| "The Fire-Fairy" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Pavel Bazhov | |
| Original title | Огневушка-поскакушка |
| Translator | Alan Moray Williams (first), Eve Manning, et al. |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Language | Russian |
| Genre(s) | skaz (fairy tale) |
| Publication | |
| Published in | Morozko |
| Publication type | anthology |
| Publisher | Sverdlovsk Publishing House |
| Media type | |
| Publication date | 1940 |
| Series | The Malachite Casket collection (list of stories) |
"The Fire-Fairy" or "The Dancing Fire Maid" (Russian: Огневушка-поскакушка, romanized: Ognevushka-poskakushka, lit. "the hopping fire girl") is a fairy tale short story written by Pavel Bazhov, based on the folklore of the Ural region of Siberia. It was first published in 1940 in the children's stories collection Morozko released by Sverdlovsk Publishing House.[1] It was later included in The Malachite Casket collection.[2] In this fairy tale, the characters meet the female creature from the Ural folklore called Poskakushka (lit. "the jumping/hopping girl"), who can do the magical dance that reveals gold deposits. This is one of the most popular stories of the collection.[3][4] It was translated from Russian into English by Alan Moray Williams in 1944, and by Eve Manning in the 1950s.
Pavel Bazhov indicated that all his stories can be divided into two groups based on tone: "child-toned" (e.g. "Silver Hoof") and "adult-toned" (e.g. "The Stone Flower"). He called "The Fire-Fairy" a "child-toned" story.[5] Such stories have simple plots, children are the main characters, and the mythical creatures help them, typically leading the story to a happy ending.[6]