This year my A to Z theme is Small Town Legends. I am exploring folklore from villages and small towns around Hungary, bringing you the most entertaining bits. You can plan your next visit around them!
Mukucsfalu today is part of the town of Lickóvadamos in Zala County, Western Hungary. The entire place has less than 200 inhabitants, out of which about 10 live in Mukucsfalu. The name comes from 'mókus' (squirrel) and 'falu' (village), so it is literally called Squirrel Village.
And there is a legend to explain the name.
The story takes place during the Ottoman wars of the 16th and 17th centuries. It says that when the inhabitants of the village found out that the Turkish army, under Hasan Bey, was fast approaching, they gathered to come up with a defense plan. They sent the judge as envoy to talk to the bey. The envoy carried an offering for peace: a bag full of two hundred squirrels. The villagers believed that the Turks had neved seen (or tasted) these animals... but they also had ulterior motives. The judge explained that the village is not worth pillaging since all the inhabitants are squirrels. The bey, not entirely sure what to do with the news and the offering, ordered his servants to tie up the squirrels to his tent posts.
The next morning, the villagers found the Turkish camp empty... except for the bey, who was lying dead in his tent. Mauled by sqirrels. Crisis averted.
Sources for the story here and here.
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