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Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology
Fairies have been revered and feared, sometimes simultaneously, throughout recorded history. This encyclopedia of concise entries, from the A-senee-ki-waku of northeastern North America to the Zips of Central America and Mexico, includes more than 2,500 individual beings and species of fairy and nature spirits from a wide range of mythologies and religions from all over the globe.
428 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 31, 2019
I have deeply mixed feelings on this book. On the one hand, it is very helpful as a starting point for research, and I still check it for information because there’s just so much. It covers fairies, gods, demons, djinn, mermaids, you name it. On the other hand, every entry requires careful fact-checking. That may sound silly for a book on fairies. But this book is presented as a careful academic study of folklore. And . . . well . . . it's not.
According to Bane, she "sought to collect only the mythological and historically consistent facts regarding fairy-kind." Her references include, among other things, A Witch’s Guide to Faery Folk by Edain McCoy (which includes instructions on summoning fairies) and The Faith of Legacy by Brandon Begley (a fantasy novel published through Lulu).
Those aren’t academic sources. They aren’t even collections of folklore. They are inspired by folklore. There is a HUGE difference.
Bane has an explanation for this in the foreword: she only used popular and New Age works that "contained relevant information verified by other sources."
This approach perpetuates the mistakes and inaccuracies of older works. When I tried to look up oakmen, pillywiggins, zips, and other creatures supposedly from ancient legends, I found that they were recently created or greatly altered from their origins. They may be “verified by other sources,” yes - but a piece of information can be repeated by many people and still be wrong.
In another case, this encyclopedia calls “pigwidgeons” a race of tiny flower fairies, and provides a source. When I checked that source, it said no such thing! I have no idea how many other misquotes might be hiding in this book.
This approach is common throughout Bane's work. Her Encyclopedia of Demons in World Religions and Cultures includes an ancient Akkadian demon named Bine. The only problem: Bine was a Wikipedia hoax.
And yet I still use this book. I would never cite it as a reference, but I also can’t bring myself to give it one star. It really is a thorough compendium. It is broad but not in-depth. It collects a huge amount of information - it’s just that the tradeoff is that you must do any fact-checking on your own.
According to Bane, she "sought to collect only the mythological and historically consistent facts regarding fairy-kind." Her references include, among other things, A Witch’s Guide to Faery Folk by Edain McCoy (which includes instructions on summoning fairies) and The Faith of Legacy by Brandon Begley (a fantasy novel published through Lulu).
Those aren’t academic sources. They aren’t even collections of folklore. They are inspired by folklore. There is a HUGE difference.
Bane has an explanation for this in the foreword: she only used popular and New Age works that "contained relevant information verified by other sources."
This approach perpetuates the mistakes and inaccuracies of older works. When I tried to look up oakmen, pillywiggins, zips, and other creatures supposedly from ancient legends, I found that they were recently created or greatly altered from their origins. They may be “verified by other sources,” yes - but a piece of information can be repeated by many people and still be wrong.
In another case, this encyclopedia calls “pigwidgeons” a race of tiny flower fairies, and provides a source. When I checked that source, it said no such thing! I have no idea how many other misquotes might be hiding in this book.
This approach is common throughout Bane's work. Her Encyclopedia of Demons in World Religions and Cultures includes an ancient Akkadian demon named Bine. The only problem: Bine was a Wikipedia hoax.
And yet I still use this book. I would never cite it as a reference, but I also can’t bring myself to give it one star. It really is a thorough compendium. It is broad but not in-depth. It collects a huge amount of information - it’s just that the tradeoff is that you must do any fact-checking on your own.
April 22, 2022
3.5/5 stars
Overall this was a very interesting read (I learned a few things), but I did have some issues when reading this. I got this for research. But if you want to learn more about folklore/ mythology, this is the book for you.
The book should be called "the 3000 daughters of Titians, Oceanus and Tethys".
I couldn't cross-reference anything online from this Encyclopedia. Another concern is that many of the listed entries cannot be found in other sources. Even using possible alternate spellings of that name reveals no other sources for further reference. And some of the entries, while listed as fae, are deities and are listed as deities in other sources. While this can be an exciting read, those looking for a comprehensive faerie guide that can supplement other sources or cross-referenced with other sources are advised to consult other fae encyclopedias.
But in the end, I had a perfect time reading this and see myself from this author (but I will be taking what I read with a grain of salt)
Overall this was a very interesting read (I learned a few things), but I did have some issues when reading this. I got this for research. But if you want to learn more about folklore/ mythology, this is the book for you.
The book should be called "the 3000 daughters of Titians, Oceanus and Tethys".
I couldn't cross-reference anything online from this Encyclopedia. Another concern is that many of the listed entries cannot be found in other sources. Even using possible alternate spellings of that name reveals no other sources for further reference. And some of the entries, while listed as fae, are deities and are listed as deities in other sources. While this can be an exciting read, those looking for a comprehensive faerie guide that can supplement other sources or cross-referenced with other sources are advised to consult other fae encyclopedias.
But in the end, I had a perfect time reading this and see myself from this author (but I will be taking what I read with a grain of salt)
July 10, 2024
It is "Titans", not "Titians". Don't make me read the words "the Titians, Oceanus and Tethys" ever again, please!
I am really only familiar with Greek mythology and the multiple errors I found make me question the reliability of the information about those mythologies I'm much less knowledgeable about. A few examples: Aegina's parents are described as "the river goddess, Asopus and the male nymph, Metope". In reality, it is the other way around - Asopos is the father, Metope the mother. There is no such thing as a "male nymph" in Greek mythology, these beings are invariably female and in fact the word "nymphe" also means "bride". The male river Acheron is called a goddess, and Akeloos and Alpheus are for some reason referred to as Oceanids, even though the Oceanids are a group of exclusively female divinities. Alkippe, the daughter of Ares (who shouldn't be here anyways as there is no evidence that she was anything but a regular mortal woman), is described as having been in love with Halirrhotios, who is consistently described as her rapist or would be rapist in ancient Greek texts and definitely not as "her beloved". Amoret and Belphoebe are described as figures from Greek mythology, when in truth they are characters originating in Edmund Spenser's poem The Faerie Queene. The Maenads are described as the collective name of the daughters of Mnemosyne and Zeus; Mnemosyne's daughters are actually called the Muses and the Maenads are the frenzied female followers of Dionysos. The Sylphs are said to belong to "ancient Greek folklore", but the term was coined by Paracelsus in the 16th century so it is neither ancient nor Greek. If I were to list all the errors, confusions and dubious information I'd be here all day.
Also apparently "Ana" means "nourishment" or "sustenance" in Romanian, which is news for me as a speaker of Romanian.
I do acknowledge that compiling all this information must have been hard and tedious work, but if the Greek mythology facts can be so unreliable despite this being arguably the most accessible and easiest to research mythology, I would never dare to use this book as a source for the figures of the folklore and myths of other cultures. Will probably finish it anyway, as the topic is very interesting and if nothing else it will give me plenty of creatures to research on my own.
I am really only familiar with Greek mythology and the multiple errors I found make me question the reliability of the information about those mythologies I'm much less knowledgeable about. A few examples: Aegina's parents are described as "the river goddess, Asopus and the male nymph, Metope". In reality, it is the other way around - Asopos is the father, Metope the mother. There is no such thing as a "male nymph" in Greek mythology, these beings are invariably female and in fact the word "nymphe" also means "bride". The male river Acheron is called a goddess, and Akeloos and Alpheus are for some reason referred to as Oceanids, even though the Oceanids are a group of exclusively female divinities. Alkippe, the daughter of Ares (who shouldn't be here anyways as there is no evidence that she was anything but a regular mortal woman), is described as having been in love with Halirrhotios, who is consistently described as her rapist or would be rapist in ancient Greek texts and definitely not as "her beloved". Amoret and Belphoebe are described as figures from Greek mythology, when in truth they are characters originating in Edmund Spenser's poem The Faerie Queene. The Maenads are described as the collective name of the daughters of Mnemosyne and Zeus; Mnemosyne's daughters are actually called the Muses and the Maenads are the frenzied female followers of Dionysos. The Sylphs are said to belong to "ancient Greek folklore", but the term was coined by Paracelsus in the 16th century so it is neither ancient nor Greek. If I were to list all the errors, confusions and dubious information I'd be here all day.
Also apparently "Ana" means "nourishment" or "sustenance" in Romanian, which is news for me as a speaker of Romanian.
I do acknowledge that compiling all this information must have been hard and tedious work, but if the Greek mythology facts can be so unreliable despite this being arguably the most accessible and easiest to research mythology, I would never dare to use this book as a source for the figures of the folklore and myths of other cultures. Will probably finish it anyway, as the topic is very interesting and if nothing else it will give me plenty of creatures to research on my own.
June 8, 2017
I really liked the layout and how it contained historical references from around the world.
However, it was somewhat dry. I mean hello, it's a book on fairies, it's okay for it to be enchanting and whimsical. I get what the author was trying to do. But, like said, it's a book on fairies... Mostly.
That's another thing, some of the spoken about characters, weren't even fairies... I'm pretty sure the title is Encyclopedia of Fairies.
P.S did you know my middle name is Fay, which translates to fairy.
I am Jenn the Fairy. 😂😂😂
P.S.S not something I learned from the book. I've known the meaning of my name since practically birth. It's been in the family for eons.
However, it was somewhat dry. I mean hello, it's a book on fairies, it's okay for it to be enchanting and whimsical. I get what the author was trying to do. But, like said, it's a book on fairies... Mostly.
That's another thing, some of the spoken about characters, weren't even fairies... I'm pretty sure the title is Encyclopedia of Fairies.
P.S did you know my middle name is Fay, which translates to fairy.
I am Jenn the Fairy. 😂😂😂
P.S.S not something I learned from the book. I've known the meaning of my name since practically birth. It's been in the family for eons.
July 25, 2020
I’ve had this book for years and have found it interesting, surprising and a lot of fun.
Though there is some fiction mixed in with the folklore (e.g. the sea witch in Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid features under the entry about Sea Witches) it is a sound starting point for further research into specific fairies as resources are also added beneath each entry.
I’ve found a lot of typos and misspelled words, unfortunately. For the price of the paperback, one would have expected better editing.
A good addition to any fantasy writer’s shelf.
Though there is some fiction mixed in with the folklore (e.g. the sea witch in Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid features under the entry about Sea Witches) it is a sound starting point for further research into specific fairies as resources are also added beneath each entry.
I’ve found a lot of typos and misspelled words, unfortunately. For the price of the paperback, one would have expected better editing.
A good addition to any fantasy writer’s shelf.
February 27, 2018
A good reference for fairies, dwarfs, and other spirits from folklore, although there are some giants thrown in and a lot of the entries are of individual beings rather than species. But it's still very comprehensive, especially if you don't want to stick with just the Greek, Norse, or Celtic mythos and want the rest of the world to be included. (Granted, the Greeks do have the lion's share of the entries, but that's just the nature of their mythology.)
October 2, 2025
This is a wonderful reference point for anyone interested in Fairies, Folklore, and Myths. A comprehensive encyclopedia covering the history of fairies throughout the world. It was a vital tool in the writing of my own book, "The Brooklyn Witch," and it's indispensable for authors in this genre. I found not just information, but inspiration from reading the pages of this vital work. All of you Witches need to add it to your library!
November 11, 2019
I had to give up reading it. It was full of spelling and grammatical errors and overlapping information. It also seems to include fictional sources without distinguishing them as such. I could see it being useful as a starting point for research if the internet didn't exist.
January 5, 2026
Excelente libro
November 25, 2013
Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology by Theresa Bane
From A-senee-ki-wakws to Zips, Theresa Bane’s Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology is a delightful wealth of information. The entries are all cross-referenced and accompanied by other titles of each Fairy. As knowledge of New Age ideas expand, there are new sciences created that utilize literature’s historical and mythological works to study the species of beings that exist within all cultures, yet are seen as fiction by the perceptions of many individuals.
Bane’s work is strictly academic. Readers will not find spells or divinations that create a link between the fairy and human realms. Readers will however, find listings for thousands of fay species and individuals. Those wishing to add to his or her knowledge of fairy-kind will be overjoyed with this selection. Readers wanting a tale or two will not be disappointed either, as information on many individual fay’s background and origins are included.
Each entry is in alphabetical order, which makes the work easy to use and scan for wanted listings. A great deal of research and work went into this compilation and it truly shows. I will say that there are setbacks to reading galley copies, as one can only hope that technical issues noticed during reading are fixed before the final printing. That said, I would also say that Bane’s work has a great deal to offer readers in the way of both information and lore. I, myself, will be enjoying this work for years to come.
From A-senee-ki-wakws to Zips, Theresa Bane’s Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology is a delightful wealth of information. The entries are all cross-referenced and accompanied by other titles of each Fairy. As knowledge of New Age ideas expand, there are new sciences created that utilize literature’s historical and mythological works to study the species of beings that exist within all cultures, yet are seen as fiction by the perceptions of many individuals.
Bane’s work is strictly academic. Readers will not find spells or divinations that create a link between the fairy and human realms. Readers will however, find listings for thousands of fay species and individuals. Those wishing to add to his or her knowledge of fairy-kind will be overjoyed with this selection. Readers wanting a tale or two will not be disappointed either, as information on many individual fay’s background and origins are included.
Each entry is in alphabetical order, which makes the work easy to use and scan for wanted listings. A great deal of research and work went into this compilation and it truly shows. I will say that there are setbacks to reading galley copies, as one can only hope that technical issues noticed during reading are fixed before the final printing. That said, I would also say that Bane’s work has a great deal to offer readers in the way of both information and lore. I, myself, will be enjoying this work for years to come.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews