long ago

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 昔 has 8 strokes; the word 昔 is read むかし, and 昔話 is read むかしばなし.
• Basic usage: 昔 denotes earlier times; 昔話 denotes an old story or folk tale.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Accounts of the past and traditional tales
  • 昔の学校の話 is an account of school in earlier times. Here 昔 identifies the period that forms the background of the account.
  • In the story about a mountain spirit or a story with regional endings, 昔話 denotes a traditional tale. Read むかしばなし, it differs in those contexts from a factual account of the past.