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BRITISH (ENGLISH) ELVES
British Elves are not really a separate race, but
humans with an 'Elvish' culture (similar to Tolkien's elves).
They were the bearers of an ancient civilization that existed
in the British Isles before the immigration of the Celts, and
are the source of the Germanic and Celtic traditions of elves
(hence 'British Elves'), as well as the Greek tradition of
Hyperborea. It is possible that the Atlantis myth is based on
a memory of the civilization of the British Elves.
In the British Isles the belief in elves was profound. In
stories from the 8th and 9th century there are many
references to elves, or fairies as they are called there.
The king of the elves, Oberon, and his wife Titania appear in
some very important works of medieval literature, such as
Huon de Bordeaux and Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's
Dream.
While tending to be tall and slender, they look like normal
humans of European origin (that means that they don't have
large pointed ears or any other non-human features commonly
associated with 'elves').
The elves believed that the purpose of humankind was to
preserve the world and enrich it by creating new and beautiful
things, and that in order to fulfill their Purpose, people had
to be free. The social ideal was that of the free-lance
artisan.
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They were divided into two classes — the rural Elves,
inhabiting the woods, fields, mountains, and caverns; and
the domestic or house-spirits, usually called Hobgoblins and
Robin Goodfellows.
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PORTUNE: They were the oldest of all the
English elves and brought good luck to the farmhouses they resided
in. It is said that Portunes came to England by way of France.
Playing harmless tricks on travelers was one of their favorite
pastimes. |
In the British Isles and in parts of
Europe, farmers found flint arrowheads and other tools in
their fields. Many believed that these were magic weapons made
by elves and used by them to injure cattle. These stone tools
were called elf-shot, elf-arrows or elf-bolts. By the 17th
century their origin became clear - they were prehistoric
tools made by the aboriginal inhabitants of Europe.
They speak Albic languages; in Old Albic,
they called themselves Elbi (singular Alba).
This self-designation was borrowed into Germanic as *albhaz,
hence English elf. The old Celtic name of Britian,
Inis Albion, means 'Island of the Elves'.
A little child, a limber elf,
Singing, dancing to itself,
A fairy thing with red round cheeks,
That always finds and never seeks. . . .
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
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