U radu se istražuje usmena književnost Bistre, opisuju se vrste i oblici koji se pojavljuju, kao i teme i motivi koji prevladavaju u kazivanjima prema dostupnim izvorima. Istraživanje je pokazalo da se usmena književnost bistranskoga kraja ponajviše temelji na usmenoj lirici, folklornom kazalištu i usmenoj predaji što su tijekom terenskoga istraživanja 1970-ih godina zabilježili istraživači Instituta za etnologiju i folkloristiku (tada: Institut za narodnu umjetnost). Komparativna je analiza pokazala da se pojedine teme i motivi u zapisanim pjesmama iz drugih krajeva pojavljuju u bistranskim inačicama usmene lirike. U istraživanjima folklornoga kazališta zabilježene su dramske scene mahom vezane uz vjerske blagdane, pokladne maškare i svadbene običaje, dok su u usmenoj predaji zabilježeni zapisi o Seljačkoj buni, kmetovima i feudalcima i liku Matije Gupca. U današnje se vrijeme očuvanjem i promicanjem bistranske usmene tradicije bave članovi Kulturno-umjetničkoga društva „Bistra“, Udruga „Ekomuzej Bistra“, kao i druge bistranske udruge, mještani i istraživači. The paper explores oral literature of Bistra, describes the types and forms that appear, as well as the themes and motifs that prevail in narrations according to available sources. The research showed that oral literature of the Bistra region is mostly based on oral lyrics, folklore theater and oral tradition, which was recorded during field research in the 1970s by researchers at the Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research (then: Institute of Folk Art). Comparative analysis has shown that certain themes and motifs in written poems from other regions appear in Bistran versions of oral lyrics. Within the research of folklore theater, dramatic scenes were recorded, mostly related to religious holidays, carnival masquerades and wedding customs, while oral tradition contains records of the Peasant uprising 1573, serfs and feudal lords and the figure of Matija Gubec. Nowadays, members of the Cultural and Artistic Society "Bistra", the Association "Ecomuseum Bistra", as well as other Bistra associations, locals and researchers are involved in preserving, and promoting Bistra oral tradition.