Dungan Folktales and Legends is a unique anthology that acquaints English-speaking readers with the rich and captivating folk stories of the Dungans, Chinese-speaking Muslims who fled Northwest China for Russian Central Asia after failure of the Dungan Revolt (1862-1877) against the Qing dynasty. The most comprehensive collection of Dungan folk narratives, available now in English for the first time, this volume features translations of oral narratives collected in the former Soviet Central Asian republics of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan in the twentieth century, and first published in Dunganskie narodnye skazki i predaniia (1977), which was edited by the internationally renowned Russian sinologist Boris L. Riftin and compiled by his prominent Dungan colleagues Makhmud A. Khasanov and Ilʹias I. Iusupov. The Dungan folk narrative tradition is a vibrant and fascinating tapestry of Chinese, Islamic, and various Central Asian cultural elements. The present volume is comprised of a chapter introducing the Dungan tale and three chapters containing 78 folk stories organized in the following categories: wonder tales and animal tales; novelistic tales, folk anecdotes, and adventure stories; and legends, historical tales, and narratives. Also included are appendixes, a glossary, an index, the original notes to the texts, and translator's notes aimed at an English-reading audience. This volume will be of interest to general readers, as well as students and scholars of folklore, ethnography, anthropology, comparative literature, Chinese studies, and Central Asian studies.

Born in Shor-Tyube, Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, in 1951, Dungan ethnographer and creative writer Ali Dzhon is widely regarded as the preeminent writer on the material and spiritual culture and history of the Dungan people, the Sinophone Muslims of Central Asia. Mystical Forest makes available for the first time in English a significant collection of Dzhon's poems and short stories, which he penned in Russian over a span of more than half a century, from 1969 to 2021, bridging the Soviet and post-Soviet periods. In these rich literary works, Dzhon expresses his thoughts about the world around him, ponders the fate of his people and the meaning of life, and provides finely nuanced descriptions of his feelings about love, nature, and those around him. Organized into nine chapters by theme, the 103 poems of varying length in the collection are witty, colorful, and profound pieces that provide rare glimpses into Dungan cultural life, including Dzhon's searing remembrances of the nineteenth-century Dungan Revolt that led to the first migration of the Hui Muslims from northwestern China to the Russian Empire during the harsh winter of 1877-1878, his moving personal reminiscences of childhood and youth spent in the Soviet Dungan villages of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and his unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities of life faced by the Dungan people in post-Soviet Central Asia. Set largely against the backdrop of daily life in the Dungan settlements, the four riveting pieces of short fiction comprising the final chapter of the collection showcase Dzhon's consummate skill as a storyteller as they probe the human condition. The present volume includes a foreword by prominent Dungan poet Iskhar Shisyr, an introductory chapter, footnotes, an index, a map, and photographs. This book will appeal to students, scholars, and general readers interested in Dungan literature, history, and culture. "Mystical Forest is an exemplary volume of poetry and short stories by a foremost ethnographer of the Dungans, a people who dwell at the crossroads of Central Asia. The translations catch the spirit of these texts that reflect local landscapes, cultural change, and the soul of author Ali Dzhon. Conversant in Dungan culture, Kenneth Yin deftly opens new vistas of local and indigenous writing."--Mark Bender, Professor of Chinese Literature and Folklore, The Ohio State University "Kenneth Yin's Mystical Forest: Collected Poems and Short Stories of Dungan Ethnographer Ali Dzhon is a much welcome addition to Dungan Sinophone studies. The stories and poems collected in this volume are of interest because they provide unparalleled access to the thought, society, and culture of the Dungan people. Their intrinsic literary quality and wide variety of subject matter covered make this volume an invaluable resource for anyone interested in the Dungan people and their history."--Victor H. Mair, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature, University of Pennsylvania "The complicated historical fate of the Dungan people finds its reflection in Mystical Forest, the book of collected poems and short stories written by eminent Dungan ethnographer Ali Dzhon. Combining memories of the personal and collective past with perception of the present, Mystical Forest offers insight into different dimensions of the contemporary Dungan identity. Yin's masterful translation of the collection contributes to the understanding and appreciation of the Dungan culture by the English-reading audience."--Aglaia Starostina, Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences "Mystical Forest introduces readers to a unique literary voice from a part of the world that is often overlooked--but which, once encountered, proves to be unforgettable. Ali Dzhon is a poet and ethnographer of Dungan heritage who has spent the past fifty years writing at the intersection of Central Asia's diverse cultures, languages, political regimes, and religious traditions. This comprehensive collection of poetry and prose includes meditations on nature, family, and community, as well as reflections on experiences of trauma and hardships both past and present. The stoic beauty of Ali Dzhon's writing style, vividly rendered into English by Kenneth Yin, not only provides valuable insights for students and scholars of the region but will also captivate poetry and story lovers of any age."--Naomi Caffee, Assistant Professor of Russian and Humanities, Reed College "Kenneth Yin delights us with a wonderful translation of the works of the prestigious ethnographer Ali Dzhon, whose literary production enables the reader to experience everyday Dungan life and the landscapes on which it happens. Mystical Forest is undoubtedly a must for those interested in new tendencies in current Dungan literature. With meticulous precision, Yin offers an English version of the emotional sea that carries the Dungan multilingual experience on the Central Asian steppe. Close attention should be given to future works by Yin, who is opening a new branch of literary studies carried out in the English language on Sinophone literatures."--Soledad Jimenez-Tovar, Professor of History, Centro de Investigacion y Docencia Economicas "The Dungan people now living in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan constitute a unique community of Sinophone Muslims bringing together the cultures of China and the Middle East. Mystical Forest is composed of Yin's English translations of poetry and prose by the prominent modern Dungan ethnographer and writer Ali Dzhon, thus presenting to English- language readers the genuine voice of a representative of this people. His works contain both historical memories and facts of the modern life and culture of the Dungans, now making these known internationally."--Rostislav Berezkin, Research Fellow, National Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies, Fudan University

This book contains 175 tales drawn equally from the ancient and modern periods of Korea, plus 16 further tales provided for comparative purposes. Nothing else on this scale or depth is available in any western language. Three broad classes of material are included: foundation myths of ancient states and clans, ancient folktales and legends, modern folktales. Each narrative contains information on its source and provenance, and on its folklore type, similarities to folklore types from China, Japan and elsewhere.

Chinese storytelling has survived through more than a millennium into our own time, while similar oral arts have fallen into oblivion in the West. Under the main heading of 'The Eternal Storyteller', in August 1996 the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies hosted an International Workshop on Oral Literature in Modern China. To this meeting, the first of its kind in Europe, five special guests were invited - master tellers from Yangzhou: Wang Xizotang, Li Xintang, Fei Zhengliang, Dai Buzhang and Hui Zhaolong. The volume derived from this meeting includes an introductory article written by John Miles Foley entitled 'A Comparative View on Oral Traditions'. Thereafter, a wide range of topics relating to Chinese oral literature is covered under the headings: 'Historical Lines', 'A Spectrium of Genres', 'Studies of Yangzhou and Suzhou Story- telling' and 'Performances of Yangzhou Storytelling'. However, the present volume does more than include papers derived from the meeting. It is also lavishly illustrated in word and picture from performances by the guest-storytellers. In so doing, the world of Chinese story telling is not just described and analysed - it is also brought to life.

The Dungans are Chinese Muslims, living mainly in the Kirghiz and Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republics, whose ancestors migrated to Russia more than a hundred years ago. They speak the Kansu and Shensi dialects, but write their Chinese speech with the Cyrillic alphabet. Iasyr Shivaza (1906-1988) is the most celebrated poet of the Dungans. He wrote numerous poems and many novels, he translated works from Russian and Kirghiz into Dungan, he compiled school textbooks for Dungan children and he helped in the creation of the present Dungan alphabet. Iasyr Shivaza worked in the Kirghiz State Publishing House, edited a Dungan newspaper, and served in the Second World War as a war correspondent. The present work discusses his life and achievements."

Originally published in French, Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen features 20 folk tales from the Slavic countries and territories. Very few of the 20 fairy tales included in this volume have been presented before in an English dress; this will doubtless enhance their value in the eyes of the young folk, for whom, principally, they are intended. Herein you will find tales like The Twelve Months - the story of Marouckla, who is set seemingly impossible tasks by her stepmother, but with the help of the Twelve Months overcomes and succeeds. The Lost Child – the story of a childless Noble couple who pray earnestly for a child. Their wish is granted with one condition – that that the child’s feet never touched the earth until it was twelve years old…… Then you have the stories of The Sovereign of the Mineral Kingdom, Ohnivak, Tears of Pearls, Kinkach Martinko and many more. The Slav race is considerably diverse, both genetically and culturally. Famous Slavs in recent times are Pope John Paul II, the first human astronaut Yuri Gagarin, former President of Russia Mikhail Gorbachev and electrician/inventor Nikola Tesla. In earlier times Slavic groups also migrated as far North as Scandinavia, and constituted elements amongst the Vikings; whilst at the other geographic extreme, Slavic mercenaries fighting for the Byzantines and Arabs settled Asia Minor and even as far East as Syria. Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen was a French collection of the beloved fairy tales passed from generation to generation, and the stories were collected for preservation by Chodzko. Emily Harding, also known as Emily Harding Andrews, published her English translation in 1896, Harding was an illustrator for the woman’s suffrage movement, and frequent illustrator of children’s books. Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen was the first book she had translated and published under her own name. The accompanying 55 illustrations and headpieces speak for themselves, and are what might have been expected from the artist of her calibre. So sit back in a comfy chair with a cup of hot chocolate and enjoy these forgotten tales, lost to Western readers for over 100 years.