ARTHUR UND ALBERT SCHOTT UND DIE WALACHISCHEN MÄRCHEN – EDITION, KONTEXT UND KULTURHISTORISCHE ANALYSE
ARTHUR AND ALBERT SCHOTT AND THE WALLACHIAN FAIRY TALES – EDITION, CONTEXT AND CULTURAL-HISTORICAL ANALYSIS

Summary/Abstract: The Wallachian Fairy Tales published in 1845 by Arthur and Albert Schott are among the earliest systematic documentations of Romanian folk traditions in the German-speaking world. The brothers combined the edition of narrative texts with ethnographic observations, linguistic notes, and comparative mythological interpretations. Their material originates mainly from the multi-ethnic Banat region and reflects its social, linguistic, and cultural interconnections. While Arthur worked in a more empirical and ethnographic manner, Albert pursued a mythological approach that must be viewed critically today. Motifs such as miraculous-birth tales, incest taboos, ritual concepts of time, and humorous narrative elements illustrate the cultural functions of these stories. The collection has great value as a historical source, though it also reveals methodological limitations of its time. Overall, it represents an important cultural-historical document of Romanian storytelling traditions.

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