Myths, legends and folk stories from the Baltic Lands
Fairy Tale | Estonia | 
14 minute read
An Estonian fairy tale, this version was published in the Violet Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, in 1901.
Once upon a time there lived a queen whose heart was sore because she had no children. She was sad enough when her husband was at home with her, but when he was away she would see nobody, but sat and wept all day long.
Fairy Tale | Lithuania | 6 minute read
A Lithuanian fairy tale, this version is from Tales of The Amber Sea, compiled and translated by Irina Zheleznova in 1974.
Strakalas and Makalas were neighbours. They got on well together and were friends from their earliest years. If one of them killed a pig or celebrated a christening he never forgot to invite the other. It was with good reason that the villagers said that if Strakalas were made king, Makalas would be sure to share his throne.
But what was bad was that the two friends were as stubborn as mules and rare braggarts to boot! Should Strakalas, without stopping to think, remark that in America cows had wings and flew like birds he’d never go back on it, no matter what you did, but keep repeating it till doomsday. And should Makalas declare that in Turkey drills and hammers grew in the fields he’d insist it was so even if you threatened to kill him for it.
Fairy Tale | Estonia | 13 minute read
An Estonian fairy tale, this version is from Tales of The Amber Sea, compiled and translated by Irina Zheleznova in 1974.
Once upon a time some men out hunting for mushrooms in the forest found one that was bigger than any they had ever seen before. They began pulling it out of the ground when lo! – a little old man sprang out from under it. No larger than a finger he was with a beard twice that size. The little old man rushed off but the men ran after him. They caught him and asked who he was.
Said the little old man:
“I am king of all the mushrooms growing in this forest.”
Fairy Tale | Estonia | 9 minute read
An Estonian fairy tale, this version is from Tales of The Amber Sea, compiled and translated by Irina Zheleznova in 1974.
Once in times long past a woodcutter went to the forest to chop some wood. He came up to a birch-tree and waved his axe and the birch-tree spoke up in a human voice and said:
“Do not kill me, woodcutter! I am young and have many children. What will they do without me?”
Fairy Tale | Estonia | 26 minute read
An Estonian fairy tale, this version was published in the Violet Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, in 1901.
Once upon a time the king of the Goldland lost himself in a forest, and try as he would he could not find the way out. As he was wandering down one path which had looked at first more hopeful than the rest he saw a man coming towards him.
‘What are you doing here, friend?’ asked the stranger; ‘darkness is falling fast, and soon the wild beasts will come from their lairs to seek for food.’
‘I have lost myself,’ answered the king, ‘and am trying to get home.’