The Elves and the Shoemaker
| The Elves and the Shoemaker | |
|---|---|
The Elves and The Shoemaker | |
| Folk tale | |
| Name | The Elves and the Shoemaker |
| Aarne–Thompson grouping | AT 503* AT 476* |
| Country | Germany |
| Published in | Grimm's Fairy Tales |
"The Elves and The Shoemaker" (German: Die Wichtelmänner) is a set of fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm (KHM 39) about a poor shoemaker who receives much-needed help from three young helpful elves.
The original story is the first of three fairy tales contained as entry 39 in the German Grimm's Fairy Tales under the common title "Die Wichtelmänner". In her translation of 1884 Margaret Hunt chose The Elves as title for these three stories.
The first tale is of Aarne-Thompson (AT) type 503* ('Helpful Elves'), also classified as a migratory legend (AT-7015). The second is of AT 476* type ('A Widwife [or Godmother] for the Elves'), also categorized as a migratory legend (AT 5070). The third tale is of AT 504 type ('The Changeling'), also categorized as a migratory legend (AT 5085).