Jinn
Spiritual beings in Arabian folklore and Islam, said to have been created from smokeless fire. Also known as the genie of the lamp in the Thousand and One Nights, they are called "genies" in English.
Spirits & Fairies
Fairies and spirits from myths and folktales around the world, such as elves, sylphs and banshees, explained from the legends that inspired modern fantasy.
Entries: 41
Dwarves
In Norse mythology, a race of master smiths who live underground and inside rocks. They are said to have made the gods' weapons, such as Mjolnir and Gungnir. In fantasy, they are the classic stubborn, bearded craftsmen.
Dullahan
A fairy of Irish folklore in the form of a headless horseman carrying his own head under his arm. He appears riding a headless horse or a coach, and where he stops, someone is said to die. He is also said to hate gold.
Kobold
A household or mine spirit of German folklore. In houses kobolds helped with chores, while in mines they were said to lead miners astray. A troublesome ore named after them gave the element "cobalt" its name.
Gremlin
A little creature said to tamper with aircraft machinery and cause breakdowns, talked about among Royal Air Force pilots during World War II. It became world-famous through Roald Dahl's book and the 1984 film.
Peri
A beautiful winged spirit of Persian (Iranian) folklore. Once considered evil, peris later became symbols of goodness and beauty. They are known for stories of trying to return to paradise.
Utukku
Spiritual beings believed in by the Sumerians and Babylonians of ancient Mesopotamia. There were both good guardian spirits and evil spirits, and many incantations to drive away evil utukku survive on clay tablets.
Kornmuhme
A grain spirit said to lurk in German grain fields; the name means "corn aunt." She was said to snatch children who entered ripe grain fields, and was told of as a warning to keep children out of the fields.
Water Leaper
A waterside monster of Welsh folklore, described as a legless frog with bat-like wings and a tail ending in a stinger. It is said to cut fishing lines and drag livestock and fishermen into the water.
Yallery Brown
A small, wrinkled fairy in a folktale from Lincolnshire, England. He repays the young man who helps him, but because the young man breaks the promise "never thank me," he brings him misfortune for the rest of his life.
Leprechaun
A fairy of Irish folklore in the form of a small old man who makes shoes. He secretly keeps a pot full of gold coins, and if caught he will reveal where the treasure is, but if you take your eyes off him for a moment, he vanishes.
Leshy
The lord of the forest in Slavic folklore. He can change his height freely from that of the grass to that of the trees and leads travelers astray. Wearing your clothes inside out is said to free you from his spell.
Rusalka
A water spirit of Slavic folklore, said to be the spirit of a girl who died young by the water. With her long hair, she sings and dances to lure young men into the water. She is also known from Dvorak's opera Rusalka.
Cailleach Bheur
The "winter hag" of Scottish and Irish folklore. A goddess who rules over winter, she is said to strike the ground with her staff to freeze it and to have made mountains and rocks. She was said to lose her power when spring came.
Spriggan
A fairy of Cornwall in southwestern England that guards ancient ruins and treasure. Normally small and ugly, it is said to swell to the size of a giant before anyone who tries to steal the treasure.
Domovoi
A household guardian spirit of Slavic folk belief in Russia and elsewhere. Living behind the stove (pechka), he protects the family and livestock. If not treated well, he plays tricks.
Sandman
A sleep spirit of Germany and elsewhere who comes at night and sprinkles magic sand in children's eyes to put them to sleep. In Hoffmann's story "The Sandman," he is portrayed as a terrifying figure.
Selkie
A sea spirit from the islands of northern Scotland and elsewhere that sheds its sealskin to take human form. The story of a selkie whose skin is hidden, who becomes a human wife but eventually finds her skin and returns to the sea, is famous.
Ole Lukoje
A sleep spirit of Danish folklore, made famous by Andersen's fairy tale "Ole Lukoje." Over good children he opens an umbrella with pictures on it and shows them pleasant dreams.
Hag
The general name for fairies and witches in the form of ugly old women in the folklore of Britain and elsewhere. Some are embodiments of winter and the forces of nature, while others are terrifying beings who eat children. Hags were also blamed for sleep paralysis.