Just about every English speaker knows that when they hear the words “Once upon a time,” they are about to be transported into the world of make-believe. Considering that storytelling is a universal aspect of humanity, it’s no wonder that every culture has its own version of this phrase. 

What’s really fascinating is that the way a tale begins reveals its own mini-story of the culture that created it. 

Some begin by bending time

In Japanese, a traditional opening is “Mukashi mukashi,” which translates roughly to “Long, long ago.” It is often followed by “aru tokoro ni,” or “in a certain place,” creating an opening that feels familiar to anyone who grew up with English-language fairy tales.

Korean folklore takes a more mythical (not to mention humorous) approach. One traditional opening translates to “Once, in the old days, when tigers smoked tobacco…” Though, sadly, there are no tigers in Korea anymore, the country’s relationship with the creature runs deep. Sometimes they were highly regarded guardian spirits. Other times, particularly when they had derpy faces, they were tongue-in-cheek jabs at out-of-touch nobles. 

Some historians believe this story opening harkens back to a more egalitarian time, when tobacco first entered Korea, and all classes (and species, apparently) could partake. Others........

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