THE HISTORYOF

CHILDREN'S
LITERATURE
Rrporter: Jerome Hizon Date: 08/18/2021
 Introduction

Adults have been entertaining children with stories and fables since the
beginning of time. From these folktales grew a rich tapestry of children's
literature. Children's literature today spans multiple genres and appeals to
readers of all ages. Let's look at the history of children's literature.
Children's literature, like other types of
literature, evolved from stories passed
d o w n o r a l l y f r o m g e n e r a ti o n t o g e n e r a ti
on. Irish folk tales date back to 400 BCE
, w h e r e a s t h e P a c h a t a n t r a , w r i tt e n a r o u
nd 200 AD in India, is considered to be t
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h e e a r l i e s t w r i tt e n f o l k t a l e s . A r o u n d 4 0
0 A D , t h e fi r s t v e r s i o n o f A e s o p ' s F a b l e s
appeared on papyrus scrolls.
D u r i n g t h e S o n g D y n a s t y, s t o r y t e l
ling reached its pinnacle in imperi
al China (960-1279 AD). Many of t
h e s t o r i e s f r o m t h i s e r a a r e s ti l l u
sed to teach students in China tod
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a y. T h e r e i s n o e q u i v a l e n t i n G r e e
k o r R o m a n l i t e r a t u r e . H o w e v e r, t h
e stories of Homer and other anci
ent storytellers would undoubtedl
As Europe became a cultural center of the
w o r l d , i n s t r u c ti v e t e x t s b e c a m e i n c r e a s i n g
l y c o m m o n . T h e s e b o o k s w e r e m o s t l y w r i tt
e n i n L a ti n , w i t h t h e p u r p o s e o f i n s t r u c ti n
g children. During the Middle Ages, very l
i tt l e l i t e r a t u r e w a s w r i tt e n f o r t h e s o l e p u
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rpose of entertaining children. Hornbooks

, textbooks containing basic texts like the
Lord's Prayer and the alphabet, would not
a p p e a r u n ti l t h e 1 4 0 0 s . A l p h a b e t b o o k s b e
g a n p o p p i n g u p a r o u n d R u s s i a , I t a l y, D e n
EXAMPLES
1. Where the Wild Things Are
2 . T h e Ta l e o f P e t e r R a b b i t
THANK YOU