Emelya was not careful to conceal his new talent for work, and soon the tsar heard about it, and ordered this ‘magician’ to appear before him at his palace by the Caspian Sea.

While floating in the waves, Emelya encountered his friend the pike, who allowed Emilyan to wish for anything his heart desired, since he had not abused his power.

He had the hut on the island transformed into a beautiful palace, with a crystal bridge connecting to the mainland, so that his wife could visit her father, the tsar.

[8] The story was retold and translated into English with the title Foolish Emilyan and the Talking Fish by Lee Wyndham in "Russian Tales of Fabulous Beasts and Marvels", illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak.

[9] The tale was also published as a standalone book titled The Fool and the Fish, with illustrations by artist Gennady Spirin.

[11] The tale is classified - and gives its name - to the East Slavic type SUS 675, Russian: По щучьему велению, romanized: Po shchuch'yemu veleniyu, lit.

[13][14] 19th century Portuguese folklorist Consiglieri Pedroso claimed that the tale is a popular one, specially "in the East of Europe".

[15] Similarly, Jack Haney stated that the tale is "common throughout the Eastern Slavic world",[16] but its first appearance in Russia was in a compilation published in 1787 by P.

[20] Portuguese author José Teixeira Rêgo suggested that the story of Emiliano Parvo ("The Foolish Emelian") was "a deformed [narrative] of the flood myth".

[22] Folklorist Alexander Afanasyev compiled two variants of the tale about the magic pike wherein the protagonist is the foolish character.