Folklore-question

[pengolodh_sc at yahoo.no]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., lady.nymphaea at f... wrote:
> --- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., pengolodh_sc at y... wrote:
> > Poltersprites
> 
> ? If meaning poltergeist, those are German household spirits, known 
> for making noise and moving objects. Poltergeists are usually found 
> in houses with children and teenagers.
> 
> > House lutins
> 
> French elves. Horse-related tricksters.
> 
> > Duende
> 
> Spanish household spirits. I've also heard them called ghosts, but 
> I'm not clear on that one.
> 
> > Nisken
> 
> Norwegian, right? Nisse? More household spirits, like brownies, but 
> also guardians and protectors of the home.

I did not make the connection -  really should have, given that I'm 
Norwegian.  If given new clothes, the nisse will refuse to do more 
work, for fear of spoiling their new clothes.  The nisse/tomte is the 
embodiment of the ancestors of the owner of the farm, and was to be 
treated well - he (always a male) was vengeful if maltreated.  

> > Servan
> Haven't heard of this one.
> 
> > Follets
> 
> Italian incubi. (male spirits...demons, couple with unknowing women 
> at night...)
> OR
> air spirits.
> 
> > Psikies
> 
> Piskeys are Cornish household spirits. Like the lutins, they ride 
> horses at night.
> 
> > Kobolds
> 
> Either mine spirits or brownieish household spirits.
> 
> > Linchetto
> 
> (source: http://www.fabrisia.com/faery.htm) Nightmare-causing elves 
> who dislike disorder.

Sounds charming...

> They certainly can; if not treated well, the brownie damages the 
> home or plays pranks on surrounding humans. Boggarts are 
> shapechangers but I don't think the part about responding to human 
> fear is folkloric.  Brownies must never be given clothes or they 
> will go away; if criticized, brownies will destroy their work.

The Norse nisse/tomt will destroy *your* work rather than its own if 
criticised.

> If you can find a copy of _Encyclopedia of Fairies_ by Katherine 
> Briggs, do so; it's a fabulous book for this sort of reference. A 
> bit easier to find and a bit more worldly, Carol Rose's _Spirits, 
> Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins_ is also a good resource. I don't 
> like it as much as Briggs, but it has a variety of entries from 
> cultures other than of the British Isles.
> 
> http://www.faerielands.com/fairylinks/folklore.html has a whole 
> bunch of folklore links, but it's a bit dead.
> 
> Meril
> who is addicted to fairies even more than HP

My thanks

The reason for asking is that they are mentioned in a conversation in 
_CASTLE WAITING_, by Linda Medley.  Dinah has just chastised Sister 
Peace of the Order Solicitine for bringing her pet kyrkogrim Piety 
("Careful, he bites.") into the kitchen (it looked like an anorectic 
gargoyle), and she and Adjutant Rackham, castle steward, go on to 
explain to newly arrived Lady Iain why she did so.  The conversation 
is as follows:

Adjutant Rackham:  Now, now, Dinah.  You shouldn't snap at the Sister.
Dinah:  I'm sorry, but the problem's bad enough without her toting 
    that thing around like a *pet*!
Lady Iain:  ..."Problem"?
Dinah:  We have terrible problem with, uh, *vermin*.
Lady Iain:  All castles have rats!
Dinah:  We don't have rats.
Lady Iain:  Mice.
Dinah:  No mice.
Lady Iain:  Cockroaches?
Dinah:  Not a one
Adjutant Rackham:  We're infested with *Poltersprites*!  
Adjutant Rackham:  House Lutins, Duende, Brownies, Tomtra, Nisken, 
    Hobgoblins, Servan, Follets...
Adjutant Rackham:  Piskies in the pantry!  Kobolds in the kitchen!
Dinah:  I even saw a Linchetto once!
Adjutant Rackham:  We've tried *everything*--holy water, iron, gifts 
    of clothing, the old bread-and-cheese trick... nothing gets rid 
    of them!
Adjutant Rackham:  They drive us *crazy*!
All [as a sprite zzzips down to steal the last muffin]:  AAAUGH!

One of the sprites pictured has the feet and head of a man, and body 
of a bird.

Best regards
Christian Stubø