German Fairy Tales, Folk Tales and Fables
Read German fairy tales from The Grimm Brothers, Margaret Ardnt, Charles John Tibbits and more. Jump to full list of German fairy tales.
About: Germany is a country with a long and rich tradition in folklore, with stories many know and love. It is the home of beloved fairy tales with characters such as Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, and others. Germany is also the birthplace of the Brothers Grimm, storytellers who collected fairy tales and folklore from around the country. German fairy tales are perhaps some of the most beloved stories for children and adults. A new museum dedicated to the Brothers Grimm stands in Germany, and features attractions based on these beloved stories. Germany isn’t just known for the Grimm fairy tales, however, as the country also brought us other collections of German folklore, such as Fairy Tales from the German Forests by Margaret Ardnt and Charles John Tibbits’ Folk-Lore and Legends: German.
National Monument to the Brothers Grimm in the Grimm’s birthplace of Hanau, Germany. Sculpted by Syrius Eberle and unveiled October 1896.
German folklore is similar to the folklore of Scandinavian and English cultures because all three have origins in a Germanic mythology. The country’s folklore tradition is characterized with peasants who become heroes, woodcutters who have children, and royalty that has fallen under an enchantment. Many German fairy tales or folk tales feature a female protagonist, and often the character ends up marrying royalty, thereby elevating their social stature as a reward for being “good.” Most German folklore stories feature a romanticism of natural spaces, in particular forests, and in nearly every story, the villain gets his or her retribution, thereby teaching a moral tale, with values important to the culture. The message is clear- goodness and kindness are rewarded, while cruelty and selfishness are punished in German folklore.
“When she got to the wood, she met a Wolf.” Illustration of Little Red Riding Hood by Arthur Rackham from The Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm, published 1909.
A wandering hero is often present in German folklore, as the protagonist either leaves home to seek their fortune, or is cast out by a family or other forces. The hero’s journey often involves a helper, such as Cinderella’s fairy godmother, and sometimes the character’s morality is tested in German fairy tales. To get their happy ending or wish, the hero often has to overcome a difficulty. Objects often have magical properties that can aid the hero in their quest, and the hero is very clever in German fairy tales and folklore.
The folklore of the Grimm Brothers and other German storytellers often comes from oral traditions, stories passed from person to person over the years. The Grimm Brothers invited local storytellers into their home, and would transcribe the tales told there, changing elements they wanted to make the stories more moral and accessible, and adding spiritual elements they deemed necessary. German folklore is grounded in the national culture as evidenced by tales that specifically mention certain locations and places.
Listen to the Brothers Grimm’s stories and other German fairy tale audiobooks on the Fairytalez Audio App for Apple and Android devices.
- The Bremen Town-Musicians
- Bearskin
- Brunhilda
- Briar Rose
- The Bittern and the Hoopoe
- The Beast Slayer
- The Boots of Buffalo-Leather
- Brides on their Trial
- The Biter Bit
- The Beam
- The Blue Light
- The Bright Sun Brings it to Light
- Brother Lustig
- Brother and Sister
- Clever Hans
- Clever Elsie
- The Children of Hameln (The Pied Piper)
- The Christmas Fairy of Strasburg
- Cinderella
- The Crystal Coffin
- Cat and Mouse in Partnership
- Clever Grethel
- The Crystal Ball
- The Cellar of the Old Knights in the Kyffhauser
- Crumbs on the Table
- The Conclave of Corpses
- The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs
- The Devil's Sooty Brother
- Doctor Knowall
- Doctor All-Wise
- The Dwarf Long-Nose
- The Dragon and His Grandmother
- The Dog and the Sparrow
- Death's Messengers
- The Duration of Life
- The Dragon's Tail
- The Drummer
- The Ditmarsch Tale of Wonders
- The Donkey
- Domestic Servants
- The Dragon's Tail
- The Death of the Little Hen
- The Devil and His Grandmother
- Donkey Cabbages
- The Dancers
- The Elves (The Shoemaker and the Elves)
- Eve's Various Children
- The Engineer and the Dwarfs
- The Easter Hare
- The Elfin Grove
- The Ear of Corn
- The Elves
- The Flaming Castle
- Fitcher's Bird
- The Four Clever Brothers
- The Fox and the Geese
- Frau Trude
- Fitcher's Bird
- Fundevogel
- The Frog-King, or Iron Henry
- The Flail from Heaven
- Faithful John
- The Fox and the Horse
- Fair Katrinelje and Pif-Paf-Poltrie
- Ferdinand the Faithful
- The Fox and the Cat (Brothers Grimm)
- The Fox and His Cousin
- Fastrada
- The Fisherman and his Wife
- Fortunatus and His Purse
- The Goose Girl
- The Girl Without Hands
- The Golden Goose
- The Gnome
- The Goose-Girl
- The Gold-Children
- Gambling Hansel
- The Godfather
- The Golden Bird
- The Goose-Girl at the Well
- Godfather Death
- The Griffin
- The Golden Key
- God's Food
- Going A-Traveling
- The Golden Lads
- The Golden Mermaid
- The Good Bargain
- Gaffer Death
- The Grey Mare in the Garret
- The Golden Goose
- The Grave-Mound
- The Golden Cobwebs
- The Giant and the Tailor
- The Hunter Hackelnberg and the Tut-Osel
- Hans Jagenteufel
- Hans Married
- Hans in Luck
- The Hare and the Hedgehog
- How Six Men Got on in the World
- The Hut in the Forest
- Hansel and Grethel
- Holiday Adventures
- The Hazel Branch
- Hans the Hedgehog
- The Hare's Bride
- The King of the Golden Mountain
- King Thrushbeard
- The Knapsack, the Hat, and the Horn
- Käthchen and the Kobold
- King Reinhold
- Knoist and His Three Sons
- The King's Son Who Feared Nothing
- King Grisly-Beard
- The Little Gray Man
- The Louse and the Flea
- The Lady and the Lion
- The Little Folks' Presents
- The Little Farmer
- Lean Lisa
- Lazy Harry
- Little Snow-White
- Little Red-Cap (Little Red Riding Hood, Grimms' Version)
- The Lord's Animals and the Devil's
- Little One-Eye, Little Two-Eyes, and Little Three-Eyes
- The Lambikin and the Little Fish
- The Lazy Spinner
- The Legend of Paracelsus
- The Legend of Rheineck
- The Little Shroud
- The Legend of Rubezahl, or Number-Nip
- The Monks at the Ferry
- The Marvellous Musician
- Master Pfreim
- The Moon
- Maid Maleen
- The Magic Swan
- The Maid of Brakel
- The Mouse Tower
- The Master-Thief
- The Mouse, the Bird and the Sausage
- Mother Holle
- Olde Hildenbrand
- Old Sultan
- The Owl
- The Old King
- Odds and Ends
- Our Lady's Little Glass
- The Old Woman in the Wood
- The Old-Beggar Woman
- The Old Man Made Young Again
- Old Rinkrank
- Our Lady's Child
- One-Eye, Two-Eyes, and Three-Eyes
- The Old Man and His Grandson
- The Old Woman in the Wood
- The Peasant's Wise Daughter
- The Poor Man and the Rich Man
- The Princess Who Was Hidden Underground
- The Pink
- The Peasant in Heaven
- Prince Fickle and Fair Helena
- Poverty and Humility Lead to Heaven
- Puddocky
- The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat
- The Pack of Ragamuffins
- Peter Klaus
- The Peasant and the Devil
- The Poor Boy in the Grave
- The Raven (Brothers Grimm)
- The Robber Bridegroom
- Rapunzel
- A Riddling Tale
- Rubezahl
- Rumpelstiltskin (Grimm's version)
- The Rose
- Rumpelstiltzkin
- The Riddle
- The Seven Ravens
- St. Andrew's Night
- Sweet Poridge
- The Singing Bone
- The Spirit in the Bottle
- The Sturgeon
- Snowdrop
- The Singing, Soaring Lark
- The Six Swans
- Sweetheart Roland
- The Sole
- Sharing Joy and Sorrow
- Strong Hans
- The Story of Schlauraffen Land
- The Sparrow and His Four Children
- The Sea-Hare
- St. Joseph in the Forest
- The Stolen Farthings
- The Star Money
- The Shepherd Boy
- The Skilful Huntsman
- Simeli Mountain
- The Shroud
- The Story of a Clever Tailor
- The Six Servants
- The Shoes That Were Danced to Pieces
- Snow-White and Rose-Red
- Snow-White and Rose-Red
- The Seven Swabians
- The Straw, The Coal, and the Bean
- The Spindle, The Shuttle, and the Needle
- The Stranger-Child
- Stories About Snakes
- The Three Languages
- The Tailor in Heaven
- The Three Little Birds
- Thumbling
- The Tale of the Pointer Tray
- The Tale of the Snow and the Steeple
- Thumbling as Journeyman
- The Twelve Idle Servants
- The Twelve Apostles
- The Three Green Twigs
- The Turnip
- The Two Kings' Children
- The Twelve Huntsmen
- The Two Travelers
- The Three Black Princesses
- The Three Musicians
- The Three Dogs
- The Twelve Brothers
- The Three Brothers
- The Three Little Men in the Wood
- The Three Apprentices
- The Three Sons of Fortune
- The Three Spinning Women
- The Two Brothers
- The Three-Army Surgeons
- The Three-Snake Leaves
- The Tale of a Youth Who Set Out to Learn What Fear Was
- The True Sweethearts
- Wise Folks
- The Willow-Wren and the Bear
- The Waits of Bremen
- The Water of Life
- The White Maiden
- The Wishing-Table, The Gold-Ass, and the Cudgel in the Sack
- The Wedding of Ms. Fox
- Wise Folks
- The Wolf and the Man
- What's the Use of It?
- The Willow-Wren
- The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids
- The Wise Servant
- The Witch's Granddaughter
- The Wilful Child
- The War of the Wolf and the Fox
- The White Bride and the Black One
- The Wonderful Musician
- The Water-Nix
- The Water Spirit
- The Wolf and the Fox
- The White Snake
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