Z is for Zany. zany adjective amusingly unconventional and idiosyncratic (Oxford English Dictionary) There’s this peculiar little creature from folklore that caught my fancy. He goes by two names. Yet no-one can disagree that he’s quite gross. Grogoch or Phynnodderee is the name of this Faery. The folklore attached to his origins is quite sad… …
Y is for Yule. Yule n archaic term for Christmas Oxford English Dictionary The Yule season is a time of rebirth and joy. But there are darker stories in folklore; creatures that make even the delinquents behave. Krampus is one of those creatures. Folklore Christmas in Ritual and Tradition by Clement A. Miles [1912] On …
X is for X-Factor. No matter the name or how you spell it, the Fates are everywhere and in every culture. Folklore The Poetic Edda “Norns are figures of fate who may be present at a child’s birth, prophesying his future, as in the First Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani. As determiners of fate, the norns are …
W is for Witch. Witches and magic have equally enthralled and repelled over the millennia. They’ve been part of the stories we tell, the movies and TV shows we watch and the novels we read (and write). Folklore English Fairy and Other Folk Tales by Edwin Sidney Hartland [1890] WITCH AND HARE AN old witch, …
V is for Valkyries. Valkyries are one of my favourite groups of women from ancient times. Folklore The Children of Odin by Padraic Colum [1920] AGAINST the time when the riders of Muspelheim, with the Giants and the evil powers of the Underworld, would bring on battle, Odin All-Father was preparing a host of defenders …
U is for Ululate. ululate v howl or wail as an expression of strong emotion Oxford English Dictionary Hyenas, those giggling beasts, freaked me out in The Lion King when I was just a little girl. I got over it. And then I learned of the Werehyena. Folklore The Magicality of the Hyena: Beliefs and Practices in …
T is for Thin Places. Thin Places and the Other Side are linked. Sometimes just by existing (crossroads, cemeteries, etc.) and sometimes through sacred days (Samhain, Beltane, etc.) If modern and ancient folklore can be believed, Samhain is the time when our world and the Other Side are the closest to being one. In BBC’s Merlin, …
S is for Sirens. Mermaids are alive and well in every corner of the world. Mermaid definition (by Ronel)A familiar figure in folklore from around the world, this half-woman, half-fish creature is usually depicted as being a beautiful woman from the waist up and a glistening fish from the waist down. For the most part, …
R is for Red Cap. You think you know fear? Have you met the Red Cap? Folklore Notes on the Folk-Lore of the Northern Counties of England and the Borders by William Henderson [1879] Redcap, Redcomb, or Bloody Cap, is a sprite of another sort from the friendly Brownie. He is cruel and malignant of …
Q is for Queen. Famous, but so misunderstood, the wailing Banshee is the queen of fear. Folklore True Irish Ghost Stories by St. John D. Seymour and Harry L. Neligan [1914] Of all Irish ghosts, fairies, or bogies, the Banshee (sometimes called locally the “Bohēēntha” or “Bankēēntha”) is the best known to the general public: indeed, …
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