Rip Van Winkle: In American literary folklore, creation of Washington Irving in The Sketch Book. Rip, who lives with a shrewish wife, one day goes hunting in the Catskills with his dog. There he meets dwarflike beings and drinks some liquor they give him. He falls asleep and awakens 20 years later, an old man, who discovers that his wife has died and the American Revolution has taken place. He goes to live with his grown daughter and makes new friends.
SOURCE:
Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow-Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante
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