# Pau Amma the Crab — Just So Stories character guide

> Pau Amma the Crab in Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Pau Amma, old Pau Amma

**First appearance:** 0009-the-crab-that-played-with-the-sea

## Snapshot

A colossal King Crab whose boastful play with the tides humiliates him before the Eldest Magician and reshapes the sea.

## Who they are

Pau Amma is so vast that his shell spans from Sarawak to Pahang, and he stirs the Sea just to prove he matters. The Eldest Magician strips his shell away, leaving him soft and ashamed, and bargains a new safety into every stone and weed. His wounded pride and stubborn refusal to choose at once keep the tides and the story's central negotiation in motion.

## Relationships

### [The Eldest Magician](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/characters/the_eldest_magician)

_rivalry_

Pau Amma the Crab defies and challenges The Eldest Magician, leading to a tense struggle of will and power.

### [The Eldest Magician](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/characters/the_eldest_magician)

_rivalry_

Pau Amma the Crab defies and challenges The Eldest Magician, leading to a tense struggle of will and power.

### [The Eldest Magician](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/characters/the_eldest_magician)

_rivalry_

Pau Amma the Crab defies and challenges The Eldest Magician, leading to a tense struggle of will and power.

## In the story

### [The Crab That Played with the Sea](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/chapters/the-crab-that-played-with-the-sea)

The King Crab who defies the Man's authority and plays with the Sea, causing tides; later humbled by the Eldest Magician.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/characters/pau_amma_the_crab
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/just_so_stories_se/characters