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Magical Folk: British and Irish Fairies: 500 AD to the Present
When Tinker Bell followed Peter Pan to Hollywood in the 1950s, fairies vanished into the realm of child-lore. Yet in 1923 30-yearold J.R.R. Tolkien’s visit to his aunt’s house Bag’s End inspired a story about hedgerowfairies or ‘Hobbits’, and three years earlier Sherlock-Holmes author Arthur Conan Doyle published the Cottingley fairy photographs. In Ireland, a generation before, family members had torched a woman to death thinking she was a fairy, while William Butler Yeats met a fairy queen in a coastal cave.
Today British and Irish fairy-interest has recovered its old lustre, and gathered here is the latest learning from leading folklorists and historians. A tidal-wave of new fairy sightings has been uncovered by the digitisation of British and Irish newspapers and ephemera. There are fairy sightings in urbanised locations and remote rural areas; characters and means to ward off evil fairies vary radically from place to place. In Sussex, there is the helpful ‘Master Dobbs’ or Dobby, while in Ireland fairies may be the dead, and Scotland harbours the terrifying Whoopity Stoorie.
In addition, Magical Folk includes findings from The Fairy Census, the first scholarly survey of modern fairy sightings in Britain and Ireland, demonstrating that the connection with the past continues unbroken. Another new discovery is that fairies travelled across the Atlantic well before Tinker Bell made it onto the silver screen. The most homesick fairies may have been the ones who dunked one Roderick repeatedly in the Atlantic Ocean as they dragged him to Ireland and back to his Canadian home!
320 pages, Hardcover
Published August 1, 2018
59 people are currently reading
320 people want to read
About the author
Simon Young
58 books12 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Simon Young was awarded a starred First in Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic from Cambridge University, as well as the Chadwick Prize for Celtic studies. Since then he has lived in Spain, Ireland and Italy. The author of many academic articles, he has also written about the Dark Ages for History Today, the Spectator, and the Guardian.
Simon Young was awarded a starred First in Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic from Cambridge University, as well as the Chadwick Prize for Celtic studies. Since then he has lived in Spain, Ireland and Italy. The author of many academic articles, he has also written about the Dark Ages for History Today, the Spectator, and the Guardian.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 20, 2020
Great Britain comprising of England, Ireland and Scotland is a geographical area that is known for it’s faery population. The book covers lots of ground. All the faery denizens of each area on the British isles are covered based on their geographic location.
The first chapter talks about Faery queens those gorgeous dames that can seduce a man based on what they find appealing. Sometimes they give gifts to. Humans that they find worthy. Pucks can be troublesome and helpful depending on their mood. Dobs help people around the house. Does can never be seen by humans lest they stop helping around the house and curse people.
In Ireland they are called the Sidhe. The sidhe were the mystical people a who lived in Ireland until the Milesians came and conquered the land. Now they live in Faery Wrath’s or undergound. It is not good to disturb a Faery rathe or a dwelling where they live. Some believe that they have a vast underground kingdom under the ground .
In Scotland since the land is more harsh the faeries themselves tend to be a bit harsher. There are lots of areas in Scotland that are named after faeries. The faeries are divided into the seelie court and the unseelie court. The seelie court is good to humans while the unseelie court is rather harsh towards humans. Some thought that some of the dead went on to become faeries.
In Cormwalll the faeries can be rather unfriendly and dangerous to humans. The knockers are faeries who inhabit mines and warn miners of danger and sometimes lead them to healthy vein. The faeries have different names not based on species but rather based on where they live and what their function.
All areas of the British aisles are covered. When the inhabitants of the isles came to America they pretty much left their faery folk. Behind as they were attached to the land. In North America there’re were other faery species about. One is the Puckwudgie. A small two foot man with a beard who makes people feel unfcomfortable by staring at them.
Some of the Irish brough faery lore over and they morphed sometimes.
Faeries by and large are not friendly to humans. Often times they are triscksters and sometime they bring punishment and death to those who upset them Treat them with respect
The first chapter talks about Faery queens those gorgeous dames that can seduce a man based on what they find appealing. Sometimes they give gifts to. Humans that they find worthy. Pucks can be troublesome and helpful depending on their mood. Dobs help people around the house. Does can never be seen by humans lest they stop helping around the house and curse people.
In Ireland they are called the Sidhe. The sidhe were the mystical people a who lived in Ireland until the Milesians came and conquered the land. Now they live in Faery Wrath’s or undergound. It is not good to disturb a Faery rathe or a dwelling where they live. Some believe that they have a vast underground kingdom under the ground .
In Scotland since the land is more harsh the faeries themselves tend to be a bit harsher. There are lots of areas in Scotland that are named after faeries. The faeries are divided into the seelie court and the unseelie court. The seelie court is good to humans while the unseelie court is rather harsh towards humans. Some thought that some of the dead went on to become faeries.
In Cormwalll the faeries can be rather unfriendly and dangerous to humans. The knockers are faeries who inhabit mines and warn miners of danger and sometimes lead them to healthy vein. The faeries have different names not based on species but rather based on where they live and what their function.
All areas of the British aisles are covered. When the inhabitants of the isles came to America they pretty much left their faery folk. Behind as they were attached to the land. In North America there’re were other faery species about. One is the Puckwudgie. A small two foot man with a beard who makes people feel unfcomfortable by staring at them.
Some of the Irish brough faery lore over and they morphed sometimes.
Faeries by and large are not friendly to humans. Often times they are triscksters and sometime they bring punishment and death to those who upset them Treat them with respect
June 6, 2018
Not a scholarly work. Instead it's more like the author just regurgitated everything that's already been written, whether it's been vetted or not and vomited out footnotes often longer than the chapters they are based on.
I guess, at best, it could be a basic 101 of fairy folklore that you would give to someone and say "Read this, then, let's begin by unlearning everything it has to say and study the field properly."
I guess, at best, it could be a basic 101 of fairy folklore that you would give to someone and say "Read this, then, let's begin by unlearning everything it has to say and study the field properly."
September 16, 2023
This book brings together a delightful mix of introductions and scholarship on the subject for the enjoyment of anyone interested in folklore. And thanks to the incredible innovation of digitization, we can now uncover these stories and others like them that were previously hidden away in printed works, which have been scanned and stored online. This technological advancement is revolutionizing the study of the British and Irish supernatural. It has unearthed a collection of fascinating individuals whose lives intertwined with the fairies, and we wouldn't have known their stories without digitization.
If digitization is a treasure trove for fairylore, there's another captivating aspect: contemporary fairy sightings. The Fairy Census is an ongoing worldwide online survey where people share their wildest and most intimate experiences with fairies. These enchanting encounters continue to occur even today, both in England and along the Celtic fringe.
Fairies have undoubtedly evolved throughout history, as evident in the findings from the Fairy Census. We have accounts of British and Irish fairies dating back to Roman times. In the Middle Ages, there were elves, gnomes, and trolls in Germanic and Celtic Europe, and Shakespeare's England had child-sized, light-carrying, musical fairies. Interestingly, the concept of fairy wings only emerged at the end of the eighteenth century through the imaginations of British artists, rather than being rooted in traditional folklore. Furthermore, all the medieval and Elizabethan records of fairies describe them as human- or child-sized beings.
The fairies were so potent and awe-inspiring that their human neighbors referred to them as the "Good People" or "the Gentry" to avoid irritating these morally ambivalent, unpredictable beings. Meanwhile, fairies would often play tricks, cause havoc, and, in some instances, even commit murder or kidnapping among human populations.
To put it simply, traditional fairies are magical humanoid beings who reside exclusively in Britain, Ireland, and the lands settled by British and Irish migrants. Other regions have their own magical beings with distinctive characteristics, such as "fée" in France, "fata" or "fada" in Southern Europe, "maitagarri" among the Basques, and "keijukainen" in Finland. These fairies are magical in the sense that they defy the laws of physics; they can fly through the air, appear and disappear at will, manipulate time, and transform their surroundings with a mere wave of their hands. And, most importantly, they are very much alive, not mere ghosts.
The fairies in different regions also possess distinct habits, traits, and physical appearances. For instance, it was noted that fairies, particularly in Britain and Ireland until recent times, had a mischievous tendency to snatch babies and replace them with fairy impostors who resembled the stolen child. This is known as the changeling tradition.
Indications that fairies have been provoked include inexplicable and sudden breakages, spoiled milk, rapidly decaying food, and a streak of ill fortune. Similarly, the mysterious disappearance and subsequent reappearance of shiny objects, or objects vanishing and returning in the same location, may hint at the presence of fairies. In an effort to appease these enchanted beings and encourage the swift return of missing items, some individuals offer bread dipped in milk or honey, accompanied by apologies in instances where the fairies might have been offended.
For example, one tried and true method to dispel a pixy-spell is to turn one's pockets inside out in the hope that the mischievous pixies will vanish. Legends recount the expulsion of a group of fairies from a county by the sound of church bells, as they are believed to act as fairy disinfectants. Alternatively, carrying stale bread in one's pocket is said to keep them at bay.
Overall, this book serves as a valuable repository of information gathered on the enchanting realm of magical folk. Personally, I found the stories captivating, brimming with delightful intricacies. The writing style maintains a well-paced and structured narrative, making it all the more engrossing.
If digitization is a treasure trove for fairylore, there's another captivating aspect: contemporary fairy sightings. The Fairy Census is an ongoing worldwide online survey where people share their wildest and most intimate experiences with fairies. These enchanting encounters continue to occur even today, both in England and along the Celtic fringe.
Fairies have undoubtedly evolved throughout history, as evident in the findings from the Fairy Census. We have accounts of British and Irish fairies dating back to Roman times. In the Middle Ages, there were elves, gnomes, and trolls in Germanic and Celtic Europe, and Shakespeare's England had child-sized, light-carrying, musical fairies. Interestingly, the concept of fairy wings only emerged at the end of the eighteenth century through the imaginations of British artists, rather than being rooted in traditional folklore. Furthermore, all the medieval and Elizabethan records of fairies describe them as human- or child-sized beings.
The fairies were so potent and awe-inspiring that their human neighbors referred to them as the "Good People" or "the Gentry" to avoid irritating these morally ambivalent, unpredictable beings. Meanwhile, fairies would often play tricks, cause havoc, and, in some instances, even commit murder or kidnapping among human populations.
To put it simply, traditional fairies are magical humanoid beings who reside exclusively in Britain, Ireland, and the lands settled by British and Irish migrants. Other regions have their own magical beings with distinctive characteristics, such as "fée" in France, "fata" or "fada" in Southern Europe, "maitagarri" among the Basques, and "keijukainen" in Finland. These fairies are magical in the sense that they defy the laws of physics; they can fly through the air, appear and disappear at will, manipulate time, and transform their surroundings with a mere wave of their hands. And, most importantly, they are very much alive, not mere ghosts.
The fairies in different regions also possess distinct habits, traits, and physical appearances. For instance, it was noted that fairies, particularly in Britain and Ireland until recent times, had a mischievous tendency to snatch babies and replace them with fairy impostors who resembled the stolen child. This is known as the changeling tradition.
Indications that fairies have been provoked include inexplicable and sudden breakages, spoiled milk, rapidly decaying food, and a streak of ill fortune. Similarly, the mysterious disappearance and subsequent reappearance of shiny objects, or objects vanishing and returning in the same location, may hint at the presence of fairies. In an effort to appease these enchanted beings and encourage the swift return of missing items, some individuals offer bread dipped in milk or honey, accompanied by apologies in instances where the fairies might have been offended.
For example, one tried and true method to dispel a pixy-spell is to turn one's pockets inside out in the hope that the mischievous pixies will vanish. Legends recount the expulsion of a group of fairies from a county by the sound of church bells, as they are believed to act as fairy disinfectants. Alternatively, carrying stale bread in one's pocket is said to keep them at bay.
Overall, this book serves as a valuable repository of information gathered on the enchanting realm of magical folk. Personally, I found the stories captivating, brimming with delightful intricacies. The writing style maintains a well-paced and structured narrative, making it all the more engrossing.
May 5, 2018
Magical Folk is a perfect addition to my collection of fairy tales and collected folk legends. I enjoyed the book immensely and consider it a treasure worthy of sitting beside The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries, which I have owned for decades and still haven not finished reading. The end notes contain useful references for further reading, but it would have been nice to include a bibliography as well.
February 28, 2020
This is quite possibly the most boring book I have had the misfortune to pick up. Might be because it was just not what I was looking for aka a cohesive overview of fairy myths, but instead a more scholarly, repetitive and monotone text. Seperation by locations might be a good idea on paper but the result is an incredibly tedious recounting of stories and creatures that differ only in the tiniest of aspects from the previous iteration, a reflection of the tales changing as they spread.
On bottom line, I tend to put markers on pages that hold points of interest for me, this book has almost none placed in it. That's all I really have to say about it.
Note: I have found no credit to the artist that made the work displayed on the cover and it looks suspeciously low quality, not exactly a credit to everyone involved with it's publication.
On bottom line, I tend to put markers on pages that hold points of interest for me, this book has almost none placed in it. That's all I really have to say about it.
Note: I have found no credit to the artist that made the work displayed on the cover and it looks suspeciously low quality, not exactly a credit to everyone involved with it's publication.
October 14, 2023
An interesting academic account of fairies and folklore from the UK and Ireland including modern accounts and interpretations. The text is organised by region and takes a look at the etymology of place names and local traditions. Each chapter is written by a different author who takes a slightly different approach to the topic to produce a cohesive whole. The book provides an insight into the way perceptions of fairies changed with the passage of time as well as the way words, law and belief evolved with the growth of science - although the newspaper accounts suggest that an acceptance of fairies has never gone away. It’s factual and very interesting but probably not for someone who just wants stories.
September 27, 2023
Magical Folk by Simon Young; Ceri Houlbrook is fascinating. Did you know there is a Fairy Census? The census dates back to the 1950's to present time. There are recorded experiences of seeing fairies from all over the world by people of all ages, and backgrounds. The book talks about many of these sightings. It also tells you about the many types of fairies, and how folklore has changed over the years. I found this to be a fun and very interesting book. I highly recommend this book to all who are interested in the fae.
June 26, 2023
There is a great deal in here that is of interest, but the tone is somewhat uneven. Some chapters give much more of the commentary and scholarly analysis that I was looking for, some are little more than a collection of fairy anecdotes. Still, some reviews here seem to be complaining that the book is *too* scholarly, so I suppose that just illustrates the saying about not being able to please everyone.
August 22, 2023
A fascinating collection of British mythology relating to the Fae and Fairy folklores of the United Kingdom. I found the stories engaging and full of wonderful details - some were new to even me. The writing style is well pace and structured feeling like a skilled story teller is whispering the words too you. I found myself thinking this reads like some of the Highland story telling sessions I've been to.
March 16, 2024
I received an ARC from Netgalley
This book explores the world of British and Irish folklore, focusing on the digitization of fairy stories and contemporary fairy sightings. It delves into the evolution of fairies throughout history, their characteristics, habits, and interactions with humans. The book also discusses methods to appease fairies and dispel their spells, providing a captivating look into the enchanting realm of magical folk. Overall an interesting read
This book explores the world of British and Irish folklore, focusing on the digitization of fairy stories and contemporary fairy sightings. It delves into the evolution of fairies throughout history, their characteristics, habits, and interactions with humans. The book also discusses methods to appease fairies and dispel their spells, providing a captivating look into the enchanting realm of magical folk. Overall an interesting read
October 2, 2023
This book was enjoyable and informative to those wanting a comprehensive encyclopedia on Fairylore in the British Isles. There was some of it I didn't know, however I did find the subject matter surprisingly dry. So a book I would recommend to lore purists only, it isn't a light read for an introductory take.
May 25, 2023
On Dear.
If you didn't know much about faeries before reading this book.,you won't know anymore after reading it.It reads like a information sheet you might get from the tourist board.
If you didn't know much about faeries before reading this book.,you won't know anymore after reading it.It reads like a information sheet you might get from the tourist board.
August 23, 2023
A nicely written and informative book on the fae, the different areas they're from and which type. It is a lovely book to learn from if you're new to them and even if you're not.
Thank you to netgalley, the author and publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to netgalley, the author and publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
November 1, 2023
I really enjoyed this book! It was very informative about the different types of fairies and elves in folklore. Being a fan of Tolkien and CS Lewis, this subject really interested me. I'd recommend it to anyone!
November 1, 2023
I really enjoyed this book! It was very informative about the different types of fairies and elves in folklore. Being a fan of Tolkien and CS Lewis, this subject really interested me. I'd recommend it to anyone!
July 15, 2024
This was okay, but it was a bit too repetitive and I got a little bored in places. Maybe I have read too much on this subject but there was no new information either. Still, it was great in places and the cover is beautiful. Definitely worth reading.
December 8, 2021
Some interesting tidbits of Fairy lore in here. I was hoping for a more whimsical view into Fairy lore, but this is non-fiction-like and detached from whimsy. It's not a bad thing, just not my expectation.
February 12, 2023
A treasure trove of lore recently digitized. I enjoyed this tremendously!
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September 1, 2018Wonderful!
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews