The Mitten (folk tale)

The Mitten (Ukrainian: Рукавичка) is a Ukrainian fairy tale. It remains popular in modern Ukraine and has been translated to other languages.

Some of the written records of The Mitten date back to the 19th century and included in folk collections of Pavlo Chubynsky.[1] and Ivan Rudchenko[2]

Plot
A Ukrainian stamp (2001), featuring The Mitten characters.

Considering numerous variations of the folk tale, the general story line is following: a man loses his mitten in a forest. One by one various animals come and settle in the mitten planning to spend cold winter in a warm mitten. Prior to settling, a new-comer asks permission from the animals already living there.

The range of animals also varies in different versions and includes: a mouse, frog, hare, fox, wolf, bear and boar. They have nicknames, for example: "Munchy the Mouse" and "Skippy the Frog". The animals arrive to the mitten in increasing order of their size.

Translations

The Mitten was translated into various languages, including English, Japanese, Azerbaijani, German and Russian.

One of the most popular versions of The Mitten retold in English is by Jan Brett.[3]

In 1996 a Ukrainian Animated Film Studio Ukranimafilm released a cartoon The Mitten (N. Marchenkova, а scriptwriter and director).

In 2001 the Ukrainian government released a Ukrainian Fairy Tale series of stamps, including The Mitten.

References
  1. Chubynsky, Pavlo (1872–78). Trudy Etnografichesko-Statisticheskoy Ekspeditsii v Zapadno-Russkiy kray [Works of the Ethnographic-Statistical Expedition to the Western Rus Lands], (in 7 vols.). Saint Petersburg: Maikov. pp. 109–110 (vol. 2).
  2. Rudchenko, Ivan (1869–70). Narodnye Yuzhnorusskie Skazki [South-Russian Folk Tales] (in 2 vols.). Fedorov, Kyiv. pp. 1–2 (vol. 2).
  3. "About the Mitten".
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