A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

After helping to free twelve princesses, a young prince returns for their forgotten crowns and is abandoned by the departing ship. Alone in the castle, he hears the structure creak and shake before something enormous lands beside his bed. The newcomer names himself Big Bird Dan and promises help, first requiring four barrels of rye to fill his crop.

By morning the prince sees a bird with a neck feather as thick and long as a half-grown spruce tree. Dan directs him to balance the crown chest with gold and silver on opposite sides of his neck, then ride while holding that feather. They fly so fast that they overtake the ship. Dan also warns against the false rescuer Ritter Red. The account specifies neither a natural species nor an anatomical resemblance to an eagle.

Neck feather compared to a young spruce treeEats four barrels of rye before flightCarries balanced treasure and a human rider
01

Origins & earliest records

Big Bird Dan is explicitly named in the Norwegian collected tale translated under that title by Dasent, whose English collection first appeared in 1859. The inspected electronic version includes a second-edition notice but does not identify a secure print date. His name and enormous scale are attested within this story, without proving when oral versions began.

02

Records & interpretation

The bird's spoken name, four-barrel breakfast, spruce-sized neck feather and carefully balanced cargo are concrete textual evidence. They distinguish him from the separate giant bird appearing in The Blue Belt and from the roc of Arabic tales. Narrative resemblance permits comparison, but not an assertion that they are one creature or that enormous transport birds were observed.

In the literature

“as thick and long as a half-grown spruce fir”
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe, collectors · Popular Tales from the Norse
Tale LV, The Big Bird Dan; Description of the feather at the nape of Dan’s neck · George Webbe Dasent

The narrator measures the enormous feather by comparison with a young tree.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    The Big Bird Dan (Popular Tales from the Norse)

    Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe; translated by George Webbe Dasent · 1859 first English collection; selected later edition undated

    Inspected named tale LV. Electronic witness includes a notice to the second edition; its exact print date is unresolved.

  2. 02

    Popular Tales from the Norse — The Big Bird Dan

    Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe, collectors · Historical Dasent translation; exact hosted print edition undated

    Dasent historical English translation of Asbjørnsen and Moe; hosted PG8933 includes a Second Edition notice, but its exact selected print edition date and printed pages are unresolved. 1859 is the first English collection context only. Exact observed chapter anchors and episode locators used.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

Popular Tales from the Norse — The Big Bird Dan

Dasent historical English translation of Asbjørnsen and Moe; hosted PG8933 includes a Second Edition notice, but its exact selected print edition date and printed pages are unresolved. 1859 is the first English collection context only. Exact observed chapter anchors and episode locators used.

  1. After the prince is abandoned in the Troll castle, a huge bird arrives during the night and demands four barrels of rye before helping. Its neck feather is compared in thickness and length to a half-grown spruce.

    Tale LV, The Big Bird Dan; Bird’s nighttime arrival and feeding requirement

  2. The prince loads the crown chest on one side of the bird’s neck and an equal weight of valuables on the other, then rides holding the neck feather. Dan outstrips the ship, warns against boarding because Ritter Red means to kill him and carries him to the Troll prince’s island.

    Tale LV, The Big Bird Dan; Loaded flight and warning about Ritter Red

Complete Bird Dan arrival, feeding, flight and warning episode read; surrounding crown-recovery and later recognition scenes are not independently enriched here. Exact selected print date, page numbers and earliest attestations are not inferred.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary textPopular Tales from the Norse — The Big Bird Dan (tale LV)Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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