French folklore encompasses the fables , folklore , fairy tales and legends of the French people .
6-1044: Farfadets are creatures of French folklore . The word translates variously as " Sprite ", " Imp ", " Brownie ", or " Leprechaun ", though they also resemble the Pixies of Britain's West Country . The term is in general use throughout France, though the creature is local particularly to the Vendée and Poitou regions. Farfadets also feature in Occitan mythology, particularly in Provence , where they are known as fadets . Farfadets are described as being small (some half-meter tall), wrinkled, and brown-skinned; they generally wear tattered brown clothing, or go naked. Farfadets are said to be helpful rather than malicious, though playful and sometimes mischievous. They like to tend horses, which they will groom, or weave ringlets into their manes. They live in woodland, but will also attach themselves to
12-417: A neighbouring farm or homestead, and complete odd tasks in the fields, in return for a bowl of milk or cream left on the doorstep at night. However they can be frightened away by too much kindness, such as leaving new clothes out for them. Despite this reputation, the 18th century French writer AVC Berbiguer believed he was tormented by them, and wrote extensively about them and their depredations. In 1821 he
18-598: Is nowadays the South of France that originated in the poetry of the 11th and 12th centuries, and inspired vernacular literature throughout medieval Europe. These early recorded songs, poetry and their highest development in the 12th century and includes the well known Songs of the Troubadours : Songs of the Trouvère are songs and poetry that stemmed from poet-composers who were roughly contemporary with and influenced by
24-598: The "Matter of France": Another folkloric medium in the Middle Ages were fables, mock epics and animal folk tales, notably: François Rabelais , 1494–1553, wrote: French fairy tales are particularly known by their literary rather than their folk, oral variants. Perrault derived almost all his tales from folk sources, but rewrote them for the upper-class audience, removing rustic elements. The précieuses rewrote them even more extensively for their own interests. Collection of folk tales as such only began about 1860, but
30-455: The troubadours but who composed their works in the northern dialects of France. A second form of legend in France during the Middle Ages was epic poetry , partly historical and partly legend with themes covering the formation of France, war, kingship, and important battles. This genre was known as chansons de geste which is Old French for "songs of heroic deeds." It is also called the epics of
36-657: Was constrained to publish an autobiography, Les Farfadets ou Tous les démons ne sont pas de l'autre monde ("The Imps or All the demons are not from the other world"), which was intended as a warning "To all the Emperors, Kings, Princes and Sovereigns of the Four Parts of the World". In French, "farfadet" can also refer to French folklore Occitan literature - were songs, poetry and literature in Occitan in what
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