Q is for Quandary When I was about seven or eight years old, a teacher told a story where fairies painted flowers. The point of the story was that one fairy didn’t work, but rather played and left her painting until the very last moment when it started raining and all the paint washed off,…
P is for Paladin Knights in shining armour are always fun to read about. Add some magic… Folklore Legends and Romances of Spain By Lewis Spence, [1920] The rise of a caste of itinerary poets in France supplied the popular demand for story-telling, and the trouvères of the twelfth century recognized in the glorious era of Charlemagne…
O is for Odin Odin is the one-eyed Allfather of Norse mythology, a king of the gods associated with wisdom, war, sorcery, and mysticism. He is often accompanied by his two ravens, Huginn and Muninn. Folklore of Odin in Norse Mythology Extracts from various sources. Teutonic Myth and Legend, by Donald A. Mackenzie, [1912] ODIN…
N is for Nightmare Stories involving headless horsemen are prevalent throughout folklore, myth and legend. The scariest one, though, is the Dullahan. It is said that none can ignore his call to death for he is the herald of Death itself. Folklore Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry Edited and Selected by W….
M is for Morrígan Crows. Ravens. Battle. Death. Foretelling the future. This triple goddess can do it all. Folklore The Ancient Irish Goddess of War, by WM Hennessey, [1870] The discovery of a Gallo-Roman inscription, figured in the Revue Savoisienne of 15th November, 1867, and republished by M. Adolphe Pictet in the Revue Archéologique for July, 1868, forms the subject…
L is for Ly Erg The misty glens of Scotland is home to many fae, none quite as terrifying as the Ly Erg. Folklore Illustrations of the Topography and Antiquities of the Shires of Aberdeen and Banff by Joseph Robertson [1847] There is much talking of a spirit, called Ly Erg, that frequents The Glenmore….
K is for Kappa Amphibious creatures have always caught the imagination of surface dwellers. The Kappa from Japanese folklore is perhaps the most famous of its kind. Folklore Ancient Tales and Folk-lore of Japan, by Richard Gordon Smith, [1918] The pond was old and deep, covered with water plants, and had never been emptied within…
J is for Jengu If there is a big body of water, stories of merfolk can be found. Folklore The Element Encyclopedia of Fairies by Lucy Cooper An African water spirit in southern Cameroon beliefs, the jengu, dwelling in rivers, streams, and the sea, is a benevolent and healing force who also acts as an intermediary…
I is for Imp The term “imp” is somewhat general and sometimes interchangeable with “fairy” or “demon” – depending on what you’re reading – which causes a lot of confusion as to what an imp really is. Especially since they appear in different tales with strikingly different behaviours, abilities and manifestations. I firmly believe that Thumbelina by…
H is for Half-Mortal We all know that Helen of Troy was supposedly so beautiful that her face was the one to launch a thousand ships. She was a demigod. demigod n a being with partial or lesser divine status, such as a minor deity, the offspring of a god and a mortal, or a…