c
   

¯


 
c


  
 !"

#$%!&'
()* +
,- 
)./01234
5

67

'*89
 

 
ù



; Mythical creatures and other animals (and the roles they play in fairytales) 
; Traditional fairytales


8 

 

A childless couple discover a baby inside a peach. They baby's name is ³Momotaroo´
Peach Boy. The Å
from the nearby island 

 raid Momotaroo's village and steal
all their treasures on a regular basis. When Momotaroo turns ten he decides to travel to


 in order to retrieve the villagers' belongings. On his way, he meets a dog,
monkey and pheasant, all of whom accompany him on his journey to help fight the oni. 
 

Ö
 



Oni apanese ogres which feature in many folktales. They are large, fierce
looking creatures with horns and bulging muscles, and are often red or
blue in colour.
(See   !
   
Iibidango a millet dumpling, specific to the Iibi region of apan (modern day
Okayama). You can still buy ß


 Å in Okayama, although they are
smaller than the original dumpling size.
See also:http://www.koeido.co.jp/confectionery/mukashi/index.html 
   
±ocations in apanThere is a cycling path on the outskirts of Okayama City (called the Iibi
Plain Cycle Path) which takes you to Iibitsu -jinja, the shrine devoted to
Momotaroo. You can also visit Megi-jima (also known as 

,
Oni Island). It is said to be the site of the clash between Momotaroo and

the oni, and is located off Takamatsu, Shikoku. 
 
 
‘


 
; www.thejapanesepage.com/songs.htm  Includes Momotaroo song and others.
; www.wanogakkou.com/culture/040000/040400_e.html  Background to apanese
literature.
; http://web-jpn.org/kidsweb/folk.html  Electronic kamishibai style stories.

 
  
Ö 

 
; greetings, leave taking
; animal vocabulary and sounds
; past tense
; 6te form
; 6 mashoo form

 
Ö  

   
; Narrator x 2  ; Inu
; Momotaroo - baby  ; Saru
; Momotaroo - ten years old  ; Iiji (pheasant)
; Ojiisan ; Chief Oni (Oni no Taishoo)
; Obaasan  ; Oni (any number)
; Chorus/Orchestra 

 

 


 
8Ö
 

 
      .    1 '
  
    

   A long time ago there lived an old man and an old woman. 
    
    Ü

 
   Å Å

  
    
    :  ¯   
    

   One day the old man went to the mountain. 
    
    ;
    
1    ; ;<
    
    1 ¯ =  
    

   Then the old woman went to the river to do the washing. 
    
     ,,' '0 
    

   While she was washing, a big peach floated by. 
    
1     ,,> ?*
    

   The old woman was so amazed to see such a huge peach that she
decided to take it home for her and the old man to eat. 
    
    
8Ö 

    
    
    
1    @
    
    =   ,, A BC*
    

   The old man took a knife out and was about to cut the peach in half
when a strange noise stopped him « S-t-r-e-t-c-h POP!! « The
peach burst open and out came a baby boy! 
    
,,.*     1   D¯ ¯ ,,.* 
    
    ,,.*¯  1  (, 

    

   The old man and the old woman were so surprised. They had no
children of their own, so they decided to raise Momotaroo as their own
child.
    
    Ü
Å 
ÅÅÅÅÅÅ 
    
    
8Ö
  

    
    ,,.*¯   ) 
    

   Momotaroo grew up to be a big, strong boy. He was very happy living
with the old man and old woman. 
    
    However, not everything was wonderful in the village. On a nearby
island, Oni-ga-shima, there lived some terrible oni. 
    
    Ü
ÅÅ ÅÅÅß


Å ßÅ 
    

   The oni came out at night to steal, fight and cause trouble for the
villagers.
    
    Ü


Å
ßÅÅÅ 
    
    E;
,,.*¯    
    

   When Momotaroo turned 10 he told the old man and the old woman
that he was going to Oni-ga-shima to stop the oni from plundering
their land.
    
,,.*    1 ¯  '  
    
    The old man and old woman were worried, but proud of Momotaroo
for wanting to help the villagers. 
    
     ) ! / 
    
1    F8! ,;; 
    
,,.*   ;
    
    ; ;<
1 
    

   Momotaroo took the kibidango the old woman had made for him, and
with his sword he set off for Oni-ga-shima.
    
    Ü
Å

ÅÅÅÅÅÅ 
ÅÅ



    
    
8Ö 
 
    Momotaroo hadn't gone very far when he met an inu. 
    
G   = = (  
    
,,.*    '  
    
G   ?0¯  
    
,,.*   F8 
    
G   : 
    
,,.*   ¯ (*H ;C  C*
    

   So off they went. It was not long before they met a saru. 
    
   <; <; (  
    
,,.*    '  
    
   ?0¯  
    
,,.*   F8 
    
   : 
    
,,.*   ¯ (*H ;C  C*
    
    The inu, the saru and Momotaroo set off once more. They soon came
upon a tori.
    
    / / (  
    
,,.*    '  
    
    ?0¯  
    
,,.*   F8 
    
    : 
    
,,.*   ¯ (*H ;C  C*
    

   Together the four friends hopped into a boat and set sail for Oni -ga-
shima.
    
    Ü
Å
Å



ÅÅÅÅÅÅ 
    
    
8Ö   
    When they arrived at Oni-ga-shima, the oni were having a wild and
noisy party. Momotaroo strode boldly up to the Chief Oni and said -
    
,,.*   ID
¯   ,,.*>
    
    ÜÅÅÅÅ 
  

Å
 
    
 C*
  ÜÅß
  ,,.*J ¯¯¯
    
,,.*    >  > 8.>
    

   Momotaroo challenged the Chief Oni to a fight and drew his mighty
sword. Meanwhile, the tori pecked at the heads of the Oni, the saru
jumped on their backs and the inu bit at their heels. 
    
  K  > > />
    
 C*   8
 8

    
    The Chief Oni begged for mercy and gave back all the stolen treasure
to Momotaroo.
    
,,.*D   ; >
    

   With a cart full of treasures Momotaroo and his friends returned home
as heroes for defeating the terrible Oni of Oni -ga-shima.
    
    Ü
Å
ÅÅÅÅÅÅÅ 
 

  
 
 
 
  




 
 


The popular children¶s song about Momotarō titled ÅÅ  Å

(ÅÅÅ ) was first published in 1911. One version of it is included
below with romanization and translation.

Momotarō-san no uta (Momotarō's Song) Þ
L


Momotarō-san, momotarō-san (Momotarō, Momotarō) Þ
Þ

Okoshini tsuketa kibidango (Those millet dumplings on your waist)
M /F8
Hitotsu watashi ni kudasai na? (Won't you give me one?)  N>
Agemashou, agemashou (I'll give you one, I'll give you one)
C* C*
Ima kara oni no seibatsu ni (From now, on a quest to conquer the ogres)
 OPQ 
Tsuite kuru nara agemashou (If you come with me, I'll give one to you)

 C*