A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
The young man shares bread crumbs with a hungry flock that his older brothers drove away. One bird speaks for the group, telling him to call them his birds when in trouble. Later the troll demands that all the feathers from three beds be aired and returned, but a whirlwind scatters them.
The summoned birds arrive with Little and Trittle, bringing back the feathers and helping restore and sew the bedding. No individual bird name or natural species is supplied. Their gratitude is enacted through this collective rescue; the story does not make them the helpers’ offspring or transform them into human beings.
Origins & earliest records
Icelandic Legends, second series (1866), Carl’s Son, Little, Trittle, and the Birds, pp. 481–490.
Records & interpretation
Complete collected tale in the surviving alternate-copy OCR; extraordinary acts are reported within this particular narrative.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Icelandic Legends, second series: Carl’s Son, Little, Trittle, and the Birds, pp. 481–490
Complete tale read through its marriage and succession ending; anonymous characters are not supplied invented names.
Family, evolution & connections
White Snake (Grimm)
Both tellings have hungry birds helped by a traveller and later returning assistance. The Icelandic flock collects scattered feathers with Little and Trittle; Hunt’s ravens fetch an apple, while ants collect the scattered grain. These are specific narrative parallels, not evidence that either telling borrowed from the other.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary textIcelandic Legends, surviving 1866 alternate copyResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
