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Anahit
(Armenian Folktale)
The Queen Who Made the King Get a Job
1 Yes, she should be using the crank on the other side of the well to draw up water, but I liked the visual of her letting the rope go. 
2 This point was part of the Communist Russia version – choosing the suitor is an important part of traditional Armenian culture. Communist Russia was more egalitarian in its attitude towards women, it would seem.3 Nazar is the name given to him in one version – in the other, it’s Vaginak. That name caused giggling in too many of my friends, so I stuck with Nazar.
4 This “yay proletariat”-ism also comes from the Russia version.5 The original gag for Petros was him saying, “I don’t get it, why is Tyler Durden the bad guy?” but it seemed too dated a reference (and too many people saw the movie instead of read the book).
6 Petros is my favorite character in this.
7 Armenians are quite serious about their clothing, and weaving is a big part of that.
8 No version explained why she encouraged him to go check out the kingdom, apart from him generally seeming disconnected from the common man.
9 The Russian version has a very long scene where he comes to a temple, and the priest is built up as this super cool guy who wouldn’t hurt a flea – people lay out bricks for him to step on so he wouldn’t touch the ground, that sort of thing. He then promises the incognito king a job, and traps him in a dungeon.
10 In the other version, she and the horse break down a wall hiding the cave dungeon, but I liked the visual of her busting down the door much better.
11 That’s legit how the story ends. I think it’s sweet.
Footnotes
| ↑1 | Yes, she should be using the crank on the other side of the well to draw up water, but I liked the visual of her letting the rope go. |
| ↑2 | This point was part of the Communist Russia version – choosing the suitor is an important part of traditional Armenian culture. Communist Russia was more egalitarian in its attitude towards women, it would seem. |
| ↑3 | Nazar is the name given to him in one version – in the other, it’s Vaginak. That name caused giggling in too many of my friends, so I stuck with Nazar. |
| ↑4 | This “yay proletariat”-ism also comes from the Russia version. |
| ↑5 | The original gag for Petros was him saying, “I don’t get it, why is Tyler Durden the bad guy?” but it seemed too dated a reference (and too many people saw the movie instead of read the book). |
| ↑6 | Petros is my favorite character in this. |
| ↑7 | Armenians are quite serious about their clothing, and weaving is a big part of that. |
| ↑8 | No version explained why she encouraged him to go check out the kingdom, apart from him generally seeming disconnected from the common man. |
| ↑9 | The Russian version has a very long scene where he comes to a temple, and the priest is built up as this super cool guy who wouldn’t hurt a flea – people lay out bricks for him to step on so he wouldn’t touch the ground, that sort of thing. He then promises the incognito king a job, and traps him in a dungeon. |
| ↑10 | In the other version, she and the horse break down a wall hiding the cave dungeon, but I liked the visual of her busting down the door much better. |
| ↑11 | That’s legit how the story ends. I think it’s sweet. |
Art Notes
- There may be some inaccuracies with the style of dress – I found a fair bit of conflicting info on Armenian dress styles. I think Anahit probably should be wearing some form of apron in the early scenes, but I had no time to go back and redraw them.
- Petros is holding a book upside down in the poster image.
- Anahit (sometimes spelled Anait) is also the name of an Armenian fertility goddess.
- There actually is an animated princess movie of Anahit! It came out in 2014, and was posted online in its entirety by the animation studio that made it, so I think it’s okay to link:
I can’t understand it, but seems to take some liberties: Anahit’s uncle is a schemer in league with a shadowy devil creature, her horse gets a flaming mane, there’s a talking dog…?
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Next Time on Rejected Princesses
This level-headed naginata expert nevertheless lost her head in what is today Fukushima.
