Folklore

There's a lot of different version of faeries/fae/faries/fays/feys across written folklore, a lot from celtic origins. The Daoine-Side (''Dwellers Of The Fairy Mound"), the Tylwyth Teg ("The Fair Family"), the Tuatha De Danann, and many other Irish legends depict a sort of magical race of people, not quite on our plane of reality but their own.

Then of course you have your "traditional", more commonly known Fairy (dunno where they came from), the tiny ones with dragonfly/butterfly/etc. wings who are often represented as both mischievous (even dangerous sometimes) and friendly/playful.

Then there are other lesser creatures, mischievous also, such as leprachauns, boggarts, goblins (not like the Hobbit ones or Warhammer), etc. In some European countries like Germany or Russia, the faeries were often depicted as cruel and bitter creatures, responsible for killing many wanderers who had lost their paths.

I've never myself considered banshees to be faerie related though, I always put them in the same class as ghosts, malicious spirits, wights and wraiths, etc. because of their strong connection with death (to hear one scream would mean certain death to you or someone close to you). There is a tale of the banshee Bean-Nighe ("The Washer Woman") who was often seen washing her clothes on the banks of a dark lake and would bring death to those who had witnessed her (or someone in their family).

I could have a field-day on this subject if I had my notes with me, but I'm at work. I may come back tonight and add some more...

on the vampire topic, i read that count dracula was originally a lord that fed on his victims in some war
i remember i read it in some book on film, media and monsters etc..

however i have just found this, http://www.ithaca.edu/hs/history/journal/papers/sp02dracula.html some insight onto the life of dracul (dragon)
im not reading much on it atm, but thought it would be interesting to read

Dracula was based on a murderous medieval warlord of Europe called Vlad the Impaler, who (as name would suggest) impaled his enemies on great long pikes leaving battlefields strewn with grizzly, rotting reminders to all his foes. As Bram Stoker put it, Vlad the Impaler's wife committed suicide out of loneliness whilst Vlad was out impaling, and upon his return and finding his wife dead and "banned from heaven" for committing suicide, he cursed God and drank blood from the altar, thus starting the vampire fable that is Bram Stoker's Dracula. But I think that last bit was just Bram Stoker's version of events, there is little or no historical record of this happening to Vlad the Impaler...

Here's a few types of faerie from around the world:

"Leshiye" (or 'Leshy') - Russian forest-faeries. Rather unpleasant creatures.
"Kornböcke" - Germanic grain-fairies.
"Gwyllion" - unfriendly fairy goat-herders.
"Moss Maidens" - race of faeries known for their knowledge of healing.
"Pillywiggin" - diminuitive oak-dwelling fairies of England.
"Boggarts" - unfriendly little faeries of North England. Often found near
people. Generally a nuisance, but can be helpful at times.
"Vila" - seductive forest-faeries.
"Vodianoy" - green-haired water-fairies from Russia.
"Rusalka" - deadly Russian water-fairies, who seduce men to a watery
grave.
"Nix" - dangerous Germanic water-faeries.
"Leanan-Side" - deadly, seductive fairies who suck life from amorous young
men to fuel their own power.
"Larnias" - dangerous shape-shifting fairies.
"Gwragedd Annwfn" - lake-faeries of Annwfn. Affectionate to humans.
"Soot Sprites" - tiny black balls of soot, sometimes seen scurrying away from
dark, abandoned rooms in large numbers. Harmless
and timid, so rarely seen in their home of Japan.
Sometimes referred to as 'Soot Gremlins'.
"Kobolds" - mischievous tree-sprites.
"Kelpie" - viscious water-sprites.
"Hamadryad" - Greek tree-nymph.
"Huldra" - seductive forest-nymphs with cow's tails and hollow backs. - {cow's tails?? Seductive??!! Hollow backs!!!!???}
"Salvanelli" - Italian oak-imps.
"Spriggans" - gnarled creatures who serve as sentries for the faeries.
"Skogsra" - dangerous shape-shifting wood-elves.

"Leanan-Side" - deadly, seductive fairies who suck life from amorous young
men to fuel their own power.
...........sounds like a few people I've met... hahaha

Aurora wrote:

...........sounds like a few people I've met... hahaha

How do people tend to write faerie/fae/fairy/fay/fey? I alway use faerie as I believe that fairy is a child like version to soften the general "legend" of the fey...

(and sometimes I use it just to be different)

Me too. 'fairy' makes me think 'tooth-fairy' or 'fairy-light'.

DID YOU KNOW?: The Tooth-Fairy spends £108 million per year on teeth. (FACT)

Hell. I think I've been out with a few!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THAT'S what they're called.

Didja know that in Norse mythology, Elves (light & dark), Dwarfs, and Giants had they're own places.

Alfheim - Land of the Light Elves

Svartalfheim - Land of the Dark Elves
Nidavellir - Land of the Dwarfs
Jotunheim - Land of the Giants.

There was a Dragon called Nidhogg and Jormungand the world serpent, too.

Oh yes, and a squirrell called Ratatosk, who runs up and down the world tree (Yggdrasil - an ash tree), carrying insults from the dragon to an eagle perched high in the branches.

(Taken from an excellent book by Kevin Crossley-Holland called The Norse Myths ISBN 0-394-74846-8 )

(I hate squirrells, especially the ones with Nazi armbands!!!!!!!
8 of the little gits raid my garden daily with military precision, for the bird food.
I wonder if the ones in L.A. wear head-rags, sunglasses, and carry nines - Yo respeck!

Ok, back to sanity.
Lots of parallel thinking in mythologies isn't there. Gotta come from a single source, either that or it isn't a myth at all and was widespread.

Cool, I knew about the Dragon at the roots of Yggdrasil, and about the Dwarf and Giant kingdoms, but squirrels??!... Elves??!... Dudey! I'm going to update my notes... Thanks, SONAD!

SONAD said:

Quote :

Lots of parallel thinking in mythologies isn't there. Gotta come from a single source, either that or it isn't a myth at all and was widespread.

Agreed. Religions and their stories are the same. Makes me think is it just one God and they all just argue about its name? Is it just from one story told in the days of old, passed down and changed and taken too seriously? I like to think they all exist and do their own bit as a whole, but adding their own 'quirks' for their followers (read David Eddings' 'The Belgariad' fantasy saga, an idea expressed in that rather well). But point being, every religion's legends and their meanings, every story and their main goals are too similar to be coincidental...