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Overview
The horse belongs to a young man who leaves home rather than accept his uncle’s refusal to kill a cannibal daughter. A sudden movement by the animal knocks his bread away and brings him into contact with a greyhound-shaped helper. The helper later carries both horse and rider an extraordinary distance, prays with the man for their strength and gives a white amulet to fasten to the horse’s forehead. In another village the owner of a ruined vineyard tries to release the horse out of revenge against its rider. A kick kills the man and also a nearby she-ass, leading to the rider’s imprisonment and his appeal to the spirit helper.
The horse carries the man back to his home community, where the cannibal has killed everyone. She decides that she must eat the animal before devouring its owner, but it defends itself with its hind feet and she cannot reach it. When the rider calls his helper and runs from the tower, he mounts the horse and escapes as the building burns. The animal subsequently takes him safely across a river. He settles in a Bedouin village, marries, has two children who learn to read and write, and builds a mosque.
Only after this settled life does the horse speak. It asks to return to its companions and answers the owner’s demand for its identity by declaring itself a spirit king. The man refuses release, insisting that he purchased it with his own money. The horse warns that refusal will make him and the other inhabitants homeless; the owner tells it to do as it wishes. While they sleep, the horse magically moves the village beneath the earth. A spring rises at that site, and drinking its water causes blindness. The ending presents destruction of the settlement and a dangerous spring, not a happy reward for the former rider. The separate greyhound helper does not make the horse’s final disclosure.
Origins & earliest records
Hans Stumme, Märchen der Schluḥ von Tázerwalt (Leipzig, 1895), tale 8, Die Geschichte von einem Mädchen, das eine Menschenfresserin war: complete German translation pp. 92–98. Preface v–vi names Abdulla Ben Mhammed and describes Leipzig dictation.
Records & interpretation
Entire German tale 8 read, including parental tests, exile, bread-sharing helper, vineyard dispute, chicken transformation, Aischa’s death and the horse’s final burial of the village/blinding spring. The girl is called Aischa in her cousin’s greeting; this does not identify her with another similarly named Moroccan spirit.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Märchen der Schluḥ von Tázerwalt
Tale 8, whole German pp. 92–98; contributor/collection Preface v–vi.
Family & connections
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References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary collected Tashelhit transcription with German translationOriginal bilingual collection: The Cannibal GirlResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
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