The goal of this thesis is the investigation of the narratives of the originally Indian cycle of tales of the Enchanted Corpse (Sanskrit: Vetālapañcavinśati, Tibetan: ro sgrung, Mongolian: siditu' kegu'r-un u'liger) in their translation and cultural transmission to Tibet and Mongolia. Primarily, this work addresses these tales from a theoretical standpoint based on the writings of French philosopher Gilles Deleuze, whose idea of "nomadology" appears highly suitable for investigating the striking differences of all of the various linguistic mutations. In particular, Deleuze's analysis of language, nomadic space, "becoming" (devenir), the body without organs (corps sans organs), speech and silence, can be very effectively applied to the interpretation of these tales in the new cultural environments of Mongolia and Tibet.

The aim of this thesis is to create an ethnolinguistic analysis of two corpuses of Mongolian riddles (Lovor and Ölziikhutag 1990 and Ölziikhutag 2013). The work contains over one hundred riddles appended with translations and morpheme-to-morpheme glosses. The riddles are further analyzed on a phonetic level, including descriptions of specific sound patterns and alliterations, as well as their lexical and semantic properties. This complex analysis, in conjunction with findings gained in field research, renders possible the description of a specific language of Mongolian riddles, characterized by the frequent occurrence of borrowings, the presence of semantically and phonetically 'damaged' words, ideophones, metaphors and many specific cultural expressions. The language of Mongolian riddles also often skilfully exploits overt abstractions, allusions, and lexical and morphological ambiguities, in addition to other techniques which facilitate conceptual mapping and cognitive blending. This linguistic analysis makes possible a description of the various aspects of the worldview of Mongolian nomads concealed in these riddles, including the characteristic linking of the 'sacred and profane,' as well as the relationship of these riddles to mythology and religious ideas.