Famous Spanish Folktales for Kids
Reading folktales and legends in Spanish is a great way to learn about Hispanic culture and history. Folk tales are often full of rich language and have a base in oral tradition which make them good examples for reading aloud with children.
Not only can these folk tales entertain you, but they can teach you a lot about the themes, values and traditions of the Spanish speaking country that they’re from.
While this is by no means a complete list, today I’ll share with you some of our family favorite Spanish folk tales. I will include the country of origin and what we liked most about them!
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Our Favorite Spanish Folktales
Here is a list of our family’s favorite Spanish folktales and legends. There are so many fun options, but these are ones that we’ve really enjoyed!
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Martina una Cucarachita Muy Linda: Un Cuento Cubano
This is my favorite version of this story and it’s one of my favorite Spanish folk tales. Martina is a beautiful young cockroach who must get married. Her grandmother advises her to dump coffee on the feet of her suitors to see their reaction. Martina soon realizes that her suitors are not as mannered as they pretend to be, especially when they become angry for having wet feet. Finally, Ratoncito Perez comes by and dumps coffee on her feet! The two laugh and realize that they are a great match for each other.
This beautiful Cuban tale ends with a funny line and is a hugely popular tale in most of Central and South America. There are other versions which tell of the life of Martina and Perez after they get married, though this version doesn’t contain the second part of that tale.
Cuckoo/Cucu: A Mexican Folktale
We have read a few versions of this book and I posted two of them here. This is more of a “pourquoi tale” that tells of why the cuckoo has gray feathers, a simple call and lays it’s eggs in the nests of other birds. Often told in Mexico and thought to be of Mayan origin, this is a common Spanish folktale.
Cuckoo likes to hear itself sing and admire its beautiful feathers. The other birds admonish it for being lazy and boastful. Each year the birds save seeds from the plants in the fields to use the following Spring. During the night, a big fire starts to consume the fields and only Cuckoo is awake to see. The brave Cuckoo flies back and worth through the smoke to save as many seeds as it can. After the fire passes, Cuckoo realizes that the smoke has permanently turned its feathers grey and has damaged its singing voice. The other birds reward Cuckoo by offering to take its eggs in their nests.
Moon Rope/Un Lazo A La Luna
Fox wants to go to the moon and convinces Mole to go with him. Together they convince some birds to tie a rope around the moon and they start to climb up. Part of the way up, Mole falls down. The other animals think that Mole let go on purpose because he was afraid. Embarrassed, Mole digs a hole and decides that he’ll only come out at night. Fox makes it to the moon, and on a clear night, you can see his face there looking down at the Earth.
Another “pourquoi tale” about why mole’s live underground and why you can see a face in the moon. This story is a Peruvian folktale and is wonderfully told and illustrated by Lois Ehlert. The text flows well and is simple enough for young readers to enjoy.
Amor Y Pollo Asado: Un Cuente De Estafadores De Enredos Y Enganos
This is a super cute trickster tale from Peru. Cuy, the guinea pig, continually tricks Tio Antonio, the fox who is trying to eat him. In an attempt to escape from Tio Antonio, Cuy ends up in the house of the local farmer, who catches him, ties him to a tree and threatens to cook him for his daughter. Using his wit, Cuy tricks Tio Antonio one last time to escape from the farmer.
My daughter and I really love this story! It’s funny and is great to read over and over again. I like that it includes Spanish words that are specific to the Andes region and that there is a great author’s note at the end about the folktale.
This is a longer picture book with a good chunk of text per page, so it’s more suitable for children that can listen for a long stretch.
La Lagartija y el Sol / The Lizard and the Sun: A Folktale in English and Spanish
This folktale also comes from Mexico but has it’s roots in Aztec culture. The illustrations in this version are wonderful and my daughter loves to examine each of the pages carefully. We like how it depicts Aztec life and traditional dress along with the myth.
One day the sun goes away and cannot be found. All of the animals go searching for it but no one can find it. Finally Lizard finds a rock that is shining brightly. With the help of the Emperor and the woodpecker, they crack open the rock. Inside is the sleeping sun. The Emperor convinces the sun to rise once again saying that the community will perform dances to entertain it. All of lizards decedents like to bask on rocks in the sun.
Kiki Kokí: La Leyenda Encantada del Coquí
There are so many Puerto Rican stories that tell of the Coqui- this is just one of them!
Koki is a Taino boy who doesn’t like to help out in the community and is bored easily. One night he is turned into a golden tree frog, coqui, by the Moon Goddess. In order to turn back into a human boy he must learn to help out and work for the community. During an entire month, Koki helps the frogs that he lives with.
At the end of the month, Koki goes to see the Moon Goddess to ask to be transformed back into a boy. On the way he sees pirate rats about to attack the village of frogs. Koki gives up his chance to talk to the Moon Goddess and turns back to save his frog friends from the pirate attack. Koki gets caught in the whirlpool of the sinking pirate ship and the Moon Goddess saves him by returning him to his Taino village as a human boy once again.
The color illustrations in this book are lots of fun for kids. The lesson is easy to catch and talk about with young children, too.
San Jorge y el dragón
Saint George and the dragon is a very popular folk tale in many parts of the world, but particularly in Spain. Saint George’s Day is often celebrated on April 23rd, and some areas celebrate almost like a type of Valentine’s Day.
This legend tells of how a dragon tormented a kingdom by eating it’s crops, livestock and people. To stop the dragon from attacking the kingdom, each year a lottery was held and one person was selected to be fed to the dragon. One day the King’s daughter was chosen. As she waited for the dragon to eat her, Saint George, a knight, comes to her rescue. Saint George slayed the dragon and from it’s blood sprouted a rose. Taking the rose, Saint George asks for the princess’s hand in marriage and she accepts.
It’s a common tradition in Spain, especially in Catalonia on Saint George’s Day for men to give roses to their loved ones.
Looking for more Spanish book ideas? Check out our top picks for interactive books in Spanish or Spanish graphic novels for kids!
I hope that you can enjoy some of these Spanish folk tales and get a feel for some of the cultural and indigenous background of many different Spanish speaking countries! Let me know which Spanish folk tales you like the best!
Happy Learning!
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