Fairy tale trivia

I just finished reading some of my favorite fairy tales, as translated from the original, i.e. with all the blood and gore and taboo that you can’t let children read. I learned quite a few things. The originals are actually quite different from what most people remember having read as children. (I think Ray can attest to this. Hehe!) Anyway, here are some things I thought were quite interesting:

(1) Rapunzel is the German word for lettuce. Rapunzel was named so because, as you may remember, her mom had such an insatiable craving for the lettuce from the sorceress’ garden.

(2) Cinderella is not the poor girl’s real name. She was called that in jest because she was made to sleep near the hearth, over cinders, that her skin was perpetually darkened by ash.

(3) The original Cinderella story originated from China.

(4) Cinderella does not involve a glass slipper, a pumpkin that turned into a carriage, mice that turned into horses, or rats that turned into a coachman and a footman. It actually involved birds magically flying gowns into the cemetery where Cinderella’s mother was laid to rest, and where she frequently visited.

(5) In the original Cinderella, both of Cinderella’s stepsisters were not ugly. They were, however, quite the obedient children to their mother, as the first cut off her big toe, and the second cut off a portion of her heel in order to force their feet to fit into the slipper. And yes, the original story says that blood flowed into the shoe.

(6) In the original story of the Princess and the Frog, the princess did NOT kiss the frog. She flung him at the castle wall in a blind rage. And THEN he turned into a prince AND married her. Bad sign, Mr. Prince guy.

(7) Snow White was seven years old.

More next time. Have to go back to work already.