riddle
Let an agent explain riddles and their kinds, relay traditions, structure and study from folklore and literary sources, describe games and uses, and distinguish riddles from puzzles, jokes, proverbs and mysteries.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions
Understand What a riddle is.
Definition
Definition.
Definition
Definition.
- What is a riddle, and how does it differ from puzzles, jokes and proverbs? definition
- Is the question about riddles in general, a kind, a tradition or a specific riddle? boundary
Kinds
Kinds.
Kinds
Kinds.
- What are enigmas, conundrums, charades, situation puzzles and riddle jokes? definition
- Which entry fits the specific kind? action
Traditions Traditions.
Cultures
Cultural traditions.
Cultures
Cultures.
- How do Hebrew, Malay, Ukrainian and other traditions such as Petorke use riddles? provenance
- Which references are standard? provenance
Literature
Literature and scripture.
Literature
Literature.
- How do riddles appear in scripture, epic, Anglo-Saxon poetry and modern fiction? provenance
- Which sources are cited? provenance
Play Playing and using.
Games
Games.
Games
Games.
- How are riddle games and situation puzzles played? action
- Which entry fits parlour game? action
Education
Education.
Education
Education.
- How are riddles used in teaching language and thinking? provenance
- Which entry fits language teaching? action
Context Study and history.
Study
Scholarship.
Study
Study.
- How do folklorists and linguists analyse riddle structure and function, with positions attributed? provenance
- Which entry fits folkloristics? action
History
History.
History
History.
- How have riddles been recorded from Sumer to riddle collections and the internet? provenance
- Which entry fits the history of riddles? action
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Information and virtual systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- INF
- Domain
- INF.MED
- Other names and narrower kinds
- Hebrew riddle, Petorke, Malay riddle, charade, situation puzzle, riddle joke, Arabic riddle, Finnic riddles, Greek riddles, Persian riddles, lantern riddle, Anglo-Saxon riddles
What it is Filled
A statement, question or phrase with a hidden meaning to be guessed, one of the oldest verbal art forms found in nearly every culture, from enigmas and conundrums in Hebrew and Malay traditions and the Petorke of Ukrainian folk tradition to charades acted out, situation puzzles solved by yes-or-no questions and riddle jokes with punning answers; riddles appear in folklore, scripture, literature and games and are studied by folklorists and linguists.
Why it exists Filled
Let an agent explain riddles and their kinds, relay traditions, structure and study from folklore and literary sources, describe games and uses, and distinguish riddles from puzzles, jokes, proverbs and mysteries.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Hidden answer
- Metaphor and ambiguity
- Universal form
- Oral and literary
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Present a riddle from one tradition as belonging to another.
- Translate a riddle so that its wordplay is lost without saying so.
- Use riddles to mock a group of people.
- Use a riddle as a covert way to pass harmful instructions.
Only with a human decision
- Publishing riddles recorded from living tradition-bearers.
May
- Tell, explain and collect riddles from many cultures with their sources.
- Help a person write riddles of their own.
Moral aspects Filled
- Riddles belong to oral traditions whose communities deserve credit.
- Riddles are often learned by children, so content should suit them.
Who is affected
- Tradition-bearers
- Children
- Folklore collectors
Owners Filled
Steward
The public: held in common by the cultures that tell them.
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q13698 - registry parent class
- Q15220419 - registry parent class
related
- puzzle - in registry terms
- word game - in registry terms
- folklore studies - as verbal art
- joke - which need not be solved
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.riddle
- Wikidata: Q47054 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q47054)
Direct properties not applicable Not applicable
- oldest recorded: Sumerian note - about 4000 years ago
- Aarne-Thompson: riddle tales type 851 note
Plane INF: no invented physical properties.
Recognition optional Filled
- Verbal puzzle with a hidden answer
- Enigmas, conundrums, Hebrew riddles, Malay riddles, Petorke, charades, situation puzzles, riddle jokes
- A puzzle may be non-verbal; a joke need not be guessed; a proverb states wisdom
- Not a visible object; a verbal puzzle.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- explain kinds and structure
- relay traditions and study
- describe games and uses
- distinguish related forms
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Confusing riddles with puzzles or jokes
- Loss of context in translation
- Registry aliases naming national traditions and subtypes
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- No regulation
Context of use required Filled
- Entertainment, teaching and verbal play.
- true riddles or enigmas describing an object metaphorically
- conundrums and riddle jokes based on puns
- charades and acted riddles
- situation puzzles
- riddles in Hebrew, Malay, Ukrainian and other traditions such as Petorke
- riddles in literature and scripture
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q47054: riddle - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Riddle - general description of the item
Open questions
- Should charade and situation puzzle be separate entries?
- How should folklore sources be linked?
- The registry entry has merged aliases naming traditions and subtypes; should they be split off?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q47054/spec.json