American Folklore

Folklore Used by African Americans

African-Americans have had a long oral tradition of storytelling that predates their arrival in the United States. Due to the high rate of illiteracy during the years of slavery before the Civil War, folklore passed orally from generation to generation offered one of the few means of maintaining a distinct cultural identity. In the 20th century, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes and other African-American authors documented many of these folktales, offering an insightful view into the history of this underrepresented culture.