Author Biography
Jacob (1785-1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (1786-1859) are commonly known the world over as the Brothers Grimm (die Bruder Grimm). They were German academics and authors who specialised in collecting and publishing folklore during the 19th century. They popularised stories such as Rapunzel, Snow White (Schneewittchen), Hansel and Gretel (Hansel und Gretel), and Rumpelstiltskin (Rumpelstilzchen). Their first collection of folk tales, Children's and Household Tales (Kinder und Hausmarchen), was published in 1812. The rise of romanticism during the 19th century revived interest in traditional folk stories, which represented a pure form of national literature and culture to the brothers. With the goal of researching a scholarly treatise on folk tales, they established a methodology for collecting and recording folk stories that became the basis for folklore studies. Between 1812 and 1857, their collection was revised and republished many times, growing from 86 stories to more than 200. The popularity of the Grimms' collected folk tales has endured well, and the tales are available in more than 100 languages and have been adapted by many filmmakers.
