Japanese folklore
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Mythic Texts and Folktales: |
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Divinities |
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Legendary Creatures & Spirits |
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Legendary Figures |
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Mythical & Sacred Locations |
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Sacred Objects |
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Shinto & Buddhism |
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Folklorists |
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Japanese folklore is the folklore of Japan. It is heavily influenced by both Shinto and Buddhism, the two primary religions in the country. It often involves humorous or bizarre characters and situations, and also includes an assortment of supernatural beings, such as bodhisattva, kami (gods and revered spirits), yōkai (monster-spirits) (such as oni, kappa, and tengu), yūrei (ghosts), dragons, and animals with supernatural powers such as the kitsune (fox), tanuki (raccoon dog), mujina (badger), and bakeneko (transforming cat).
Japanese folklore is often divided into several categories: "mukashibanashi", tales of long-ago; "namidabanashi", sad stories; "obakebanashi", ghost stories; "ongaeshibanashi", stories of repaying kindness; "tonchibanashi", witty stories; "waraibanashi", funny stories; and "yokubaribanashi", stories of greed.
Some well-known Japanese folktales and legends include:
- The story of Kintarō, the superhuman Golden Boy.
- The story of Momotarō, the oni-slaying Peach Boy.
- The story of Urashima Tarō, who rescued a turtle and visited the bottom of the sea.
- The story of Issun-Bōshi, the One-inch Boy.
- Bunbuku Chagama, the story of a teakettle which is actually a shape-changing tanuki.
- The story of the wicked fox-woman Tamamo-no-Mae.
- Shita-kiri Suzume, the story of the tongue-cut sparrow.
- The story of the vengeful Kiyohime, who became a dragon.
- Banchō Sarayashiki, the ghost story of Okiku and the Nine Plates.
- Yotsuya Kaidan, the ghost story of Oiwa.
- Kachi-kachi Yama, the story of a villainous raccoon-dog and a heroic rabbit.
- Hanasaka Jiisan, the story of the old man that made the flowers bloom
In the middle years of the twentieth century storytellers would often travel from town to town telling these stories with special paper illustrations called kamishibai.
