The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night

The Arabian Nights (One Thousand and One Nights), translated by Richard F. Burton (1885)

Scheherazade saves her life by telling her murderous husband a new story every night for 1,001 nights. Aladdin, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Sinbad the Sailor — the most famous story collection in the world.

Historical Significance:
The Arabian Nights originated as a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian folk tales compiled over centuries, with roots in Persian, Arabic, Indian, and Egyptian oral traditions. Antoine Galland's 1704 French translation introduced Europe to Aladdin, Ali Baba, and Sinbad — stories that may not have been in the original Arabic manuscripts but became the most famous. Richard Burton's 1885-88 English translation was the first unexpurgated version, preserving the sexual and violent content that previous translators had censored. The tales influenced everything from Edgar Allan Poe to Jorge Luis Borges to Disney's Aladdin. Scheherazade herself — the woman who saves her life through storytelling — is the ultimate symbol of narrative's power.

This public domain classic was originally compiled over centuries and translated by Burton in 1885. Free to read and share.