The Bird of Folklore by Hans Christian Andersen. Short summary

5 seconds

The poet sees the spirit of a Viking lamenting that no one has sung his exploits. The singer strikes the harp strings and from there a bird of folk poetry is born. It will not die as long as the last Dane is alive.

1 minute

On top of the mound, mottled with runes, the ghost of the konung appears at midnight. He mourns and finds no rest. A ship with a skald (poet-singer) on board sailed past.

— Why are you grieving? — He asked the konung.
— Because no one has sung of my feats of arms, the ghost answered.

So the skald took up his harp and told of the glorious deeds of the Viking king. From the sounds of the harp was born bird folk poetry. It has been alive for centuries.

In the dark ages when violence, greed and avarice flourished, when everyone thought how to stuff his belly, the song of the bird was almost unheard. But it was recorded on parchment by lonely people with a sensitive heart who heard the singing.

So even now, in the warmth of our homes, when the blizzard is raging outside, we can sit by the fireplace and listen to the Danish sagas. They tell of the glorious deeds of a konung and the exploits of many heroes who lived before and after him. And this bird of folk song will not die as long as the last Dane is alive.