"Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world. The protagonist is a young girl living in forsaken circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune, with her ascension to the throne via marriage. The story of Rhodopis, recounted by the Greek geographer Strabo sometime between 7 BC and 23 AD, about a Greek slave girl who marries the king of Egypt, is usually considered to be the earliest known variant of the Cinderella story.
Cinderella
Pair of ancient sandals from Egypt
Italian author Giambattista Basile wrote the first literary version of the story.
Cinderella: a perfect match, an 1818 painting by Jean-Antoine Laurent [fr]
Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as tales, myths, legends, proverbs, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also includes material culture, such as traditional building styles common to the group. Folklore also encompasses customary lore, taking actions for folk beliefs, and the forms and rituals of celebrations such as Christmas, weddings, folk dances, and initiation rites.
Netherlandish Proverbs by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1559
A European folk tale, Little Red Riding Hood; illustration by Jessie Willcox Smith, 1911
A German folk tale, Hansel and Gretel; illustration by Arthur Rackham, 1909
Indian Folk Worship at Batu Caves, Selangor Malaysia