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The creatures referred to as fays, fees, fairies and Faeries in Romance languages and English are by no means confined to Western European culture. Under one name or another they are found all over the world; however they are more frequently met in Europe and Asia, than in America and Africa.
Fairy creatures usually share the same general characteristics wherever they are found. They are usually diminutive, often very small but sometimes pygmy like. Faeries can become invisible at will, often by putting on a magical cap. Their dwelling is underground, in a burrow or under a hill, at the bottom of a lake, or in a heap of stones.
The following articles list the most prominent faeries of each culture, more creatures can be found on Monstropedia, the largest encyclopedia about monsters.
Creatures similar to European fairies appear in both written and oral literature, from the Sanskrit gandharva (semidivine celestial musicians) to the nymphs of Greek mythology and Homer, the jinni of Arabic mythology, and similar folk characters of the Samoans, of the Arctic peoples, and of other indigenous Americans. Abatwa – Said to be the tiniest … Read more
The Dwarfs, or little Hill– or Earth-men [a] of Switzerland, are described as of a lively, joyous disposition, fond of strolling through the valleys, and viewing and partaking in the labours of agriculture. Kind and generous, they are represented as driving home stray lambs, and leaving brush-wood and berries in the way of poor children. … Read more
The Fairy-lore of the North of France, at least of Normandy, is, as was to be expected, similar to that of the other portions of the Gotho-German race. We meet it in the fées or fairies, and the lutins or gobelins, which answer to the Kobolds, Nisses, and such like of those nations. The West … Read more
The Faerie in England is a blending of the Germanic dwarf-elf people and the Celtic people of the hills. From the translation of the French romance of Huon of Bordeaux came the idea of an organized Faerie world. The Faeries of Spencer and Shakespeare evolved from this translation. They were, like their northern kindred, divided … Read more
It has long been an established article of belief among the Jews that there is a species of beings which they call Shedeem, Shehireem, or Mazikeen. These beings exactly correspond to the Arabian Jinn; and the Jews hold that it is by means of them that all acts of magic and enchantment are performed. The … Read more
Faeries have always held an important position in Italian folklore. They were powerful, numerous and were a part of everyday life. There are several races of faery: sprites, elves, dwarfs, giants, trolls, changelings, and sirens. In Sicily, there was a belief that the elves or fairies would make contact with humans, mostly women, whom they … Read more
The Nymphs of various kinds were therefore always presented to the imagination, in the perfection of female youth and beauty. Under the various appellations of Oreades, Dryades, Naides, Limniades, Nereides, they dwelt in mountains, trees, springs, lakes, the seas where, in caverns and grottos where they passed a life whose occupations resembled those of females … Read more
Bannik : The Bathhouse Spirit. Bathhouses resembled saunas that had an inner steaming room and an outer changing room. A place where women gave birth and practiced divinations, the bathhouse was strongly endowed with vital forces. The third firing (or fourth, depending on tradition) was the offering to the Bannik, and no Christian images were … Read more