What are elves?
Elves are a fairy people of Norse and Germanic myth and folklore. In Old Norse they were called alfar. Today, as a race with pointed ears, long life and beauty, skilled with bows and magic, they are indispensable to fantasy novels and games.
Elves in Norse mythology
The Edda compiled by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th century features “light elves” (ljosalfar), more beautiful than the sun, and “dark elves” (dokkalfar), who live underground and are blacker than pitch. The light elves were said to live in a world called Alfheim. In the folklore of Britain and elsewhere, there are also tales of “elf-shot,” invisible arrows that cause illness in people and livestock.
The fantasy image of elves
From the Middle Ages on, elves were sometimes depicted in England as small, mischievous fairies. It was J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings that recast them as a noble and beautiful race. That image was handed down to games and other media, shaping the elves we know today. In Iceland, many people still believe in the “hidden people,” and there have been reports of road construction plans being changed. Elves are often paired with dwarves.
