Memory of the World; 2012 - unesdoc - Unesco

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Kinder- und Hausmärchen
(Children’s and Household Tales)
Inscribed 2005
What is it
The annotated reference copies written by the Brothers
Grimm, with supplements and notes, of their fairy
tales, Kinder- und Hausmärchen (Children’s and
Household Tales), together with other associated
handwritten materials.
Why was it inscribed
The Kinder- und Hausmärchen have had an extraordinary
and lasting influence on the arts, literature, music,
theatre and film which has endured into digitized media.
The Kassel Handexemplare (annotated reference copies)
of the Kinder- und Hausmärchen are the most significant
preserved historical source for the origins and effect
of the Grimms’ fairy tales.
Where is it
Museum of the Brothers Grimm, Kassel, Germany
The Kinder- und Hausmärchen (or KHM), first published
in 1812, is second only to the Luther Bible as the best
known and most widely distributed book of German
culture. It includes some of the most famous stories in the
world, including Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty
and Cinderella.
The authors were brothers Jacob (1785–1863) and
Wilhelm (1786–1859) Grimm, philologists and scholars
who were interested in written texts and languages, and
in the history of popular culture. They were also fairytale
collectors and they completed the first compilation
and scientific documentation of fairy tales drawn from
� Kinder- und Hausmärchen
� Illustration from one of the Grimms’ most famous tales,
Hansel and Gretel.
European and Oriental tradition. Their work was not only
hugely popular, it also set a standard for the systematic
collection and documentation of popular folk tales.
The Grimms always noted the context in terms of society,
history and culture, of each fairy-tale tradition. Their
sources and references extended far beyond Germany
to embrace popular oral and written narrative material
from many countries and cultures. Although the stories
as reworked by the Grimms were rooted in and expressed
the German Romanticism of their period, they created
a lasting and influential collection which resonated
beyond their time and place. KHM has been translated
into 160 languages and has sold many millions of copies
around the world in the two centuries since its publication.
Kinder- und Hausmärchen (Children’s and Household Tales) 317