Aleksandr Nikolaevich Afanas'ev (Àëåêñàíäð Íèêîëàåâè÷ Àôàíàñüåâ, 1826-1871) was a Russian
ethnographer in the 19th century. He is most famous for recording and publishing nearly two
hundred Russian folktales and fairytales. In this respect, he is often considered to be the
Russian counterpart to the Brothers Grimm. His first collection was published in 1866.