A goblin is an evil or merely mischievous creature of folklore, often described in 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. A goblin is a legendary creature, related to gnomes or elves. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the mythical creature. ... Men hur kommer man in i berget, frågade tomtepojken (But how do I get into the mountain? the young dwarf asked. ... This article is about modern humans. ...

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. 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) (Latin).^{[citation needed]} This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... Kobolds are spirits of German folklore. ...

Dwarfs, hiisi, duende, tengu, Menninkäinen and kallikantzaroi are often translated into english as 'goblins'. The Erlking and Billy Blind are sometimes called goblins. Goblins are often used as a general term to mean any small mischievous being. Men hur kommer man in i berget, frÃ¥gade tomtepojken (But how do I get into the mountain? the young dwarf asked. ... Hiisi (root: hiite-) are a kind of tutelary spirits in mythologies of the Baltic Sea area, especially in Finland. ... A duende is to a fairy- or goblin-like mythological character. ... Tengu and a Buddhist monk, by Kawanabe Kyōsai. ... In Finnish mythology and lore, a menninkäinen is believed to be a leprechaun-like inhabitant of the forests. ... A Kallikantzaros (Καλλικάντζαρος) pl. ... In German and Scandinavian folklore, an erlking is a mischievous or malevolent sprite. ... Billy Blind, Billy Blin, Billie Blin, or Belly Blin is a British household spirit, much like a brownie. ...

According to some traditions, goblin comes from Gob or Ghob, the king of the gnomes, whose inferiors were called Ghob-lings.[2] Look up gob in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

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 man, is considered a Troll.^{[citation needed]} Trolls with an abducted princess (John Bauer, 1915). ...

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. ^[1][2] They have no homes, being nomadic, dwelling temporarily in mossy cracks in rocks and tree roots. Pic de Bugatetin the Néouvielle Natural Reserve Central Pyrenees For the mountains in Victoria, Australia, see Pyrenees (Victoria). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Viking (disambiguation). ... Communities of nomadic people move from place to place, rather than settling down in one location. ...

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]} For the first Premier of Saskatchewan see Thomas Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott (August 14, 1771 - September 21, 1832) was a prolific Scottish historical novelist and poet popular throughout Europe. ... The Sami people (also Sámi, Saami, Lapps, sometimes also Laplanders) are the indigenous people of Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway, Finland and the Kola Peninsula of Russia. ...

• The Benevolent Goblin, by Gesta Romanorum (England) [3]
• The Boy Who Drew Cats (Japanese fairy tale)
• The Cook and the House Goblin (Estonia), from A Book of Ghosts and Goblins (1969)
• Erlking is a malevolent goblin from German legend.
• 'Ghosts and Goblins' is a phrase traditionally associated with Halloween.
• The Goblin of Adachigahara (Japanese fairy tale)[4]
• The Goblin and the Grocer, by Hans Christian Andersen
• 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) ^[3]
• Goblin’s Thimbles are another name for foxgloves.
• Gwyn ap Nudd was ruler over the goblin tribe. (Welsh folklore) [5]
• Shiva has a cohort of goblins and ghouls (India).
• The Snow Queen, by Hans Christian Andersen
• Twenty-Two Goblins (Indian fairy tale)[6]

The Boy Who Drew Cats is a Japanese fairy tale collected by Lafcadio Hearn in Japanese Fairy Tales. ... A Book of Ghosts and Goblins is a 1969 anthology of 21 fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. ... In German and Scandinavian folklore, an erlking is a mischievous or malevolent sprite. ... Halloween, or Halloween, is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31, most notably by children, who, in a tradition commonly known as trick-or-treating, dress in costumes and go door-to-door to collect sweets, fruit, and other gifts. ... The Goblin and the Grocer (also translated The Goblin and the Huckster) is a Danish fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen. ... Hans Christian Andersen or simply H.C. Andersen , (April 2, 1805 – August 4, 1875) was a Danish author and poet, most famous for his fairy tales. ... Rumpelstiltskin from The Blue Fairy Book, by Henry J. Ford Andrew Langs Fairy Books or Andrew Langs Coloured Fairy Books are a twelve-book series of fairy tale collections. ... A Book of Ghosts and Goblins is a 1969 anthology of 21 fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. ... Species Digitalis ferruginea Digitalis grandiflora Digitalis lanata Digitalis lutea Digitalis obscura Digitalis purpurea Digitalis is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous biennials, perennials and shrubs in the foxglove family Scrophulariaceae. ... In Welsh mythology, Gwyn or Gwynn ap Nudd was the ruler of Annwn (the Underworld). ... Shiva (IAST: , also spelled Siva; Hindi, Shiv) is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. ... Cover of a modern Danish edtion of The Snow Queen (Sneedronningen) Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Snow Queen The Snow Queen (Danish: Sneedronningen) is a fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen and first published in 1845. ... Hans Christian Andersen or simply H.C. Andersen , (April 2, 1805 – August 4, 1875) was a Danish author and poet, most famous for his fairy tales. ...

Goblin Places

• Les Baux de Provence: (France) was once the haunt of goblins and witches, according to legend
• Bryn y Ellyllon 'The Hill of the Goblins', Somerset
• The Gap of Goeblin, a hole and underground tunnel in Mortaine, France. ^[4]
• Goblin Combe, in North Somerset

Les Baux de Provence Les Baux de Provence is a small village and commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône département in southern France, in the former province of Provence. ... This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ... Goblin Combe (Grid reference ST473652) is a 51. ...

Early Fiction

• The Goblins a comedy play (1638 England)
• Goblin Market (1859 Italy)
• The Princess and the Goblin (1872)
• Davy and the Goblin by Charles E. Carryl [7]
• The Hoard of the Gibbelins in The Book of Wonder (1912)

The Goblins is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy written by Sir John Suckling. ... Goblin Market (1862) is an important moral and philosophical poem by the Victorian poet Christina Rossetti in the guise of a fantasy entertainment for children. ... The Princess and the Goblin is a childrens fantasy novel by George MacDonald. ... Charles Edward Carryl (December 30, 1841 - July 3, 1920[1]) was an American childrens literature author. ... The Book of Wonder is the seventh book and fifth original short story collection of Irish fantasy writer Lord Dunsany, considered a major influence on the work of J. R. R. Tolkien, H. P. Lovecraft, Ursula LeGuin and others. ...

See also

• Goblins in modern fiction
• Hobgoblin
• Nilbog
• Redcap
• Ghoul
• Imp
• Gremlin
• Kallikantzaroi
• Kyöpelinvuori
• Kobold
• Orc (Middle-earth)
• Sprite (creature)
• Brownie
• Troll
• Wirry-cow
• Wight
• Halloween
• Vinayakas
• Dwarf

// Two major branches of goblins exist in popular game properties. ... Hobgoblin is a term typically applied in folktales to a friendly or amusing goblin. ... Nilbog may refer to: Nilbog (Dungeons & Dragons), a fictional creature from the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. ... A Red Cap or Redcap, also known as a powrie or dunter, is a type of malevolent murderous goblin, elf or fairy found in British folklore. ... A ghoul is a monster from ancient Arabian folklore that dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. ... An imp is a mythological being similar to a fairy, frequently described in folklore and superstition. ... A gremlin is a folkloric creature, commonly depicted as mischievous and mechanically oriented with a specific interest in aircraft. ... A Kallikantzaros (Καλλικάντζαρος) pl. ... Kyöpelinvuori, in Finnish mythology, is the place where dead women haunt. ... Kobolds are spirits of German folklore. ... This Tolkien article or section may need to be cleaned up and rewritten because it describes a work of fiction in a primarily in-universe perspective. ... The term sprite is a broad term referring to a number of preternatural legendary creatures. ... A signature Cox Brownie A brownie, brounie/Urisk (Lowland Scots) or ùruisg/brùnaidh (Scottish Gaelic) is a legendary kind of elf popular in folklore around Scotland and England (especially the north). ... Trolls with an abducted princess (John Bauer, 1915). ... A Wirey-cow, Wirry-carl [] etc. ... Wight is a Middle English word for a creature or a living being, especially a human being. ... Halloween, or Halloween, is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31, most notably by children, who, in a tradition commonly known as trick-or-treating, dress in costumes and go door-to-door to collect sweets, fruit, and other gifts. ... One theory of the origin of Ganesha is that he gradually came to prominence in connection with the . ... Men hur kommer man in i berget, frÃ¥gade tomtepojken (But how do I get into the mountain? the young dwarf asked. ...

Notes

1. ^ The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures by Pierre Dubois, in English 2005
2. ^ Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were by Michael Page & Robert Ingpen, 1987
3. ^ Dutch Fairy Tales for Young Folks, 1918, compiled by William Elliot Griffis
4. ^ Ghosts, Goblins, and Haunted Castles, Aventinum Publishers, 1990 in English, page 51

William Elliot Griffis William Elliot Griffis, D.D., L.H.D. (September 17, 1843 – 1928) was an American orientalist, author and Congregational preacher. ...

References

Further reading

• 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 Brain Froud
• Spirits, Fairies, Gnomes and Goblins: an Encyclopedia of the Little People by Carol Rose