The Fairy Mythology

Illustrative of the Romance and Superstition of Various Countries

Thomas Keightley

• Publisher: Aeneas Press
• Year: 2026
• Topic: Social Sciences
• eBook ISBN:
  9785486236815
• Subtopic: Literary Criticism
• Index: Social Sciences

The fairy beliefs of Europe compared side by side - the Irish sidhe, the Scandinavian elves, the German dwarfs, the Persian peri - by the scholar who first treated them as one subject. Keightley published it in 1828 and every later folklorist worked from it. This edition adds a gallery of 58 plates, among them paintings by John Duncan, Johann Philipp Lemke and David von Cöln, plus one restored colour illustration.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Copyright
• In Testimony of Esteem and Respect for Public and Private Virtue, Literary Taste, Talent, and Acquirements, and Patronage of Literature and the Arts.
• Preface.
• Introduction.
• Origin of the Belief in Fairies.
• Origin of the Word Fairy.
• Oriental Romance.
• Persian Romance.
• The Peri-Wife.
• Arabian Romance.
• Middle-Age Romance.
• Fairy Land.
• Spenser’s Faerie Queene.
• Eddas and Sagas.
• The Alfar.
• The Duergar.
• Loki and the Dwarf.
• Thorston and the Dwarf.
• The Dwarf-Sword Tirfing.
• Scandinavia.
• Elves.
• Sir Olof in the Elve-Dance.
• The Elf-woman and Sir Olof.
• The Young Swain and the Elves.
• Svend Faelling and the Elle-Maid.
• The Elle-Maids.
• Maid Vae.
• The Elle-Maid near Ebeltoft.
• Hans Puntleder.
• Dwarfs or Trolls
• Sir Thynne.
• Proud Margaret.
• The Troll Wife.
• The Altar-Cup in Aagerup.
• Origin of Tiis Lake.
• A Farmer tricks a Troll.
• Skotte in the Fire.
• The Legend of Bodedys.
• Kallundborg Church.
• The Hill-Man invited to the Christening.
• The Troll turned Cat.
• Kirsten’s-Hill.
• The Troll-Labour.
• The Hill-Smith.
• The Girl at the Troll-Dance.
• The Changeling.
• The Tile-Stove jumping over the Brook.
• Departure of the Trolls from Vendsyssel.
• Svend Faelling.
• The Dwarfs’ Banquet. A Norwegian Tale.
• Nisses.
• The Nis Removing.
• The Penitent Nis.
• The Nis and the Boy.
• The Nis Stealing Corn.
• The Nis and the Mare.
• The Nis Riding.
• The Nisses in Vosborg.
• Necks, Mermen, and Mermaids.
• The Power of the Harp.
• Duke Magnus and the Mermaid.
• Northern Islands.
• Iceland.
• Feroes.
• Shetland.
• Gioga’s Son.
• The Mermaid Wife.
• Orkneys.
• Isle of Rügen.
• Adventures of John Dietrich.
• The Little Glass Shoe.
• The Wonderful Plough.
• The Lost Bell
• The Black Dwarfs of Granitz.
• Germany.
• Dwarfs.
• The Hill-Man at the Dance.
• The Dwarf’s Feast.
• The Friendly Dwarfs.
• Wedding Feast of the Little People.
• Smith Riechert.
• Dwarfs Stealing Corn.
• Journey of the Dwarfs over the Mountain.
• The Dwarfs’ Borrowing Bread.
• The Changeling.
• The Dwarf Husband.
• Inge of Rantum.
• The Wild-Women.
• The Oldenburg Horn.
• Kobolds.
• Hinzelmann.
• Hödeken.
• King Goldemar.
• The Heinzelmänchen.
• Nixes.
• The Peasant and the Waterman.
• The Water-Smith.
• The Working Waterman.
• The Nix-Labour.
• Switzerland.
• Gertrude and Rosy. GERTRUDE.
• The Chamois-Hunter.
• The Dwarfs on the Tree.
• Curiosity Punished.
• The Rejected Gift.
• The Wonderful Little Pouch.
• Aid and Punishment.
• The Dwarf in Search of Lodging.
• Great Britain.
• England.
• The Green Children.
• The Fairy Banquet.
• The Fairy Horn.
• The Portunes.
• The Grant.
• The Luck of Eden Hall.
• The Fairy-Fair.
• The Fairies’ Caldron.
• The Cauld Lad of Hilton.
• The Pixy-Labour.
• Pixy-Vengeance.
• Pixy-Gratitude.
• The Fairy-Thieves.
• The Boggart.
• Addlers and Menters.
• The Fary Nurseling.
• The Fary Labour.
• Ainsel.
• Act II. —Scene I.
• Act III. —Scene 2.
• Act III. —Scene 4.
• Scottish Lowlands.
• The Fairies’ Nurse.
• The Fairy Rade.
• The Changeling.
• Departure of the Fairies.
• The Brownie.
• Celts and Cymry.
• Ireland.
• Clever Tom and the Leprechaun.
• The Leprechaun in the Garden.
• The Three Leprechauns.
• The Little Shoe.
• Scottish Highlands.
• The Fairy’s Inquiry.
• The Young Man in the Shian.
• The Two Fiddlers.
• The Fairy-Labour.
• The Fairy borrowing Oatmeal.
• The Fairy-Gift.
• The Stolen Ox.
• The Stolen Lady.
• The Changeling.
• The Wounded Seal.
• The Brownies.
• The Urisk.
• Isle of Man.
• The Fairy-Chapman.
• The Fairy-Banquet.
• The Fairies’ Christening.
• The Fairy-Whipping.
• The Fairy-Hunt.
• The Fiddler and the Fairy.
• The Phynnodderee.
• Wales.
• Tale of Elidurus.
• The Tylwyth Teg.
• The Spirit of the Van.
• Rhys at the Fairy-Dance.
• Gitto Bach.
• The Fairies Banished.
• Brittany.
• Lai D’ywenec.
• Lord Nann and the Korrigan.
• The Dance and Song of the Korred.
• Southern Europe.
• Greece.
• Italy.
• Spain.
• The Daughter of Peter De Cabinam.
• Origin of the House of Haro.
• La Infantine.
• Pepito el Corcovado.
• France.
• Legend of Melusina.
• Eastern Europe.
• Finns.
• Slaves.
• Vilas
• Deer and Vila.
• Africans, Jews, Etc.
• Africans.
• Jews.
• The Broken Oaths.
• The Moohel.
• The Mazik-Ass.
• Conclusion.
• Appendix.
• The Harvest Dinner.
• The Young Piper.
• The Soul Cages.
• Barry of Cairn Thierna.
• Aileen a Roon, (Ellen My Love.)
• Rousseau’s Dream.
• Alexander Selkirk’s Dream. Composed One Day When Confined to Bed by a Cold and Unable to Read.
• A Moonlight Scene, Conceived and Commenced When Passing Over Putney Bridge on a Fine Moonlight Night in Summer.
• Lines Written in a Lady’s Album.
• To Amanda.
• Lines, Written at Home in the Spring of 1842.
• A Farewell.
• Verses, Written at Bath in 1840, for a Little Boy Who Kept an Album, and Was a Great Admirer of Robin Hood and His…
• Father Cuddy’s Song. In the Legend of Clough Na Cuddy.
• Translation.
• The Praises of Mazenderân. From the Shâh-Nâmeh of Ferdousee.
• Index.
• About the Author