Kemp Owyne
Encyclopedia
Synopsis
The heroine is turned into a wormEuropean dragon
European dragons are legendary creatures in folklore and mythology among the overlapping cultures of Europe.In European folklore, a dragon is a serpentine legendary creature. The Latin word draco, as in constellation Draco, comes directly from Greek δράκων,...
(dragon), usually by her stepmother, who curses her to remain so until the king's son comes to kiss her three times. When he arrives, she offers him a belt, a ring, and a sword to kiss her, promising the things would magically protect him; the third time, she turns back into a woman. In some variants, he asks who enchanted her, a werewolf
Werewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
or mermaid
Mermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
; she says it was her stepmother and curses her into a monstrous creature, permanently.
Variants
The hero of the story appears to be YwainYwain
Sir Ywain is a Knight of the Round Table and the son of King Urien in Arthurian legend...
, from Arthurian legend. It is not clear how he came to be attached to this story, although many other Arthurian knights appear in other ballads with as little connection to their roles in the Arthurian legend, for instance Sir Lionel
Sir Lionel
Sir Lionel is the younger son of King Bors of Gaunnes and Evaine and brother of Bors the Younger in Arthurian legend. He is a double cousin of Lancelot and cousin of Lancelot's younger half-brother Ector de Maris...
, who appears in a ballad of the same name.
Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs was a folklorist, literary critic and historian. His works included contributions to the Jewish Encyclopaedia, translations of European works, and critical editions of early English literature...
has suggested that The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh
The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh
The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh, also known as The Laidly Worm of Bamborough, is a Northumbrian ballad about a princess who changed into a dragon .-Synopsis:...
(which he collected for his English Fairy Tales with touches from the ballad of Kempion) is a localised version of the ballad of Kemp Owyne, itself possibly a version of the Icelandic saga of Áslól and Hjálmtèr.
In the variant collected by Francis James Child
Francis James Child
Francis James Child was an American scholar, educator, and folklorist, best known today for his collection of folk songs known as the Child Ballads. Child was Boylston professor of rhetoric and oratory at Harvard University, where he produced influential editions of English poetry...
, the three magical items all had the same property; he believed that originally, each one had a unique property, but these were lost.
"Dove Isabeau" (1989), written by Jane Yolen
Jane Yolen
Jane Hyatt Yolen is an American author and editor of almost 300 books. These include folklore, fantasy, science fiction, and children's books...
and illustrated by Dennis Nolan
Dennis Nolan
Dennis Nolan may refer to:*Dennis Nolan *Dennis E. Nolan, United States Army general...
, shifts the titular character to the transformed heroine but retains the narrative of the ballad, with the addition of a pet cat inhabited by the spirit of Isabeau's dead mother, who assists the hero in his rescue. Brian Peters included a recording titled "Kemp Owyne" on his album Sharper Than the Thorn. Frankie Armstrong
Frankie Armstrong
Frankie Armstrong is a singer and voice teacher.She has worked as a singer in the folk scene and the women's movement and as a trainer in social and youth work...
included a recording titled "Kemp Owen" on her album The Garden of Love. Fay Hield includes a recording titled "Kemp Owen" on her album "Looking Glass".
This ballad was one of 25 traditional works included in Ballads Weird and Wonderful (1912) and illustrated by Vernon Hill (sculptor)
Vernon Hill (sculptor)
Vernon Hill was a sculptor, lithographer and Illustrator.-Biography:Vernon Hill was born in Halifax and undertook formal training in print-making from an early age, being apprenticed as a lithographer in his early teen....
.