Urikohime, Uriko-hime or Uriko Hime (うりこひめ; English: Princess Melon,[1] Melon Maid[2] or Melon Princess) is a dark Japanese folktale about a girl that is born out of a melon, adopted by a family and replaced by a evil creature named Amanojaku.
A melon comes washing down the stream until it is found by a human couple. They cut open the fruit and a girl appears out of it. They name her Urikohime (uri means "melon" in Japanese).[1] They raise her and she becomes a beautiful young lady. One day, she is left alone at home and told to be careful of any stranger who comes knocking. Unfortunately, a youkai named Amanojaku sets its sights on the girl. The creature appears at her house and asks the girl to open. She opens the door just a bit and the creature forces its entry in her house.[3]
In one version of the story, Amanojaku kills Urikohime and wears her skin.[4] The creature replaces Urikohime as the couple's daughter, but its disguise is ruined when the girl, reincarnated as a little bird, reveals the deception and eventually regains her human form.[5]
In another account, Urikohime becomes known for her great weaving abilities. Due to this, she is betrothed to a lord or prince. Before she marries, Amanojaku kills her and wears her dress, or ties her to a persimmon tree. The false bride is taken to the wedding on a palanquin, but the ruse is discovered. In the version where she is tied up, Urikohime cries out to anyone to hear and is rescued. The creature is chased away.[6][7]
Scholar Kunio Yanagita indicated alternate names to the tale: Urikohimeko, Urihime, Urihimeko.[8]
According to Japanese folklorist Keigo Seki's notations, several variations are recorded in Japanese compilations.[9] Further studies show that the tale can be found all over the Japanese archipelago.[10][11] Hiroko Ikeda's index of Japanese tales lists 102 versions of the story.[12]
According to Fanny Hagin Mayer, "most versions" of the story end on a tragic note, but all seem to indicate the great weaving skills of Urikohime.[13] Scholar Kunio Yanagita listed the tale Nishiki Chōja as one version of the story that contains a happy ending.[14]
Japanese scholarship argues for some relationship between this tale and Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index tale type ATU 408, "The Three Citrons", since both tales involve a maiden born of a fruit and her replacement for a false bride (in the tale type) and for evil creature Amanojaku (in Japanese versions).[15] In fact, professor Hiroko Ikeda classified the story of Urikohime as type 408B in his Japanese catalogue.[16][17]
Attention has also been drawn to the motif of "The False Bride" that exists in both tales: in Urikohime, the youkai or ogress wears the skin of the slain girl.[18] Folklorist Christine Goldberg recognizes that this is the motif Disguised Flayer (motif K1941 in the Motif-Index of Folk-Literature). This disguise is also used by heroines in other folktales.[19]
Professor Fanny Hagin Mayer remarked on the characters of the elderly couple that adopts Urikohime, which appear in several other Japanese folktales as a set.[20] The elderly woman teaches her adopted daughter skills in weaving.[21]