Fisherman Plunk and his Wife.
1. Zora-djevojka (the Dawn-Maiden). To this day many old folk-tales of the Slavs tell of the Dawn-Maiden who sails the sea in the early morning in her boat of gold with a silver paddle and dwells in the Island of Bujan.
2. The Sea King. Slovenes and Slovaks alike tell of a mighty and wealthy Sea King who reigns in the depths of the sea.
3. The Island of Bujan (the Isle Bountiful). This is a wonderful island, so named for its abundance and fruitfulness and luxuriant vegetation. It was the ancient Slav’s conception of Paradise. To this day the Russians mention it in refrains and spells against sickness, for a plentiful harvest, etc.
4. The Stone Alatir (Gold-a-Fire). Is mentioned in ancient Slav tales as “the white burning stone on Bujan,” and may perhaps be taken to stand for the sun.
5. Sea Maidens (Mermaids). In Slovene and Croatian folk-tales, as with us, this term is applied to fabulous sea creatures, which are beautiful women to the waist, and from the waist downward shaped like a forked fish tail.
6. The dumb speech. The Jugoslavs popularly believe that animals converse with each other in a special “language,” and that certain human beings can “speak” and understand this “language.”
7. The Monstrous Snake, the Bird with the Iron Beak, the Golden Bee. Three monsters which, according to folk-tales, stir up the waves, raise tempests, and provoke thunderstorms round the Isle of Bujan, whence the storms spread throughout the world.
Palunko (Plunk) has no special significance, but the sound suggests a doleful, feckless sort of person.
Winpeace is a translation of Vlatko.