Lutung Kasarung (English: The Lost Ape, The Stray Ape[1]) is a Sundanese folktale from Indonesia. Set in the Pasir Batang Kingdom, it tells the tale of a magical lutung (a type of black monkey) who helped a beautiful princess, Purbasari Ayuwangi, when her older sister attempted to rob her of her status as crown princess. The story is from an old Sundanese quatrain.[2]
The theme and moral of the legend are similar to those of the European folktale "Beauty and the Beast" (Indonesian: Si Cantik dan Si Buruk Rupa, Tagalog: Si Maganda at ang Halimaw).[3][circular reference][4][circular reference]