author
Maria Leach
1892–1977
Best known for bringing world folklore together in one landmark reference work, this lively scholar-editor helped make myths, legends, and folk beliefs accessible to general readers as well as students. Her books range from broad surveys to themed explorations of animals, riddles, and the supernatural.
1 Audiobook
Early History of Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine
by Maria Leach
About the author
Born Alice May Doane in New York City on April 30, 1892, she became widely known as Maria Leach. She was an American writer and editor whose work centered on folklore from many cultures, and she built a reputation for turning serious scholarship into books that curious non-specialists could enjoy.
Her best-known achievement was editing the Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, a major reference work that helped establish her international standing. Over the course of her career, she wrote or edited numerous books for adults, young readers, and children, often focusing on myths, legends, riddles, animals, and everyday beliefs about the supernatural.
Archival records also show the long span and seriousness of her work: her papers, covering the years 1928 to 1975, are preserved at the University of Illinois and describe her as a folklorist and editor of the Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend. She died on May 22, 1977.