Stories from the Arabian Gulf: Bu Draeyah, Um Homar and the Survival of Qatari Folktales
Two popular folktales of the Arab world tell of Bu Draeyah, a cruel sea creature, and Homarat Al-Guyla, a half-woman, half-donkey, who eats children.
Haunted by Monsters: Top 5 Wicked Creatures in Polish Folklore
ith its rich folklore, deep woods filled with wild boars, wolves and massive bison, and dark 20th century history, Poland often feels haunted by monsters. I first went to Poland when I was eighteen and among the places I visited was the fairy-tale city of Kraków. Although I traveled extensively afterwards, I found myself returning […]
A Pied Piper Mystery
hile the Pied Piper of Hamelin is undeniably a fairy tale, it’s uniquely grounded in real-world specifics – the date for one – June 26. That’s the date in 1284 when the town lost a significant portion of its population, a matter treated as fact in the first written allusion to the incidents, the initial […]
The Power of Storytelling: Diverse tales and the “refugee crisis”
In recent years, in conjunction with the steadfast advance of far-right nationalistic ideologies, the so-called ‘’refugee crisis’’ has been repeatedly distorted through an outpouring of negative narratives surrounding migrants and migration, which hit the headlines on a daily basis across various mediatic channels worldwide.
The Seal Children: Sealskins and Soulskins. Or, When We Were Migrants
The first story that I found in this land where I live was The Seal Children, and as we walk the path to Maes Y Mynydd where the story is set, my mind wanders back through selkie stories.