List of world folk-epics

World folk-epics are those epics which are not just literary masterpieces but also an integral part of the weltanschauung of a people. They were originally oral literatures, which were later written down by either single author or several writers.

Contents

African languages

Lianja a central African epic

Silamaka a Western African epic

Sundiata an African epic

American languages

Tunkashila an American Indian epic

Cana an American Spanish epic

Asian languages

La Galigo,Sureq Galigo or La Galigo is an epic creation myth of the Bugis people from South Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is the longest epic in the world and written in Austronesian Language(Malayo-Polinesian Language).

Alpamysh; all of Middle Asia

Annanmar Kathai the story of the brothers, a Tamil epic of the Kongu Nadu region

Bahman Nama, A Persian epic about the story of Bahman son of Isfandyar

Banu Goshasp Nama , A Persian epic about the daughter of Rustam Bidasari a Malay epic

Biag ni Lam-Ang(Life of Lam-Ang) an epic of the Ilocanos of Northern Luzon, Philippines

Darangen an epic from the Maranao people of Mindanao, Philippines

Epic of King Gesar, a Tibetan epic, generally considered the longest in the world.

Epic of Gilgamesh, the oldest epic of the world from Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean world

Faramarz Nama, a story about the Persian heroe Faramarz

Garshasp Nama, a Persian epic about the heroe Garshasp

Heike Monogatari (The Tale of the Heike), a Japanese epic

Hinilawod an epic of the Panay-Bukidnons of the Visayas, Central Philippines.

Jewang ungi, a Korean epic.

Ibong Adarna, a Tagalog epic.

Mahabharata, a Sanskrit epic from India; known as Bharathayudha in Indonesia

Manas an epic from Kyrgyzstan

Klei khan Y Dam San, an epic of Ede people in Central Highland (Tay Nguyen), Vietnam.

Book of Dede Korkut an epic from Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Turcomans of Iraq and other Turkic nations

Koroglu an epic from Azerbaijan and Turkey

Oghuz-nameh, an epic from Oghuz Turkic nations (Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Turkey, as well as Turcomans of Iraq)

Kutadgu Bilig an epic from Central Asia, Uighurs and other Turkic nations

Nagarakertagama an Indonesian epic

On Jerusalem an epic written in Greek based on the Old Testament characters of Abraham, Isaac and Joseph

Panchatantra, a Sanskrit epic of Indian animal folktales.

Ramayana, a Sanskrit epic from India

Sepha Khun Chang Khun Phaen, a Thai epic

Shahnama a Persian epic

Silappadhikaram a South Indian epic

Epic of Siri in Tulu language from Karnataka, India

The Book of One Thousand and One Nights a collection of stories from mostly Persian and Arabic sources

Journey to the West (also known as "Monkey"), a Chinese novel

European languages

Aeneid, a Roman epic

Beowulf, an Anglo-Saxon epic written in Old English

Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire an Irish lament

Cikli i Kreshnikëve, an Albanian epic

David of Sasun, Armenian national epic about war for freedom against Arabs in 9th century

Edda, a collection of Icelandic poems

Iliad, a Greek epic

Kalevala, a Finnish epic

Kalevipoeg, an Estonian epic

The Knight in the Panther's Skin, a Georgian epic poem

Lāčplēsis, a Latvian epic

Le Morte d'Arthur, a collection of Arthurian legends in Middle English

Mabinogion, a Welsh epic

Nibelungenlied, a German epic poem

Njál's saga, an Icelandic saga

Odyssey, a Greek epic

Os Lusíadas, a Portuguese epic

Prince Marko, a Serbian epic

Táin Bó Cúailnge, an Irish epic

The Lay of the Cid, a Spanish epic.

The Tale of Igor's Campaign, a Slavic epic

Volsunga saga, a Scandinavian saga

Zoraje, a Slovene epic

See also