Folklore
Tango
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Tango emerged in the working-class port districts of Buenos Aires and Montevideo in the late 19th century. UNESCO recognises it as intangible heritage.
Kind: Dance and music
Map / Folklore
Folklore, myths and music from around the world
Folklore is the stories, songs and beliefs a community passes on. This page lists the folklore pins on the atlas by country, including myths, legends, folk music and storytelling traditions.
Open a pin for a short summary and a link to read more. Pins mark a place strongly linked to the tradition.
56 pins in 28 countries.
Jump to a country
- Argentina 1
- Australia 2
- Brazil 2
- Canada 1
- China 1
- Finland 1
- Germany 1
- Ghana 1
- Iceland 1
- India 17
- Indonesia 2
- Ireland 2
- Italy 1
- Jamaica 1
- Japan 3
- Mexico 2
- New Zealand 1
- Pakistan 1
- Portugal 1
- Romania 1
- Russia 2
- Senegal 1
- South Africa 1
- South Korea 2
- Spain 1
- Switzerland 1
- United Kingdom 3
- United States 2
Questions about folklore
What is folklore?
Folklore is the traditional stories, songs, beliefs and customs that a community passes on, often by word of mouth.
What is the difference between a myth, a legend and a folktale?
A myth usually explains the world through gods or sacred events, a legend centres on a person or place thought to have a historical basis, and a folktale is a story told for entertainment and moral teaching, usually without a claim to be true.
Folklore: Argentina
Folklore: Australia
Folklore
The Rainbow Serpent
Kakadu, Northern Territory, Australia
In many Aboriginal traditions across Australia, a rainbow-coloured serpent is a creator being linked to water and landscape. Stories vary between communities.
Kind: Dreaming story
Folklore
Songlines of Uluru
Uluru, Northern Territory, Australia
For Anangu people, Uluru is a living part of the Tjukurpa, the law and stories of creation. Songlines follow tracks across the land and carry knowledge of places.
Kind: Dreaming stories
Folklore: Brazil
Folklore
Samba de roda
Recôncavo, Bahia, Brazil
A circle dance with singing and percussion that developed among Afro-Brazilian communities in Bahia. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Dance and music
Folklore
Bossa nova
Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
A gentle mix of samba and jazz born in Rio's beach neighbourhoods in the late 1950s. The Girl from Ipanema made it known worldwide.
Kind: Popular music
Folklore: Canada
Folklore
Sasquatch
Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia, Canada
Stories of a large, hairy forest creature draw on Indigenous traditions in the Pacific Northwest, where the name Sasquatch comes from Halkomelem.
Kind: Legend
Folklore: China
Folklore
Peking opera
Beijing, China
A theatre art that mixes song, speech, mime and acrobatics. Performers wear bold painted faces and rich costumes, with colours and patterns that signal each character's nature.
Kind: Musical theatre
Folklore: Finland
Folklore
Kalevala
Kuhmo, Kainuu, Finland
Elias Lönnrot compiled this national epic in the 19th century from oral poems collected in rural Karelia. It helped shape Finnish identity.
Kind: Epic poetry
Folklore: Germany
Folklore
The Brothers Grimm
Kassel, Hesse, Germany
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm collected folk tales such as Hansel and Gretel and Snow White and published them from 1812. Kassel holds the Grimm museum.
Kind: Collected fairy tales
Folklore: Ghana
Folklore
Anansi stories
Kumasi, Ashanti Region, Ghana
Anansi the spider is a clever trickster in Akan folk tales. The stories travelled with enslaved Africans to the Caribbean and the Americas.
Kind: Trickster tales
Folklore: Iceland
Folklore
The Icelandic sagas
Þingvellir, Iceland
Icelanders wrote down tales of Vikings, settlers and gods in the Middle Ages. Þingvellir was where the Althing, one of the world's oldest parliaments, met from 930.
Kind: Sagas and Norse tales
Folklore: India
Folklore
Ramlila and the Ramayana
Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India
The Ramayana, an ancient Sanskrit epic, is retold each autumn in Ramlila folk theatre across northern India. Ayodhya is its traditional setting.
Kind: Epic and folk theatre
Folklore
Baul songs
Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India
The Bauls of Bengal are wandering minstrels whose songs speak of love, freedom and the divine within. Their tradition is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Wandering mystic singers
Folklore
Ghoomar
Udaipur, Rajasthan, India
A graceful Rajasthani dance in which women in flowing skirts twirl in circles, traditionally performed at festivals and weddings.
Kind: Folk dance
Folklore
Bhangra
Amritsar, Punjab, India
A high-energy dance with dhol drum rhythms that began as a harvest celebration in Punjab and now has a global following.
Kind: Folk dance and music
Folklore
Kathakali
Cheruthuruthy, Kerala, India
A dance-drama in which performers in elaborate makeup and costume tell stories from epics through gesture, facial expression and drumming. Cheruthuruthy is home to the Kerala Kalamandalam school.
Kind: Classical dance-drama
Folklore
Theyyam
Kannur, Kerala, India
In northern Kerala, performers in towering headdresses and vivid face paint are believed to embody deities during temple ceremonies.
Kind: Ritual performance
Folklore
Kurukshetra and the Mahabharata
Kurukshetra, Haryana, India
The Mahabharata, one of the longest poems ever composed, sets its great war on the plain of Kurukshetra. The Bhagavad Gita is presented as a conversation on the battlefield.
Kind: Epic
Folklore
Yakshagana
Udupi, Karnataka, India
A night-long dance-drama of coastal Karnataka with bright costumes, tall headgear, singing and drumming, retelling stories from the epics.
Kind: Folk theatre
Folklore
Kalbelia
Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India
The Kalbelia community of Rajasthan performs a swaying dance in black skirts to the sounds of the pungi and dhol. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Folk dance and song
Folklore
Bihu dance
Guwahati, Assam, India
A lively Assamese dance performed during the Bihu festivals, with fast hand movements, flowing steps and drums such as the dhol and pepa.
Kind: Folk dance
Folklore
Chhau
Purulia, West Bengal, India
A dance tradition of eastern India that mixes martial moves and storytelling. In Purulia, dancers wear large painted masks. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Mask dance
Folklore
Lavani
Pune, Maharashtra, India
A rhythmic folk form of Maharashtra with the beat of the dholki, fast footwork and expressive gestures.
State: Maharashtra · Kind: Folk song and dance
Folklore
Dollu Kunitha
Shivamogga, Karnataka, India
Male dancers wear large drums around their necks and dance in circles, beating complex rhythms in unison.
State: Karnataka · Kind: Drum dance
Folklore
Thang-Ta
Imphal, Manipur, India
A Manipuri martial art of sword and spear, performed also as a dance, with roots in the Meitei kingdom.
State: Manipur · Kind: Martial art and dance
Folklore
Bhand Pather
Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir, India
A Kashmiri folk theatre that mixes satire, music and dance, often performed outdoors with a humorous look at society.
State: Jammu & Kashmir · Kind: Folk theatre
Folklore
Sattriya
Majuli, Assam, India
A dance-drama that grew in the Vaishnava monasteries (satras) on the river island of Majuli, and is recognised as one of India's classical dance forms.
State: Assam · Kind: Classical dance
Folklore
Pandavani
Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, India
A solo singer retells the Mahabharata with a tambura in hand and acts out the characters. Teejan Bai made it famous.
State: Chhattisgarh · Kind: Epic storytelling
Folklore: Indonesia
Folklore
Gamelan
Yogyakarta, Indonesia
A Javanese and Balinese orchestra of gongs, metallophones and drums, played at court ceremonies, dance performances and shadow-puppet plays.
Kind: Percussion ensemble
Folklore
Wayang kulit
Surakarta, Central Java, Indonesia
Intricately cut leather puppets cast shadows on a screen while a single puppeteer, called a dalang, voices every character and narrates stories from epics.
Kind: Shadow puppet theatre
Folklore: Ireland
Folklore
Irish traditional music
Doolin, County Clare, Ireland
Informal music sessions with fiddles, flutes, pipes and bodhráns take place in pubs in Doolin and across County Clare.
Kind: Folk music sessions
Folklore
Leprechauns
Carlingford, County Louth, Ireland
Small shoe-making fairies of Irish folklore who guard a hidden crock of gold. Carlingford holds a yearly leprechaun-themed festival.
Kind: Folk tale
Folklore: Italy
Folklore
Tarantella
Salento, Apulia, Italy
A fast, whirling southern Italian dance associated with Apulia, where the Pizzica tradition continues at summer festivals.
Kind: Folk dance
Folklore: Jamaica
Folklore
Reggae
Kingston, Jamaica
Reggae grew from ska and rocksteady in Kingston in the late 1960s, with its offbeat rhythm and lyrics about everyday life and social justice. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Popular folk music
Folklore: Japan
Folklore
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter
Fuji, Shizuoka, Japan
A tale of a girl found inside a glowing bamboo stalk who later returns to the moon. Parts of the story are linked to the area around Mount Fuji.
Kind: Legend
Folklore
Tōno Monogatari
Tōno, Iwate, Japan
A town in northern Japan whose local tales, collected by Kunio Yanagita in 1910, feature kappa water imps, mountain spirits and house-guardian beings.
Kind: Folk tales
Folklore
Kabuki
Ginza, Tokyo, Japan
A stylised theatre with dramatic make-up, elaborate costumes and all-male casts. Plays run for hours at theatres like the Kabuki-za. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Classical theatre
Folklore: Mexico
Folklore
La Llorona
Xochimilco, Mexico City, Mexico
The Weeping Woman is said to wander near waterways at night, mourning her lost children. Versions of the story are told across Latin America and the US Southwest.
Kind: Legend
Folklore
Mariachi
Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Bands of violins, trumpets and guitars in charro outfits from western Mexico. The tradition is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Folk music ensemble
Folklore: New Zealand
Folklore
Māui
Northland (approximate), New Zealand
In many Polynesian traditions, the hero Māui tricks the sun, fishes up islands from the sea and brings fire to humans. Versions of his story are told across the Pacific.
Kind: Legend
Folklore: Pakistan
Folklore
Qawwali
Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
Sufi devotional singing performed by a group with harmonium, tabla and hand-clapping, building in intensity. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan brought it to a world audience.
Kind: Devotional music
Folklore: Portugal
Folklore
Fado
Lisbon, Portugal
Fado is a Portuguese song style full of longing and nostalgia, often sung with Portuguese guitar in the Alfama district of Lisbon.
Kind: Urban folk song
Folklore: Romania
Folklore
Dracula and Transylvanian legends
Bran, Transylvania, Romania
Bram Stoker's 1897 novel drew on local vampire folklore and on the name of a real ruler, Vlad the Impaler. Bran Castle, often linked with the story, is a popular visit.
Kind: Legend
Folklore: Russia
Folklore
Baba Yaga
Northern Russian forests (approximate), Russia
A fearsome witch who lives in a hut on chicken legs in Slavic folk tales, sometimes helping heroes and sometimes harming them.
Kind: Folk tale
Folklore
Tuvan throat singing
Kyzyl, Tuva, Russia
Singers in Tuva produce two or more notes at once, imitating the sounds of wind and water on the steppe. The tradition is also known in nearby Mongolia.
Kind: Overtone singing
Folklore: Senegal
Folklore
Griot tradition
Kaolack, Senegal
West African griots are hereditary storytellers, praise singers and historians who preserve genealogies and histories through music, often accompanied by the kora.
Kind: Oral storytelling and music
Folklore: South Africa
Folklore
Isicathamiya
Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
A harmony singing style that grew among Zulu migrant workers, made globally famous by groups such as Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Kind: A cappella singing
Folklore: South Korea
Folklore
Arirang
Jeongseon, Gangwon, South Korea
Arirang is a family of folk songs shared by Koreans, each region with its own version. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Folk song
Folklore
Pansori
Namwon, North Jeolla, South Korea
A solo singer and a drummer perform long stories with dramatic singing and spoken passages. Namwon is closely linked with the tale of Chunhyang. It is on UNESCO's intangible heritage list.
Kind: Epic storytelling in song
Folklore: Spain
Folklore
Flamenco
Jerez de la Frontera, Andalusia, Spain
A passionate art form of song, guitar and dance developed in Andalusia, with Jerez among its cradles. It is recognised by UNESCO.
Kind: Song, dance and guitar
Folklore: Switzerland
Folklore
Yodelling
Appenzell, Switzerland
Yodelling jumps between chest and head voice. It began as a way to call across alpine valleys and is part of Swiss folk music, often alongside the alphorn.
Kind: Alpine singing
Folklore: United Kingdom
Folklore
Loch Ness Monster
Loch Ness, Scotland, United Kingdom
Stories of a large creature in the Highland loch date back centuries, and sightings and photographs have drawn visitors since the 1930s.
Kind: Legend
Folklore
King Arthur and Camelot
Tintagel, Cornwall, United Kingdom
Medieval tales place Arthur's conception at Tintagel Castle. Historians doubt that Arthur existed, but the legend has shaped storytelling for centuries.
Kind: Legend
Folklore
Selkies
Orkney, Scotland, United Kingdom
In tales from Orkney and Shetland, selkies are seals that can shed their skins and take human form on land.
Kind: Legend
Folklore: United States
Folklore
Hula
Hilo, Hawaiʻi, United States
Hula tells stories and records genealogy through movement and chant. Hilo hosts the annual Merrie Monarch Festival dedicated to the art.
Kind: Dance and chant
Folklore
Delta blues
Clarksdale, Mississippi, United States
The blues came out of the Black communities of the Mississippi Delta and shaped jazz, rock and soul. Clarksdale has been called a cradle of the style.
Kind: Folk music