Автор: Katharine Briggs
Название: An Encyclopedia of Fairies: Hobgoblins, Brownies, Bogies, & Other Supernatural Creatures
Издательство: Pantheon Books
Год: 1978
ISBN: 039473467X
Язык: English
Формат: pdf
Размер: 22,8 mb
Страниц: 480
The word ‘fairy’ is used in various ways. There are a number of slang and cant usages of the word, varying from time to time, which are beside the point for this book. In fairy-lore, with which we are dealing here, there are two main general usages. The first is the narrow, exact use of the word to express one species of those supernatural creatures ‘of a middle nature between man and angels’ - as they were described in the seventeenth century - varying in size, in powers, in span of life and in moral attributes, but sharply differing from other species such as hobgoblins, monsters, hags, merpeople and so on. The second is the more general extension of the word to cover that whole area of the supernatural which is not claimed by angels, devils or ghosts.
This book is meant for browsing rather than for formal reference. As you read you will find words marked in small capitals. This indicates that there is a separate article on the subject, so that you can turn from one article to another as you pursue your explorations of the terrain.