The Meitei folktales (), also sometimes referred to as the Manipuri folktales, are the large collections of folk stories developed from the

Meitei culture The culture of Meitei civilization evolved over thousands of years in what is now northeastern India and surrounding regions, beginning in Ancient Kangleipak, continuing most notably into Medieval Kangleipak, while influencing the neighboring sta ...

since Ancient Kangleipak (early

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

). Folktales are called "funga wari" ("phunga wari"), literally meaning ''"stories of kitchen furnace or stove"'' in

Meitei language Meitei (; ) also known as Manipuri ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of northeast India. It is the official language and the lingua franca of Manipur and an additional official language in four districts of Assam. It is one of the scheduled ...

(officially called

Manipuri language Meitei (; ) also known as Manipuri ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of northeast India. It is the official language and the lingua franca of Manipur and an additional official language in four districts of Assam. It is one of the scheduled ...

). In early times, in the Meitei households, children must have gathered around the kitchen fire, listening to the stories narrated by the elders. Generally, Meitei folktales were developed from the creativity of the old folks, especially the grandparents, who narrated the children the diverse sagas of varying genres.

List of Tales

*The Rain of Kabok *The Female Mosquito's Plight *The Clever Frog Defeats the Tiger and the Elephant *Water that Turns Everyone into Tigers * Tiger Head *The Flying Elephant * Sandrembi and Chaisra *The Golden Deer and the Golden Parrot *The Golden Parrot *The Doe and the Crow *The Two Brothers *The Pigeon's Feast *The Clever Fox *The Fox and the Jackal *The Fox's Trick *Light Spirit *The Witch without a Chin *The Doll's Groom *The Doll's Boon *The Seven Poor Sons *The Python's Promise *The Widow's Son *The Widow and the Frog *The Demon Queen *A Contest of Wit *Big Head *The Three-Headed Men *The Stepmother *The Brother and Sister *The Brother and Sister *The Woman who Turned into a Parrot *The Man who Turned into a Bird *The Magic Stick *The Magical Stool *The Origin of Humans *The King's Umbrella *The Bird and the Tiger *The Egotistical Elephant and the Praying Bird *The Proud Bamboo *The Proud Buffalo *Two Princes * The Man who Shot the Sun *The sun and the cock *Blessings from Spirit * Tapta , la= *The Seven Loaves *The Human Python *Tembalaithak , la= *Revenge on the Cat *The Clever Hare *The Brave Friend * An Old Couple Plant Taro * The Girl who Turned into a Cicada *The Cruel Stepmother *The Vampire * Henjunaha *The Cat and the Bat *The Mystic Cat and the Bird *The Cat's Nature *The Carpenter and Chaoren *A Sculpted Wooden Face * The Hornbill *My Friendly Lamp *A Foolish Younger Brother *The Foolish Man's Fortune *The Truth-telling Fruit *Child Who Turned into a Pumpkin

References

; Bibliography: *

List of Tales

See also

References

Further reading