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A 'national epic' is an epic poem or similar work which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation; not necessarily a nation-state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with aspirations to independence or . National epics frequently recount the origin of a nation, a part of its history, or a crucial event in the development of national identity such as other national symbols. In a broader sense, a national epic may simply be an epic in the national language which the people or government of that nation are particularly proud of.
Some consider the national epic to be a product of Romantic nationalism. Where no obvious national epic existed, the "Romantic spirit" was motivated to fill it. An early example of poetry that was invented to fill a perceived gap in "national" myth is Ossian, the narrator and supposed author of a cycle of poems by James Macpherson, which Macpherson claimed to have translated from ancient sources in the Scots Gaelic. However, many national epics (including Macpherson's ''Ossian'') antedate 19th-century romanticism.
Examples of epics that have been enlisted as "national" include

Contents

Poetic epics

Americas

Asia

Europe

Prose epics

See also

External Source

Poetic epics

Americas

★ Argentina - Martín Fierro by José Hernández

★ Chile - La Araucana/The Araucaniad by Alonso de Ercilla

Asia

★ Armenia - Sasna Dzrer,"Madmen of Sassoun", also translated "Daredevils of Sassoun."(also known as "Sasountsi Tavit" after its main character, David of Sassoun,

★ Indian subcontinent -

★
★ Mahabharata

★
★ Ramayana

★
★ The Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature

★ Indonesia -

★
★ Kakawin Rāmâyaṇa

★
★ Ramakavaca

★ Iran and Persian speakers in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and other countries - Shahnameh (legends and history of Iran from earliest times to the end of the Sassanid Empire)

★ Kipchaks (e.g. in Tatarstan) - Chora Batir

★ Kyrgyz - Epic of Manas

★ Laos - Phra Lak Phra Lam

★ Malaysia -

★
★ Hikayat Hang Tuah

★
★ Sejarah Melayu

★
★ Hikayat Seri Rama

★ Mongols (Kalmyks and Oirats) - Jangar

★ Myanmar - Yama Zatdaw

★ Philippines -

★
★ Maradia Lawana

★
★ Florante at Laura

★
★ Ibong Adarna

★
★ Biag ni Lam-ang

★ Tibetans - Epic of King Gesar

★ Thailand - Ramakien

★ Vietnam -

★
★ Au Lac myths

★
★ The Tale of Kieu

★ Cambodia - Reamker

Europe

★ Albania - Lahuta e Malcís (The Highland Lute) by Gjergj Fishta

★ Ancient Rome - Aeneid

★ Armenia/ Greater Armenia of 9th century - Davit of Sasoun

★ Catalonia - Canigó by Jacint Verdaguer

★ Croatia - Smrt Smail-age Čengića by Ivan Mažuranić

★ England - Beowulf

★ Estonia - Kalevipoeg

★ Finland - Kalevala

★
★ Despite the similar names and close linguistic and cultural ties between Finland and Estonia, Kalevala and Kalevipoeg are two completely separate works.

★ France - La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) about Roland/Orlando.

★ Germany - Nibelungenlied

★ Greece, Ancient (Hellas and Mediterranean Greek colonies) - Iliad and Odyssey

★ Greece (Byzantine Empire) - Digenis Acritas

★ Hungary - Peril of Sziget (Szigeti Veszedelem)

★ Ireland - Táin Bó Cúailnge

★ Latvia - Lāčplēsis

★ Luxembourg - Rénert the Fox

★ Portugal - Os Lusíadas ("The Lusiads")

★ Poland - Pan Tadeusz by Adam Mickiewicz

★ Scandinavia - Poetic Edda

★ Sorbs - Nawozenja

★ Spain - Cantar de Mio Cid (about the early Reconquista)

★ Wales - Mabinogion

Prose epics

Some prose works, while not strictly epic poetry, have an important place in the national consciousness of their nations. These include the following:

★ Britain -

★
★ Historia Regum Britanniae

★ China -

★
★ Fengshen Yanyi (mythology)

★
★ Romance of the Three Kingdoms (novel)

★
★ Water Margin (novel)

★
★ Journey to the West (novel)

★
★ Dream of the Red Chamber (novel)

★ Ethiopia - Kebra Nagast

★ Flanders (Dutch-speaking part of Belgium) - De Leeuw van Vlaanderen ("The Lion of Flanders")

★ France : Les Misérables (A novel spanning a crucial era of French History)

★ Ireland

★
★ ''Táin Bó Cúailnge'' (Prose narration with poetic interludes)

★
★ ''Dubliners''

★ Japan -

★
★ Kojiki

★
★ Nihongi (prose with songs)

★
★ The Tale of Genji (''genji monogatari'')

★ Korea - Samguk Yusa (prose with songs)

★ Lithuania - Anykščių šilelis by Antanas Baranauskas

★ Mali - Epic of Sundiata

★ Mayans - Popol Vuh

★ Middle East - Tanakh (Old Testament)

★ Mongolia -

★
★ Borte Chino

★
★ The Secret History of the Mongols (Genghis Khan's biography)

★ Portugal - Peregrinação (or Peregrinaçam)

★ Russia -

★
★ Tale of Igor's Campaign

★
★ Zadonshchina

★ Spain - Don Quixote

★ Tatar - "Chora Batir" [1]

★ Turkic peoples -

★
★ Alpamysh (all Central Asia)

★
★ Book of Dede Korkut (Oghuz nations: Azerbaijan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Turcomans of Iraq, as well as Central Asia and other Turkic nations)

★
★ Oghuz-nameh (Oghuz nations: Azerbaijan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Turcomans of Iraq)

★
★ Ergenekon (Turkey)

★
★ Koroglu (Azerbaijan and Turkey)

★
★ Kutadgu Bilig (Central Asia, Uighurs and other Turkic nations)

★ Wales - Mabinogion

★ United States

★
★ ''The Grapes of Wrath''

★
★ ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn''

★
★ ''U.S.A.''

See also

★ Epic poetry

★ List of world folk-epics

★ National myth

★ Founding myth

★ Civil religion

★ List of national poets

★ Great American Novel

External Source

★ Full text epics in the original languages