Mukashi-banashi: The Folktales of Long Ago in Japan

Stories are among humanity’s oldest treasures. Every culture has its own way of preserving wisdom, entertainment, and moral lessons through oral traditions. In Japan, this heritage finds one of its clearest expressions in Mukashi-banashi (昔話), a term that literally means “tales of long ago.” These narratives, passed down through generations, are the Japanese equivalent of “once upon a time” stories, blending the everyday with the fantastic, the humorous with the moral, and the human with the supernatural.

Although today Mukashi-banashi are often encountered in children’s books, picture stories, or animated retellings, they have a deep cultural significance that extends far beyond simple entertainment. They provide a window into the values, fears, and imaginations of earlier Japanese communities, and they continue to shape modern Japanese literature and popular culture.

What Does Mukashi-banashi Mean?

The term itself carries the essence of storytelling:

• Mukashi (昔) means “long ago” or “in the past.” It is the word that often begins a folktale in Japanese, functioning like the English “once upon a time.”

• Banashi (話) is derived from hanashi, meaning “story” or “tale.”

Put together, Mukashi-banashi simply means “old tales” or “stories from long ago.”

Traditionally, these stories were told orally, passed down by parents, grandparents, and village elders. They were not originally written for children alone, but rather shared among all ages as part of communal life — often in the evenings around a hearth or during festivals.

Themes and Characteristics

Mukashi-banashi are diverse, but they share certain recurring themes and features:

1. Everyday settings with magical twists

Most stories begin in a familiar rural world: a poor farmer, a fisherman, a kind old couple. Into these simple settings, something extraordinary happens — a peach floats down a river with a child inside, or a fisherman is invited into the palace of the Dragon King. The ordinary and the fantastic coexist seamlessly.

2. Supernatural beings

Japanese folklore is rich with mythical creatures, many of whom appear in Mukashi-banashi:

• Oni (demons) — horned ogres who often serve as villains.

• Tengu — long-nosed or birdlike mountain spirits.

• Kitsune (foxes) and tanuki (raccoon dogs) — shape-shifting tricksters.

• Yōkai — a broad category of mysterious beings, sometimes mischievous, sometimes helpful.

3. Moral lessons

Like fables, Mukashi-banashi often carry a moral. Common lessons include:

• Kindness and generosity are rewarded.

• Greed and cruelty bring punishment.

• Humility and patience are virtues.

4. Humor and irony

Not all stories are solemn. Many feature comical situations, trickster figures, or ironic reversals where the proud are humbled.

Famous Examples of Mukashi-banashi

Several stories stand out as classics, familiar to nearly every Japanese child and often retold in literature and media.

• Momotarō (Peach Boy): An old couple discovers a boy inside a peach. The boy grows up brave and strong, and with the help of animal companions (a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant), he defeats a band of ogres and brings back treasure. The tale celebrates courage, teamwork, and the triumph of good over evil.

• Urashima Tarō: A fisherman rescues a turtle and is rewarded with a visit to the Dragon King’s palace beneath the sea. After what seems like a few days, he returns home only to find that centuries have passed. The story is both wondrous and tragic, highlighting the transience of human life.

• The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter (Taketori Monogatari): Sometimes considered Japan’s earliest narrative (10th century), this story tells of Kaguya-hime, a radiant girl discovered inside a bamboo stalk. She grows into a beautiful woman, courted by nobles and even the emperor, but ultimately reveals her otherworldly origin as a princess from the moon.

• Hanasaka Jiisan (The Old Man Who Made Flowers Bloom): A kind old man is rewarded by a spirit-dog who helps him make withered trees bloom. His greedy neighbor tries to copy him but only brings ruin. The story teaches generosity and condemns envy.

Functions of Mukashi-banashi

Beyond entertainment, these tales served important social and cultural functions:

1. Moral instruction: By dramatizing the consequences of good and bad behavior, folktales reinforced communal values.

2. Explanation of the world: Some stories offered mythic explanations for natural phenomena or cultural practices.

3. Cultural identity: Tales connected generations, transmitting shared values and a sense of belonging.

4. Oral artistry: The act of telling a Mukashi-banashi was itself an art, with rhythm, repetition, and stock phrases that made the stories memorable.

Mukashi-banashi and Japanese Aesthetics

Japanese storytelling often embraces the themes of impermanence (mujo) and the bittersweet nature of beauty (mono no aware). Mukashi-banashi reflect these aesthetics: even joyous tales often have shadows of melancholy, and even humorous ones remind listeners of life’s fragility.

For example, Urashima Tarō is both a fantasy adventure and a meditation on the fleeting nature of human existence. Similarly, the bamboo cutter’s discovery of Kaguya-hime speaks to the impossibility of holding on to beauty, no matter how much one desires it.

From Oral Tradition to Modern Media

Although Mukashi-banashi began as oral tales, they were gradually collected and written down, especially during the Meiji period (late 19th to early 20th century), when Japanese scholars and educators sought to preserve folk culture.

• Lafcadio Hearn (Koizumi Yakumo), a Western writer who settled in Japan, helped introduce Japanese folktales to the English-speaking world.

• Yanagita Kunio, considered the father of Japanese folklore studies, documented oral traditions in the early 20th century, ensuring that Mukashi-banashi were not lost in modernization.

Today, Mukashi-banashi live on in multiple forms:

• Children’s books and illustrated story collections.

• Anime and manga, which often draw inspiration from classic folktale motifs.

• School curricula, where students learn traditional stories as part of cultural education.

• Festivals and theater, where folktales are dramatized or performed.

The Global Resonance of Mukashi-banashi

While deeply rooted in Japanese culture, Mukashi-banashi share universal qualities with folktales from around the world. The kindness rewarded in Hanasaka Jiisan recalls European tales like Cinderella, while the trickster antics of foxes and tanuki echo Native American or African trickster figures.

At the same time, Mukashi-banashi maintain a distinctly Japanese flavor: their landscapes are rice fields and bamboo groves; their heroes are fishermen, farmers, or woodcutters; and their supernatural beings belong to the rich pantheon of Japanese folklore.

Why Mukashi-banashi Matter Today

In a world dominated by digital entertainment, Mukashi-banashi remain relevant because they:

• Provide a sense of continuity with the past.

• Offer simple but profound moral lessons.

• Inspire creativity in literature, film, and art.

• Remind us that the extraordinary can be found within the ordinary.

They are not relics, but living stories, continually retold and reshaped. The boy from the peach, the fisherman beneath the sea, the princess from the moon — all continue to speak to human curiosity, hope, and longing.

Mukashi-banashi are more than quaint children’s tales. They are the heartbeat of Japanese oral tradition, expressing cultural values and universal truths through simple yet profound narratives. Blending the everyday with the supernatural, humor with melancholy, and moral instruction with imaginative wonder, they remain a vital part of Japan’s cultural heritage.

To hear or read a Mukashi-banashi is to step into a world where peaches carry children, dogs speak with loyalty, and even a humble farmer may encounter the Dragon King. These stories, born around hearths and in villages, continue to resonate across time, reminding us all of the enduring power of tales from long ago.