| John Erdélyi,[50]Folk-Songs and Popular Tales, 3 vols. | containing | 34 | tales | |
| George Gaál,[51]Hungarian Folk-Tales, 3 vols. | " | 53 | " | |
| John Erdélyi,Hungarian Popular Tales, 1 vol. | " | 13 | " | |
| Ladislaus Merényi,Original Popular Tales, 2 vols. | } | " | 65 | " |
| Ladislaus Merényi,Popular Tales from the Valley of the Sajó, 2 vols. | } | |||
| Ladislaus Merényi,Popular Tales from the Banks of the Danube, 2 vols. | } | |||
| Ladislaus Arany,Original Popular Tales, 1 vol. | " | 35 | " | |
| John Kriza,[52]Wild Roses, 1 vol.[53] | " | 20 | " | |
| Julius Pap,Palócz Folk-Poetry, 1 vol. | " | " | ||
| Count John Majláth,[54]Hungarian Fairy Tales, Sagas and Popular Tales, translated from the German by G. Kazinczy, 1 vol. | " | 6 | " | |
| Maurus Jókai,Witty Tales of the Hungarian Folk, 1 vol. | " | 8 | " | |
| Total, | 240 |
Of these, Erdélyi's first collection and Kriza's Wild Roses are the most important, and the translation of them form the bulk of this volume. Since 1867 the work of collecting the Popular Tales has been going on steadily, and the Hungarian Language Guardian (Magyar Nyelvör) is a paper specially devoted to the purpose: publishing popular sayings, proverbs, children's games, nursery rhymes, &c. Very little of the Folk-lore treasure is known outside of Hungary. There is Count Majláth's collection, which appeared originally in German, and also a German edition of Gaál, and one by Stier, which contains some of Erdélyi's stories. In English the only translations we are aware of are the tale of "The talking grapes, the smiling apple, and the tinkling apricot," from Erdélyi's collection, which was translated by Mr. E. D. Butler, and appeared in a London suburban paper; and another tale, "The Round Stone," in the February number of the St. Nicholas Magazine, 1882; so that this collection opens up new ground. The great difficulty in considering these tales—in common with the Finn, Esthonian, and Lapp—is the language; and the aim of the present translation is but to be as literal as possible in its rendering of the stories; there being no attempt whatever made to polish or beautify the tales, but simply an endeavour to reproduce as near as may be the stories as told by the people; in many cases, especially with regard to the Székely stories, this has been a work of very great difficulty, on account of the dialect, and must plead for the many shortcomings in the translations.
A brief consideration of some points in Magyar Folk-lore may be found of interest in a study of the stories. And I am indebted for the following information on giants, fairies, and witches to a valuable paper, entitled Mythological Elements in Székely Folk-lore and Folk-life, read by Kozma before the Hungarian Academy in 1882.
[I. GIANTS.][55]
Many of the characteristics of the Magyar giants are the same as those to be found in the Greek and German mythologies, but we do not find anything extraordinary in their appearance, such as one eye—as Cyclops[56], or sundry heads as the northern giants, nor redundant fingers and toes as the Jews; they are simply big men. There is no trace of any struggle between the gods and the giants in Magyar mythology.
They are said to be sons of witches,[57] and as tall as towers,[58] and step from mountain-top to mountain-top as they walk.
The length of their stride and the pace at which they walk is illustrated in a tradition, according to which the giants who inhabited a fortress called Kadicsavár, near the River Nyikó, were in the act of shaving when the bells rang first from the church-tower of Gyula-Fejérvár, at the second ringing they dressed, on the third ringing they sat in church.[59]
Near Szotyor in Háromszék[60] there is a rock, which is called the "Giant's Stone," on the top of this there is a cavity resembling in shape the heel of a man; the diameter of this hole is five feet, and popular tradition says it is the imprint of a giant's heel.
When the giant is angry he strikes a blow with his fist on the rock, and traces of his fist are shown now-a-days on a rock near Ikavar; his footstep is shown in the neighbourhood of Kézdi-Borosnyó, on a rocky ledge near a spring, where he used to come down to drink.
With one foot he stands on the mountain where Csiki-Bálványos-vár castle stands; with the other on a mountain opposite, and bending down, he picks up the water of the River Olt, running in the valley below, in a gigantic bucket, with one swoop.