter also rejects her snake bridegroom. Finally, the snake asks for the sultan's youngest daughter, and this time he has to provide seven camels carrying loads of gold. The snake does and the third princess is guided to the room. She accepts the snake as her destiny, and shares the bed with the snake for three nights. On the fourth night, the snake takes off its skin and becomes a handsome youth, so handsome the sultan's daughter passes out.
After six months, her elder sister suggests they invite their sister to see if she is still alive. The princess goes, and her father summons a jirit tournament, to which his snake son-in-law is invited. The snake, in human form, tells his wife he will take part in the festivities, but she must not tell anyone about his true identity. On the first day, he rides a fiery red horse with red clothes; on the second day, a black horse with black clothes; and on the third a white horse on white clothes. The princess's sisters mock her for her snake husband and admire the jirit rider, but on the third day she reveals the secret; a sudden storm rages and her husband disappears. She wears iron shoes and walks with an iron cane. On her journey, she meets a dervish who tells her she will reach a spring at the end of the way, where her husband's sister will come fetch water, and she must drop his ring on the water jug. It happens as the dervish advises: her husband recognizes the ring and goes to the fountain to get his wife. He explains that his mother is a Dev, with breasts fallen over her shoulders, so she should suckle his mother's breasts to avoid being devoured.
His dev-mother believes the princess is just a girl who lost her way, and suggests to her son they should take her a goose-herd. Meanwhile, Mindilhava (the man) has been betrothed to his cousin, and the Dev-mother orders the princess to go to his aunt to fetch instruments for the upcoming wedding. Mindilhava advises his human wife to go there and fetch a sooty box over the stove, and flee as quickly as she can. The princess gets the box, but, on the way, she opens the box and the instruments escape. Mindilhava comes and orders the instruments to return to the box. Next, the Dev-mother orders the princess to fetch bird feathers for a blanket. Mindilhava takes the princess to the top of a mountain and summons all the birds for them to give their feathers. Lastly, during the wedding, the Dev-mother dips the princess's body in wax and places ten candles on her fingers, and takes her to Mindilhava's room. The princess utters to herself for her fingers to "burn with love" for Mindilhava, and he hears it. He takes the candles and places them in his cousin's fingers, then takes the princess, two razors and flees with her on a horse.
The next morning, Mindilhava's mother opens the room and discovers her niece has burnt to death. His aunt chases after them, and the pair throws behind the razors to delay her. Next, his sister comes after them, and Mindilhava shapeshifts the princess into a tree and himself into a dervish to trick her. Lastly, his own Dev-mother goes after them; Mindilhava creates a lake and turns himself and the princess into ducks. The Dev-mother comes and asks the ducks how they got there, and the ducks answer that she should tie two millstones around her neck and swim. The Dev-mother does that and drowns. The princess and Mindilhava go back to the Sultan's realm.
Sakaoglu classified the tale, according to the Turkish Folktale Catalogue (TTV), as Turkish type TTV 98. In the Typen türkischer Volksmärchen ("Turkish Folktale Catalogue"), by Wolfram Eberhard and Pertev Naili Boratav, type TTV 98, "Der Pferdemann" ("The Horse Man"), corresponds in the international classification to tale type AaTh 425. In a later book, Boratav stated that the Catalogue registered 25 variants, but six more had been collected since its publication.