Snow White in Africa

This paper discusses the three different groups of versions of the international tale type of Snow White in Africa: Arabian versions in North and East Africa, versions similar to oral Portuguese traditions in former Portuguese colonies and a mixture of Grimm derived texts and oral traditions from Southern Europe in Namibia. They are compared with an African tale that shares with them the same basic topic: the attacks on the life of an innocent, beautiful girl. This comparison shows the differences between European and African magic tales and at the same time proves that a certain type of ancient African tales can be classified as magic tales as well. The analysis of the African tale sheds light on certain traits of the European tale.