A Folktale from the Village of Hajtovka

The following folktale has been told for generations in the village of Hajtovka, which is located in Eastern Slovakia. Hajtovka is a small village (population was approximately 116 people during 1970) near the Poprad River and the Polish boarder. This folk tale is still told in Hajtovka and its beginning origins are unknown. During time stories passed from individual to individual evolve and change. This folktale is a good example of this progression as through time it has become actually three stories combined into one tale about a specific subject. This folktale was re-told by a present day resident of the village of Hajtovka.

Down the hill from the cemetery and along the Poprad river in Hajtovka is a large rock formation, which is called "The Devils Rock." This rock is a large limestone outgrowth that is seen above ground. There are a few of these outgrowths in this area. One of the more famous which is classified as an ecological reserve are the formations found in the village of Udol which is the village next to Hajtovka. The explanation the residents of Hajtovka gave to this rock centuries ago tell of a folktale regarding this rock formation. It is said that this rock was carried by the Devil himself as he flew through the air. The Devil was carrying this rock as he planned to drop it on Lubovna Castle, which is not far from Hajtovka. While the Devil was flying over Hajtovka midnight neared. The church bells in Hajtovka began to ring at midnight and were very loud. When the Devil heard the sound coming from the church he lost all of his powers. The Devil then dropped the rock from the sky in Hajtovka where it is located today near the Poprad River. There also is a part of this rock, which dropped in a low valley below the church behind a grove of trees. During the centuries many children have asked their parents where they came from. The children in Hajtovka are told that they were found at this rock behind the grove of trees by their grandmothers. Their grandmother then took them home to live with their parents and that is how they came to live in Hajtovka. There is another story also about this rock. It is told that an old servant wanted to find out how the children came from this rock. It was said he was not normal in his mind. This servant would go to the rock and look for a "door". He thought since the grandmothers came to get the children, they must live inside of the rock. He visited the rock once a day to try and find the door in the rock. He could not figure out how the children came out of the rock to be brought to the village and therefore, kept looking for a door in the rock until the day he died.