See C. L. Daniels and C. M. Stevans, ed., Encyclopedia of
Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World
(1971); D. Emrich, Folklore on the American Land (1972); R. M.
Dorson, ed., Folklore and Folklife: An Introduction (1972); T.
P. Coffin and H. Cohen, Folklore from the Working Folk of
America (1973); R. M. Dorson, America in Legend (1974); A.
Dundes, Analytic Essays in Folklore (1975). Oral literature and
popular tradition preserved among a people. It may take the form
of fairy tales, ballads, epics, proverbs, and riddles. Studies
of folklore began in the early 19th century and first focused on
rural folk and others believed to be untouched by modern ways.
Several aims can be identified. One was to trace archaic customs
and beliefs. In Germany Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published their
classic collection of fairy tales in 1812. James George Frazer's
The Golden Bough (1890) reflects the use of folklore as a tool
to reconstruct ancient beliefs and rituals. Another motive for
the study of folklore