This study conducts a comparative study on the “Japanese Language Arts” textbooks used for local people in Manchuria and Korea under Japanese rule and those for Japanese people in Manchuria. The contents analyzed here are the folktales in the textbooks. The analyses show the following findings.

  i) Some folktales in the textbooks reflecting “type indexes of folklore (wakei),” and others do not. It is possible to say that the materials without type indexes might be created for a certain intention or meanings of the material developers.

  ii) Some textbooks have the same contents, but examination on the texts reveals that there are differences in motifs and plots.

  iii) After examining each version in details, the following characteristics are found.

    a) Textbooks for Japanese in Manchuria have local geographic information and traditions as leaching contents. In addition, they implicitly show the developers’ intentions to foster students' ideology of Japanese dominance.

    b) Textbooks for Chinese in Manchuria have contents to encourage leaners’ making efforts and learning actively, but they show some intention to reduce the disciplinary contents. It is possible to say that this characteristic shows the concerns towards The Republic of China.

    c) Textbooks for Korean in Korea have ethical contents to emphasize the importance of developing filial piety to parents and gratitude to others. In addition, some contents are to convince Korean students of their social status.