The Maiden Tsar

For a ballet also called The Tsar Maiden, see The Little Humpbacked Horse (ballet).

The Maiden Tsar (Russian: Царь-девица, romanized: Tsar-devitsa, Tsar-Maiden, Tsar-Maid) is a character in East Slavic folktales. It is best known from Alexander Afanasyev's eight-volume collection Narodnye russkie skazki (1855—1863), folktale "Царь-девица"; variants recorded in Orenburg Governorate (number 232) and Perm Governorate (number 233).[1]

The tale is classified - and gives its name - to tale type SUS 400/2, "Russian: Царь-девица, romanized: Tsar-devitsa, lit. 'Tsar-Maiden'", of the East Slavic Folktale Catalogue (Russian: СУС, romanized: SUS).[2][3] The East Slavic type corresponds, in the international catalogue of the Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index, to tale type ATU 400, "The Quest for the Lost Wife".[4]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference sru was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Barag, Lev. "Сравнительный указатель сюжетов. Восточнославянская сказка". Leningrad: НАУКА, 1979. p. 128.
  3. ^ Haney, Jack V. The Complete Russian Folktale. Vol. 1: An Introduction to the Russian Folktale. Armonk, New York; London, England: M. E Sharpe. 2001. pp. 244-247. ISBN 1-56324-489-6
  4. ^ Johns, Andreas. Baba Yaga: The Ambiguous Mother and Witch of the Russian Folktale. New York: Peter Lang. 2010 [2004]. p. 198. ISBN 978-0-8204-6769-6.