Charles Perrault's Birthday
Next: January 12, 2027
Once upon a time, in Paris.
The story
Where it comes from
Charles Perrault was born in Paris on 12 January 1628, and this Story marks his birthday. A lawyer by training, he worked as an official in charge of the king's buildings and became a leading member of the Académie Française. In his late sixties he turned to old folk tales, retelling them simply to amuse children. In 1697 he published Histoires ou contes du temps passé, known as the Tales of Mother Goose, with eight stories that are still told everywhere: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood and Puss in Boots among them.
How it's celebrated
There is no formal observance, but his birthday is a perfect excuse to read a fairy tale aloud, at bedtime or in a classroom, and to compare Perrault's version with the film you know. Libraries with rare-book collections, such as the University of Illinois and the Toronto Public Library, have shared his tales and their many illustrated editions online.
Did you know
- Each of Perrault's tales ends with a moral, written in verse.
- He signed the book's dedication not with his own name but as 'P. Darmancour'.
- Cinderella is told around the world: in China she is Ye Xian, in Italy Cenerentola and in Scotland Rashin Coatie.
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