Goblin

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For other uses, see Goblin (disambiguation).

A goblin is an evil, crabby, or mischievous creature of folklore, often described as a grotesquely disfigured or gnome-like phantom, that may range in height from that of a dwarf to that of a human. They are attributed with various (sometimes conflicting) abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases goblins have been classified as constant annoying little creatures somewhat related with the celtic brownie.

1 Etymology
2 Origins in folklore
3 Goblin Places
4 Early Fiction
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
- 7.1 Online texts

Etymology

According to "The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English" the name is probably derived from the Anglo-French gobelin (Medieval Latin gobelinus), which is probably a diminutive of Gobel, a name related to the word kobold (a German sprite). Goblin is also related to the French lutin[1]. In addition, there also exist various other alternative spellings of the word goblin, including: Gobblin, gobeline, gobling, goblyn, gobelinus (Medieval Latin), and vulgus gobelinum ("demon" in Medievel Latin).[citation needed]

Dwarfs, hiisi, duende, tengu, Menninkäinen and kallikantzaroi are often translated into English as 'goblins'. The Erlking and Billy Blind are sometimes called goblins. 'Goblin' is often used as a general term to mean any small mischievous being.

According to some traditions, goblin comes from Gob or Ghob, the king of the gnomes , whose inferiors were called Ghob-lings.[2]

Skratta is old Scandinavian word for a goblin or monster (modern Icelandic skratti, a devil).[citation needed]

Any creature resembling a goblin, but larger than a human, is considered a Troll.[citation needed]

Origins in folklore

One fabled origin for goblins is in France, in a cleft of the Pyrenees, from which they spread rapidly throughout Europe. They hitched a ride with Viking ships to get to Britain. [3][4] They have no homes, being nomadic, dwelling temporarily in mossy cracks in rocks and tree roots.

Sir Walter Scott in his Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft ascribed gnomes, kobolds and goblins, along with Scottish bogles, to all correspond with a caricature of the Sami people.[citation needed]

The Benevolent Goblin, by Gesta Romanorum (England) [5]
The Boy Who Drew Cats (Japanese fairy tale)
Chinese Ghouls and Goblins (England 1928)
Erlking is a malevolent goblin from German legend.
The Goblin of Adachigahara (Japanese fairy tale)[6]
The Goblin Pony, from The Grey Fairy Book (French fairy tale)
The Goblins at the Bath House (Estonia), from A Book of Ghosts and Goblins (1969)
The Goblins Turned to Stone (Dutch fairy tale) [7]
Gwyn ap Nudd was ruler over the goblin tribe. (Welsh folklore) [8]
Shiva has a cohort of goblins and ghouls (India).
Twenty-Two Goblins (Indian fairy tale)[9]

Goblin Places

Bryn y Ellyllon: 'The Hill of the Goblins', Somerset, UK
'The Gap of Goeblin', a hole and underground tunnel in Mortaine, France. [10]
Goblin Combe, in north Somerset, UK

Early Fiction

The Goblins a comedy play by Sir John Suckling (1638 England)
Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti (1859 England)
The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald (1872)
Davy and the Goblin by Charles E. Carryl [11] (1884)
The Hoard of the Gibbelins in The Book of Wonder by Lord Dunsany (1912)

References

^ Sacred texts
^ Encyclopaedia Britannica - Gnome
^ The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures by Pierre Dubois, in English 2005
^ Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were by Michael Page & Robert Ingpen, 1987
^ Apples4theTeacher - short stories
^ Rick Walton - folktale
^ Dutch Fairy Tales for Young Folks, 1918, compiled by William Elliot Griffis
^ Sacred texts
^ Sacred texts
^ Ghosts, Goblins, and Haunted Castles, Aventinum Publishers, 1990 in English, page 51
^ SF Site

British Goblins: Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions by Wirt Sikes
Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were by Michael Page & Robert Ingpen
The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures by Pierre Dubois
Goblins! and The Goblin Companion by Brian Froud
Spirits, Fairies, Gnomes and Goblins: an Encyclopedia of the Little People by Carol Rose