Black Horse

Bu Darya and the Sailors

In short: Records from three Gulf countries show how sailors told stories about Bu Darya.

Bu Darya and the Sailors · A cry for help from the sea FAIRY TALE ATLAS · № 209 Bu Darya and the Sailors Records from three Gulf countries show how sailors told stories about Bu Darya. Origin A figure shared by Gulf maritime traditions. The 1978 records from the Emirates and Kuwait and the 2016 study from Bahrain document different accounts. Atlas record 1978 First appearance Exact date unknown SIGNATURE MOTIF A cry for help from the sea Reach¹ 3/10 Suggested age² 8+ Member rating No votes yet 3 records · 3 countries or regions blackhorsestories.com

¹ Based on the number of Atlas countries, capped at 10. ² Editorial suggestion for reading this page. Discover Black Horse’s question

Origin and tradition

A figure shared by Gulf maritime traditions. The 1978 records from the Emirates and Kuwait and the 2016 study from Bahrain document different accounts.

In Falih Hanzal’s record from the Emirates, the sailors help someone they take for a drowning man. Once on deck, Bu Darya eats their provisions and may damage the boat. In Saif al-Shamlan’s Kuwaiti account, the sailors see him climbing aboard and shout. The Bahraini study places the figure in the wider maritime folklore of the Gulf.

Dated records and sources

  1. 1978 · Abu Dhabi, UAE
    Falih Hanzal · Dictionary of UAE colloquial expressions · p. 40, quoted in Folk Culture · Published collection
  2. 1978 · Kuwait · sailors’ account
    Saif al-Shamlan · Kuwaiti Folk Games · p. 145, quoted in Folk Culture · Published collection
  3. 2016 · Bahrain · maritime folklore
    Folk Culture · Myths and folktales about sea creatures in Bahrain · issue 33

Country pages

Fairy Tale Glossary

Origin
Black Horse. Bu Darya and the Sailors. https://blackhorsestories.com/en/atlas-tale-bu-darya-sea/