10 Brothers Grimm fairy tales you should know

Born in the city of Kassel in the 18th century, Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm documented hundreds of folktales from all over Europe. They were linguists, scholars, and researchers of German language and mythology, yet they lived most of their lives as underpaid academics - and likely never realized their work would someday reach world fame.

Read more: Why Little Red Riding Hood is caught between innocence and sexuality

While fairy tales like "Rapunzel" and "Snow White" may be familiar, the stories behind the tales may not be. Here are some tales worth a second read. 

Explore the gallery below for more German children's classics you can read in English. And you'll find more from Meet the Germans on YouTube or at dw.com/MeettheGermans.