Category Archives: Riddle

Cabbage Riddle

Nationality: Former Soviet Union/Ukranian/Russian
Age: 50
Occupation: Business owner
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/10/18
Primary Language: Russian
Language: Ukranian, English

Main Piece: Riddle

Original:

Сто одежек и все без застежек.

– Капуста.

Phonetic:

Sto odezhek i vse bez zastezhek.
– Kapusta.

Translation:

One hundred outfits and each without clasps.

– Cabbage

Background Information:

  • Why does informant know this piece?

This was told to him by his childhood friends

  • Where did they learn this piece?

Ukraine

  • What does it mean to them?

It’s an interesting riddle.

Context:

This is told by children to other children to play riddle games.

Personal Thoughts:

I have heard multiple variations of this riddle, including one where instead of the answer being “cabbage”, the answer is “onions.”

The Inedible Pear Riddle

Nationality: Ukranian
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Kyiv, Ukraine
Performance Date: 4/12/18
Primary Language: Russian
Language: Ukranian

Main Piece:

Original:

Весит груша, нельзя скушать.

– Лампочка.

Phonetic:

Vesit grusha, nel’zya skushat’.
– Lampochka.

Translation:

A pear is hanging, but you cannot eat it.

– Light bulb.

Background Information:

  • Why does informant know this piece?

This was told to him by his childhood friends

  • Where did they learn this piece?

Ukraine

  • What does it mean to them?

It’s an interesting riddle.

Context:

This is told by children to other children to play riddle games.

Personal Thoughts:

I have heard a different variant of this riddle, where the answer is “boxing punch bag” instead of a light bulb, since the word for “pear” and “punching bag” in Russian is the same (груша).

Scissors Riddle

Nationality: Former Soviet Union/Ukranian/Russian
Age: 71
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/10/18
Primary Language: Russian
Language: Ukranian, Some English

Main Piece: Riddle

Original:

Два кольца, два конца, и по середине гвоздик.

– Ножницы.

Phonetic:

Dva kol’tsa, dva kontsa, i po seredine gvozdik.
– Nozhnitsy.

Translation:

Two rings, two points, and nail in the center.

– Scissors.

Background Information:

  • Why does informant know this piece?

This was told to him by his childhood friends

  • Where did they learn this piece?

Soviet Union

  • What does it mean to them?

It’s an interesting riddle.

Context:

This is told by children to other children to play riddle games.

Personal Thoughts:

Personally, I find this riddle confusing, since rings are not what I associate with scissors. However, in the Soviet Union in the 1970’s, when the informant heard this riddle, scissors looked different from how scissors look now, and therefore this riddle would make sense.

The Lock

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 56
Occupation: Electrician
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 04/19/2018
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

Main Piece: The Lock

The following was an interview of a Participant/interviewee about a folk riddle that is passed within his community or his school. He is marked as AO. I am marked as DM.

AO: El dia de ahora les quiero hacer una adivinanza. Haber si la pueden adivinar. Es chiquito come un ratón y cuidad la casa como un león. Que es?

DM: I don’t know.

AO: El candado.  

Translate:

AO: Today I am going to tell you a riddle. Let’s see if you guys can solve it. It is small like a mouse and guards the house like a lion. What is it?

DM: I don’t know.

AO: The lock.

Background/Context:

The participant is 56 years old. He grew up in Mexico City, Mexico. Alberto, who is marked as AO, is my grandpa. When I was growing up, my grandpa loved to tell me and my sisters jokes or riddles. He would tell us it helped us develop a different way of thinking. He learned this riddle and I learned this riddle in Spanish, but it makes sense in English as well. Below is a conversation I had with AO for more background/context of the joke, which was originally in Spanish.

DM: Why do you know/ like this riddle?

AO: I like to tell this riddle because it became a motivation to read. All of my books in elementary contained jokes, which made it easier to read.

DM: Where and from who did you learn this riddle from?

AO: I learned this joke in Mexico from an elementary book.  

DM: What does this riddle mean/ signify to you?

AO: Telling jokes or phrases that make people think is a tradition in Mexico. This was a better way to unfold my learning abilities in an enjoyable manner.  

Analysis/ My Thoughts:

Every time I heard this joke I never thought about it as a way to pass time or a game. I think it is important to know that at one point riddles were a form of entertainment in some communities. The fact that elementary books in Mexico that are full of riddles are being read by students is amazing. The students have no idea that their readings contain so much tradition or folklore. The fact is that the riddles that are authored text can be continued to be passed down to other children.

El Plato de Maiz, el Cayote, y la Gallina

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 56
Occupation: Electrician
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 04/19/2018
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

Main Piece: El Plato de Maiz, el Cayote, y la Gallina

The following was an interview of a Participant/interviewee about a folk riddle that is passed within his community. He is marked as AO. I am marked as DM.

AO: Ahora les voy hacer una adivinanza. Haber si pueden resolverlo. Tengo una gallina, un coyote, y un plato de maíz. Que tengo que cruzar por un río. Pero en la lancha que llevo solamente puedo traer una cosa a la vez. Sin perder ninguna de las tres cosas. Tienes que cruzar de un lugar a otro. Creen que se puede hacer? Sin la gallina se coma el maíz ni que el coyote se coma la gallina?

DM: No.

AO: Se les voy a demostrar que si se puede. Tenemos la gallina, tenemos el coyote, y tenemos el maíz. Aqui esta el rio. Como solamente podemos cruzar una cosa a la vez, primero agregamos la gallina, la subimos al bote, y la pasamos del otro lado. Ya tenemos la gallina de esta lado. Nos regresamos y nos tiremos el coyote. Tiremos al coyote, como no más puedes agarrar una sola cosa a la vez, agarramos la gallina y la regresamos para tras y los tiremos el maíz. Y como ya tenemos a la gallina y el maíz el coyote no se puede comer el maíz y la gallina volvemos a tener aqa entonces nos volvemos a traer la gallina de regreso. Y ya tenemos las tres cosas aqa.

Translate:

AO: Today I am going to tell you a riddle. Let’s see if you guys can solve it. I have a chicken, a coyote, and a plate of corn. I have to cross a river. But in the boat I can only bring one thing at a time. Without losing any of the three things. You have to cross from one place to another. Do you think it can be done? Without the chicken eating the corn or the coyote eating the chicken?

DM: No.

AO: I’m going to show you that you can. We have the chicken, we have the coyote, and we have the corn. Here’s the river. Since we can only cross one thing at a time, take the chicken to the other side of the river. We’ve got the chicken on this side. You come back and take the coyote. We take the coyote, return with the chicken. You leave the chicken and take the corn. Then you come back for the chicken and take it to the other side again.

Background/Context:

The participant is 56 years old. He grew up in Mexico City, Mexico. Alberto, who is marked as AO, is my grandpa. When I was growing up, my grandpa loved to tell me and my sisters jokes or riddles. He would tell us it helped us develop a different way of thinking. He learned this riddle and I learned this riddle in Spanish, but it makes sense in English as well. Below is a conversation I had with AO for more background/context of the joke, which was originally in Spanish.

DM: Why do you know/ like this riddle?

AO: I like to tell this riddle because I want to make people think.

DM: Where and from who did you learn this riddle from?

AO: I learned this joke in Mexico from a friends.  

DM: What does this riddle mean/ signify to you?

AO: Telling jokes or phrases that make people think was a tradition in Mexico. Also, since there was no internet or tv in my time, this was a way to pass time. Telling stories, jokes, riddles was a game or form entertainment to us.

Analysis/ My Thoughts:

Every time I heard this joke I never thought about it as a way to pass time or a game. I think it is important to know that at one point riddles were a form of entertainment in some communities. The fact that people in Mexico would sit around telling each other proverbs, jokes, and riddles that learn from their families and to not think about it as folklore is amazing. The fact is that one daily conversation can turn into something that will last forever.