Japanese Folk Tale

8 The Yanagita Guide to the Japanese Folk Tale
Kitaamabe-gun: MK I 3 40, "Urihime." She was fooled by a gamarijako.
Nagasaki, Iki: Hogen V 4 48. Noted. A phrase in the story about a
melon which came floating downstream.
Tsushima: TD XII 9 13, "Urihime." Urihime is tied to a tall tree by
a spirit.
Kagoshima: Koshiki 96, "Urihime." There are three stories.
Further reference:
Kiyu sharan 9 ge, 69 ornote. This may be the earliest written
reference.
4. Nishiki Ch6 ja
Akita, Senhoku-gun, Obonai: MK II 2 8. In "Recalling folk tales"
(Mukashibanashi no ornoide) by Fujiwara Ainosuke. This is the story
of Urihime with a happy ending. There is no part about her birth.
A yamauba came where she was weaving. At the conclusion it tells
of the beauty of her weaving as it floated in the stream.
From this we can see that there was formerly a version of the
story with a happy ending.
5. Takenoko Doji
Once upon a time when a cooper's apprentice went to cut bamboo,
somebody inside the bamboo asked to be let out. W hen the apprentice
cut the bamboo, a five-inch man called Takenoko Doji came out. He
was 1234 years old. He said he would grant seven wishes to Sankichi in
thanks. He made Sankichi a samurai.
Kumamoto, Kuma-gun: MK I 8 37, "Takenoko Doji." Example.
Kagoshima, Shimokoshiki-gun: MK II 9 20, "Takehime"; Koshiki 101
"Takehime." The same item. A beautiful girl came out of a bamboo
which a poor man cut. When she was ten years old, she returned
to heaven (no connection with suitors), leaving a red container for
rice and a ladle.
This has some connection with "The old bamboo-cutter" story
group, and it also reminds us of "The tongue-cut sparrow," in
which a little bird is of central interest.
Kagawa: (no source). When a poor man dug up three bamboo sprouts,
they thanked him and guided him to a town.
The feudal lord there was looking for bamboo sprouts for his
sick daughter.
This is closer to "Singing bones" than to a story about a child.