LogFAQs > #962132844

Most fairy tales were passed on primarily by word of mouth over an extremely broad area, often across different languages and different time periods. There is no "original story", there's just the ones that happened to get written down at some point. Even many of the "violent" aspects that people tend to harp on Disney for removing may not have existed until the Grimms decided it would help sell more copies.

This also applies to most mythology or ancient religions. There isn't a Canon until you have an authoritative body like Walt or the Pope decide on one.