According to legend, Hua Mulan lived in the Northern Wei Era which was from 386 to 536 CE. She is first documented in a 6th century heroic poem titled “Ballad of Mulan.” That poem was part of a lost collection titled Musical Records of Old and New.

What fairytale is Mulan based on?

The story of Mulan comes from an ancient Chinese poem called the Ballad of Mulan, which is set in the Northern Wei Dynasty, between 386 to 534 AD. At the time of the Northern Wei era, the Hun people – or Xiongnu people – would often invade the northern parts of Han China, tour company China Highlights says.

What true story is Mulan based on?

However, many people forgot one important fact. Mulan is based on a real Chinese legend! The inspiration for Disney's Mulan is taken from the legendry warrior Hua Mulan and her story in the “Ballad of Mulan”.

What play is Mulan based on?

An adaptation by playwright Xu Wei (d. 1593) dramatized the tale as "The Female Mulan" or, more fully, "The Heroine Mulan Goes to War in Her Father's Place", in two acts. Later, the character of Mulan was incorporated into the Romance of Sui and Tang, a novel written by Chu Renhuo (褚人獲).

How historically accurate is Mulan?

It dates all the way back to 386–581 AD at least, likely beginning in oral retellings and being written down significantly later. Unfortunately, with almost no way to verify its authenticity, no one knows if there is any truth behind the story, or if it comes from a place of fiction.

The True Tale of Mulan - WooKong

Who were the Huns in Mulan based on?

French scholar Joseph de Guignes proposed that the Huns were descended from the Xiongnu, but this theory remains under intense debate. This is further supported by Shan Yu's name, as a "Shanyu" or "Chanyu" was what the Xiongnu leaders were called, much like a Mongol leader would be "Khan."

Did China like the original Mulan?

Disney's classic 'Mulan' flopped in China because audiences didn't think the heroine looked Chinese enough. Although Mulan is the only Disney Princess of East Asian descent, the original Mulan cartoon was a massive flop in China.

Is Mulan based off of Joan of Arc?

Joan of Arc seems outwardly similar to Fa Mulan, as they both donned male guise to assist them in joining/serving in their respective royal armies at times when their homelands were threatened, however, the latter preceded the former by nearly a thousand years (albeit only as an epic poem) and thus shares no direct ...

Who was Mulan modeled after?

San Souci, Mulan is based on the legendary Chinese warrior Hua Mulan from the poem the Ballad of Mulan, making her the first Disney Princess not to be based on a fairytale or folktale but rather a legend. Her name "Fa Mulan" is inspired by the Yue Chinese name for the character, which is pronounced Fa Muklan.

What does Mulan mean in Chinese?

Mulan is a feminine name of Chinese origin. While this name refers to flowers, meaning “magnolia blossom” or “wood orchid,” it also brings feelings of strength and victory. Mulan was also the name of a legendary Chinese warrior who disguised herself as a man to take her sick father's place in the army.

How old is Mulan's husband?

Mulan and Li Shang

Mulan was thought to be just 16 when she chopped off her hair and took her father's place in the army, and Shang was 19.

How did they know Mulan was a girl?

Mulan (disguised as Ping) was injured while in a battle in the mountains from when she got slashed with a sword by Shan Yu (the villain) and then while she was recovering from her injuries, her bandages on her chest showed who she really was.

What is the moral of the story of Mulan?

Mulan teaches a whole generation of girls to keep dreaming and striving even when times are hard. She teaches us to conquer obstacles head on and achieve exactly what we want to even through trial and error and learning from our mistakes.

What is the real story behind Mulan?

Scholarly consensus is that Mulan is a fictional character, probably developed in Northern China in response to the greater independence women enjoyed there, whose legend was then revised in succeeding eras to reflect the values and challenges of the times.

What fairy tale is Moana based on?

It is based on Polynesian legends and religion relating to the god Maui, but the character of Moana and her adventures has no basis in legend.

Why did Disney change Mulan's name?

“Fa” is just the Cantonese pronunciation of Mulan's family name, which is pronounced “Hua” in Mandarin Chinese. So all Disney did was just revert to the Mandarin pronunciation of Mulan's name for the live-action remake.

What ethnicity is Moana?

Moana as she appears in Moana (2016). Inspired by Polynesian mythology, Moana is depicted as the strong-willed daughter of a chief of a Polynesian village, who is chosen by the ocean itself to reunite a mystical relic with the goddess Te Fiti.

Did Mulan and Shang have a baby?

Li Shang Jr., better known as Li'l Shang, is the son of Fa Mulan and Li Shang and the older brother of Lonnie. He appears in Rise of the Isle of the Lost: A Descendants Novel.

Who was Mulan forced to marry?

According to the Ming dynasty play Mulan Joins the Army, Mulan was arranged to marry the son of Wang Sixun after she returned to war. The Qing dynasty novel Fierce and Filial gave Wang Sixun's son a name: Wang Qingyun, and made them already engaged at the beginning of the story.

What is Mushu based on?

Although the dragon character Mushu is technically a character made up by Disney, he was loosely inspired by Hua Mulan's cousin of the same name from the 1903 Chinese play Mulan Joins the Army, hence making Mushu his Disney counterpart.

What religion is Mulan based on?

The film Mulan is historically accurate in its portrayal of Daoist ideas, the expected behavior of women according to Confucianism, and Confucian relationships. First of all, the movie Mulan is historically accurate in its portrayal of Daoist thoughts.

Who did the doll belong to in Mulan?

We know for certain that it used to belong to a little girl that lived in the village, since earlier, Shan Yu gets the doll from his hawk, and says: Besides, the little girl will be missing her doll. We should return it to her. That's her girl worth fighting for, and little girls in general.

Who do the Huns represent in Mulan?

The villains of her story are the Huns––a fierce army of Mongolian warriors bent on conquest. Historically speaking, that's complete B.S. First of all, Mulan would have looked more like the Hun than the Han. Her people, the Xianbei, were a proto-Mongolian tribe of horsemen.

What time period was Mulan set in?

Summary & Time Period

The story, as it is best known today through the recent films, places Mulan in an unidentified era of Imperial China (221 BCE - 1912 CE), but the original poem is set during the Northern Wei Period.

Why is there no Mushu in Mulan?

Mushu was seen as trivialising the Chinese culture

USC Professor Stanley Ronsen also told The Hollywood Report that the character was seen as a trivialisation of the culture in China. “Mushu was very popular in the US, but the Chinese hated it,” he said. “This kind of miniature dragon trivialised their culture.”