Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry Edited and Selected by W. B. Yeats [1888]

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This is an anthology of Irish folklore, edited by W. B. Yeats. Many of these stories are from books which are archived at this site; some are from books which have yet to be converted to etext or now-rare source material. He selected many of the best (and often funniest) tales from other writers such as Lady Wilde, Croker, Lover, Hyde, and Carelton. Yeats wrote introductory material and notes to many of these stories.

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Title Page
Contents
Introduction

The Trooping Fairies

The Trooping Fairies
The Fairies, by William Allingham
Frank Martin and the Fairies, by William Carleton
The Priest's Supper, by T. Crofton Croker
The Fairy Well Of Lagnanay, By Samuel Ferguson
Teig O'Kane (Tadhg O Cáthán) and the Corpse, tr. by Douglas Hyde
Paddy Corcoran's Wife, by William Carleton
Cusheen Loo, tr. by J. J. Callanan
The White Trout; A Legend of Cong, by S. Lover
The Fairy Thorn, An Ulster Ballad, by Sir Samuel Ferguson
The Legend of Knockgrafton, by T. Crofton Croker
A Donegal Fairy, by Letitia Maclintock

Changelings

Changelings
The Brewery of Egg-Shells, by T. Crofton Croker
The Fairy Nurse, by Edward Walsh
Jamie Freel and the Young Lady, A Donegal Tale, by Miss Letitia Maclintock
The Stolen Child, by W. B. Yeats

The Merrow

The Merrow
The Soul Cages, by T. Crofton Croker
Flory Cantillon's Funeral, by T. Crofton Croker

The Solitary Fairies

Lepracaun. Cluricaun. Far Darrig.
The Lepracaun; Or Fairy Shoemaker by William Allingham
Master and Man, by T. Crofton Croker
Far Darrig in Donegal, by Letitia Maclintock

The Pooka

The Pooka
The Piper and the Puca, by Douglas Hyde
Daniel O'Rourke, by T. Crofton Croker
The Kildare Pooka, by Patrick Kennedy

The Banshee

The Banshee
How Thomas Connolly Met the Banshee, by J. Todhunter
A Lamentation for the Death of Sir Maurice Fitzgerald, tr. by Clarence Mangan
The Banshee of the Mac Carthys, by T. Crofton Croker

Ghosts

Ghosts
A Dream, by William Allingham
Grace Connor, by Letitia Maclintock
A Legend of Tyrone, by Ellen O'Leary
The Black Lamb, by Lady Wilde
Song of the Ghost, by Alfred Percival Graves
The Radiant Boy, by Mrs. Crow
The Fate Of Frank M'Kenna, by William Carleton

Witches, Fairy Doctors

Witches, Fairy Doctors
Bewitched Butter (Donegal), by Letitia Maclintock
A Queen's County Witch
The Witch Hare, by Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall
Bewitched Butter (Queen's County)
The Horned Women, by Lady Wilde
The Witches' Excursion, by Patrick Kennedy
The Confessions of Tom Bourke, by T. Crofton Croker
The Pudding Bewitched, by William Carleton

Tír-na-n-Og.

Tír-na-n-Og
The Legend Of O'Donoghue by T. Crofton Croker
Rent-day
Loughleagh (Lake Of Healing)
Hy-Brasail--The Isle of the Blest by Gerald Griffin
The Phantom Isle, by Giraldus Cambrensis

Saints, Priests

Saints, Priests
The Priest's Soul, by Lady Wilde
The Priest of Coloony
The Story of the Little Bird, by T. Crofton Croker
Conversion Of King Laoghair's Daughters
King O'Toole And His Goose, by S. Lover

The Devil

The Demon Cat, by Lady Wilde
The Long Spoon, by Patrick Kennedy
The Countess Kathleen O'Shea
The Three Wishes, by W. Carleton

Giants

Giants
The Giant's Stairs, by T. Crofton Croker
A Legend of Knockmany, by William Carleton

Kings, Queens, Princesses, Earls, Robbers

The Twelve Wild Geese, by Patrick Kennedy
The Lazy Beauty and Her Aunts, by Patrick Kennedy
The Haughty Princess, by Patrick Kennedy
The Enchantment of Gearoidh Iarla, by Patrick Kennedy
Munachar and Manachar, tr. by Douglas Hyde
Donald and his Neighbours
The Jackdaw
The Story of Conn-eda, or the Golden Apples of Lough Erne, by Abraham M'Coy, tr. by Nicholas O'Kearney

Notes

Gods of the Earth
Sir Samuel Ferguson
Cusheen Loo
Legend of Knockgrafton
Stolen Child
Solitary Fairies
Banshee's Cry
Omens
A Witch Trial
T'yeer-na-n-Oge
The Ganconer or Gancanagh
Father John O'Hart
Shoneen and Sleiveen
Demon Cat
A Legend of Knockmany
Some Authorities On Irish Folk-Lore