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

Overview

A prince born in foam asks Princess Sādong to marry him. She refuses, scratches his forehead with a dagger and drives him away. He becomes a powerful monarch abroad but returns after many years; recognizing his scar, she orders a guard to kill him. The brief account does not name him, explain his birth further or describe a revival. Skeat’s note compares a different Patāni tale with a foam-born princess and bamboo-born prince; that reversal is not silently rewritten into this suitor’s biography.

Wonder-born prince twice rejected by the cave rulerPublic traditional narrative
01

Origins & earliest records

Malay Peninsula; Kedah

02

Records & interpretation

Complete relevant tale and attached scholarly notes directly read.

In the literature

“thus the Foam-prince died also.”
Unnamed Malay narrator; Walter William Skeat, collector · Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest — XVIII Princess Sādong of the Caves, Who Refused Her Suitors
XVIII Princess Sādong of the Caves, Who Refused Her Suitors, printed 51 · Walter William Skeat

An unnamed prince born in foam seeks Sādong’s hand after Raja Saga’s fatal rejection. She refuses him and scratches his forehead with a dagger. He flees abroad, settles and becomes a powerful monarch over many years. Still attached to her, he returns requesting an audience. Sādong recognises his scar and orders a guard to kill him. The source note separately compares the Patāni tale, where the rescued foam child is female and the bamboo child male.

Selected bibliography

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

  1. 01

    Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest

    Walter Skeat, collector and translator · 1901

    XVIII, Princess Sādong of the Caves, pp. 50–51; notes p. 81

  2. 02

    Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest — XVIII Princess Sādong of the Caves, Who Refused Her Suitors

    Walter William Skeat, collector; unnamed Malay narrator · 1901

    Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest, collected and translated Walter Skeat, Cambridge: University Press,1901. Original title leaf13 visually checked; selected complete tales and all accompanying notes read from historical transcription. Introduction states1899 Cambridge expedition collection and limitation of phraseology, not verbatim unedited speech. Original quoted folios visually checked in Archive fablesfolktalesf00skearich; IIIF canvas positions omit initial leaves, so exact original leaf number matched from image identifier, not array index.

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.

Primary records and illustrations

Direct primary record

Walter Skeat, Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest (Cambridge: University Press, 1901)

XVIII, Princess Sādong of the Caves. XVIII, Princess Sādong of the Caves, pp. 50–51; notes p. 81

Complete tale and associated notes directly read. Regional spellings and differing accounts retained; commentary does not establish present-day practice or biological facts. Individual teller not named here.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

Located primary passages

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

Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest

Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest, collected and translated Walter Skeat, Cambridge: University Press,1901. Original title leaf13 visually checked; selected complete tales and all accompanying notes read from historical transcription. Introduction states1899 Cambridge expedition collection and limitation of phraseology, not verbatim unedited speech. Original quoted folios visually checked in Archive fablesfolktalesf00skearich; IIIF canvas positions omit initial leaves, so exact original leaf number matched from image identifier, not array index.

  1. An unnamed prince born in foam seeks Sādong’s hand after Raja Saga’s fatal rejection. She refuses him and scratches his forehead with a dagger. He flees abroad, settles and becomes a powerful monarch over many years. Still attached to her, he returns requesting an audience. Sādong recognises his scar and orders a guard to kill him. The source note separately compares the Patāni tale, where the rescued foam child is female and the bamboo child male.

    XVIII Princess Sādong of the Caves, Who Refused Her Suitors, complete printed 49–51; notes81

Complete XVIII49–51 and notes81 read. His unnamed parents, kingdom and wife are not supplied. He is not identified as the male bamboo foundling of XXII. Ending is ordered killing, distinct from Raja Saga’s heartbreak death.

References

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

  1. Historical collected narrative with locality and editorial notesSkeat, Fables & Folk-Tales (Cambridge University Press, 1901), XVIII, Princess Sādong of the Caves, pp. 50–51; notes p. 81Research 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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