Back جان هارولد برونفاند Arabic جان هارولد برونفاند ARZ Jan Harold Brunvand German Jan Harold Brunvand Spanish Jan Harold Brunvand Basque جان هارولد برونوند Persian Jan Harold Brunvand French ジャン・ハロルド・ブルンヴァン Japanese 얀 해럴드 브룬번드 Korean Jan Harold Brunvand NB

Jan Harold Brunvand

Jan Harold Brunvand
Born (1933-03-23) March 23, 1933 (age 91)
Cadillac, Michigan, U.S.
Occupations
Spouse
Judith Brunvand
​
(m. 1956)​
Awards
Academic background
Alma mater
ThesisThe Taming of the Shrew: A Comparative Study of Oral and Literary Versions (1961)
Doctoral advisorRichard Dorson
Academic work
DisciplineFolklorist
Institutions
Notable works
  • The Vanishing Hitchhiker
  • The Study of American Folklore: An Introduction

Jan Harold Brunvand (born March 23, 1933) is an American retired folklorist, researcher, writer, public speaker, and professor emeritus of English at the University of Utah.[3]

Brunvand is best known for popularizing the concept of the urban legend, a form of modern folklore or story telling. Urban legends are "too good to be true" stories[4] that travel by word of mouth, by print, or by the internet and are attributed to an FOAF: friend of a friend.[4][5][6] "Urban legends," Brunvand says, "have a persistent hold on the imagination because they have an element of suspense or humor, they are plausible and they have a moral."[6]

Though criticized for the "popular" rather than "academic" orientation of his books, The Vanishing Hitchhiker and others,[7] Brunvand felt that it was a "natural and worthwhile part of his job as a folklorist to communicate the results of his research to the public."[8]

For his lifetime dedication to the field of folklore, which included radio and television appearances, a syndicated newspaper column, and over 100 publications (articles, books, notes and reviews),[9] Brunvand is considered to be "the legend scholar with the greatest influence on twentieth-century media."[10]

  1. ^ "Jan Harold Brunvand". gf.org. John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  2. ^ "Jan Brunvand". fulbrightscholars.org. Fulbright Scholar Program. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  3. ^ Helmer, Dona J. (Winter 2001). "Encyclopedia of Urban Legends by Jan Harold Brunvand". Reference and User Services Quarterly. 41 (2). American Library Association: 191, 193. JSTOR 41241093.
  4. ^ a b O'Brien, Joan (22 August 1999). "For Jan Brunvand Two Decades of Reading his 'Myth-Meter'". The Salt Lake City Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. p. D1.
  5. ^ Nicolini, Mary B. (December 1989). "Is There a FOAF in Your Future? Urban Folk Legends in Room 112". The English Journal. 78 (8). National Council of Teachers of English: 81–84. doi:10.2307/819495. JSTOR 918495.
  6. ^ a b Jensen, Joyce (8 April 2000). "Old urban legends never die (but they don't get any truer)". The New York Times. No. Late Edition (East Coast). New York, NY. p. B.9.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Null, Elizabeth was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Brunvand, Jan Harold (2003) was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference World Skeptics Conference 2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Lindahl, Carl, "Some Legendary Takes on Hurricane Katrina", American Folklore Society, March 7, 2012

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