"Once Upon a Time...": When Prehistoric Archaeology and Folklore Converge

Abstract

This paper addresses the issue of congruence between archaeological narrative and folktale, and tentatively explores its implications for our understanding of the deep past, as well as of present-day folklore. Similarities between a folktale that explains the name of Serra da Estrela, a mountain range in central Portugal, and the material record of Neolithic Iberian dolmen builders of the nearby Mondego valley suggest that the prehistoric reality might be the origin of the tale. This congruence, an example among many others, has implications for the understanding of folklore, social memory and ethno-history. However, for this to occur, this paper argues that folklore needs to be looked at in the longue durée, and its origins and transformations better understood. The paper concludes with a discussion of several points raised by this case study that should be considered in the development of a methodology for congruous archaeology/folklore studies.