Haiwang Yuan is professor in the Department of Library Public Services, and website and virtual library coordinator at Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY, where he is also adjunct instructor of Chinese in the Department of Modern Languages and Multicultural Studies.

Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Map of Tibet Autonomous Region

Part 1: Tibet: An Overview

Part 2: Food, Games, and Crafts

Food and Drink
Crafts
Sports and Games

Part 3: The Tales

Tales of Origin
Animal Tales
Tales of Heroes, Deities, and Legendary Figures
Magic Tales
Legends about Places
Tales of Love and Romance
Moral Tales

Appendix A: Motifs and Tale Sources
Appendix B: List of Common Expressions in Tibetan and English
Notes
Glossary
Index

This collection of folktales provides readers with an extensive overview of the breadth of Tibetan culture, revealing the character of the region and its people as well as their traditional customs and values.
Most Westerners are unlikely to travel to the mountainous region of East Asia and experience the Tibetan people and their culture directly. This book provides a way to experience and learn about this remote nation through carefully selected Tibetan folktales that provide readers with a unique glimpse into Tibet's culture, its people, and the land itself through the window of folklore.
Providing a unique resource that can serve both as a storytime aid for educators who work with primary school students and a valuable reference for Eastern folklorists, Tibetan Folktales contains more than 30 traditional Tibetan stories that give readers a taste of the land, people, culture, history, religion, and psyche of this remote country. The tales are gathered from contemporary Tibetan storytellers and translated from written sources to represent the rich oral and written literary tradition of Tibet's culture. In addition, the book supplies tutorials for Tibetan crafts and games, a sample of recipes, and photographs and illustrations that create a multidimensional experience of Tibetan culture.