The Library of Congress > Linked Data Service > LC Genre/Form Terms (LCGFT)

Folk literature


  • Works based on oral traditions.

  • URI(s)

  • Instance Of

  • Scheme Membership(s)

  • Collection Membership(s)

  • Form

    • Folk literature

  • Variants

    • Oral literature
    • Traditional literature

  • Broader Terms

    • Literature

  • Narrower Terms

  • Closely Matching Concepts from Other Schemes

  • Sources

    • found: Encyclopædia Britannica online, Apr. 8, 2013(folk literature, also called folklore or oral tradition, the lore (traditional knowledge and beliefs) of cultures having no written language. It is transmitted by word of mouth and consists, as does written literature, of both prose and verse narratives, poems and songs, myths, dramas, rituals, proverbs, riddles, and the like.)
    • found: Southern Connecticut State University website Literature for children, viewed Apr. 8, 2013(Folk literature. Definition: Folk or traditional literature is the collection of tales passed from generation to generation and from the old to the young by word of mouth (also called the oral tradition). Folk literature is believed to be people's efforts to organize their experiences into meaningful patterns. Folk literature includes fairy tales, myths, legends, fables, tall tales, and other oral traditions of preliterate societies.)
    • found: Harmon, W. A handbook to literature, c2009(Folklore. Folklore includes myths, legends, stories, riddles, proverbs, nursery rhymes, charms, spells, omens, beliefs of all sorts, popular ballads, cowboy songs, plant lore, animal lore, and customs dealing with birth, initiation, courtship, marriage, medicine, work, amusements, and death.)
    • found: LCSH, Oct. 22, 2014(Folk literature. UF Oral literature. BT Literature)

  • General Notes

    • Works based on oral traditions.

  • Change Notes

    • 2014-12-01: new
    • 2015-12-14: revised

  • Alternate Formats

    • Suggest Alternative Terminology

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