The Boy Who Came from a Peach and the Girl with a Bowl on Her Head: The Many Faces of Japanese Fairy Tales

Abstract

Abstract Japanese fairy tales ( mukashibanashi ) display a diversity of themes and narrative patterns resisting broad generalization. Much of the Japanese fairy‐tale repertoire is rooted in transregional folkloric traditions, and although continental Asia made the greatest contribution to this repertoire, many Japanese fairy tales have Western cognates. However, Japanese fairy tales are set apart from Western fairy tales by their tolerance of transgressions of the animal–human boundary (epitomized by the motif of irui kon'in , or marriage between an animal and a human) and their tendency to conclude with the protagonist returning to his or her original circumstances. The modern Japanese fairy‐tale repertoire includes Western fairy tales imported in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, while the oldest Japanese fairy tales can be traced to mythohistorical chronicles from the eighth century. Historical investigation reveals that iconic fairy tales such as “Momotarō” and “Urashimatarō” have transformed significantly over time and lack a stable, singular message.