Ever since the publication of J.R.R. Tolkien’s seminal works, the elf has played a role in the fantasy genre. Despite the degree to which Tolkien popularized its use, the elf was not his invention (unlike the orc). In creating his elves, Tolkien was leaning on a storytelling tradition going back thousands of years. That tradition is what we’ll discuss today, as we examine the development of elves.
The elves are deeply rooted in the western mythos, though many of us may not be aware of their beginnings in the mists of forgotten mythology. The word “elf” is Germanic in origin, hailing from as far back as the Common Germanic language, which was the common ancestor of all Germanic languages, including English. Looking back at the Indo-European root (*albh-) for the word reveals it to be intimately connected with an idea of whiteness. The frequency with which the names of both places and persons reflect the Germanic “elf” is indicative that the idea was an important part of a shared Germanic culture.
Unfortunately, the sources that mention elves do so sparingly and oftentimes only in vague allusions. Much of what we know comes from the Old Norse Eddas. The Prose Edda mentions black elves, dark elves, and light elves (which no doubt formed the basis for those races in the lore of Dungeons & Dragons), but those terms are now believed to have referred to dwarves, demons, and angels in an interesting example of the “paganisation” of Christian beliefs. The best references to elves are focused in the Poetic Edda, called the Elder since it predates its prose counterpart. Even then, the only character who is identified as an elf is Volund, called Weyland the Smith in Old English. Volund is called the “elf king” and “wise elf”, but there is nothing more in the poem that reveals what is meant by the titles.
Despite the paucity of sources on elven characters, there are more references to elves in a general sense. Often the elves are mentioned in the same breath as the Norse Gods, the Æsir, reflecting the importance of the elves within the Norse cosmogony. Some scholars believe that the Vanir, a family of gods subjugated by the ruling Æsir, are in fact elves. That Freya, a Vanir, was given Elf-land as a present is used in support of this theory, as is the infrequency with which the term “Vanir” was used. Regardless of whether we can justly associate the Vanir with the elves, it’s clear that the elves were considered an important and powerful part of the Germanic world.
From the earliest days, elves have been recognized as magical beings. The Norse attributed elves with seidr, a form of magic that includes divination and enchantment. They were also held responsible for causing illness in those who crossed them, using their “elf-shot” to inflict their victims with aches and pains. Elf-shot was often conflated with neolithic arrowheads, which were supposed to be the means by which the elves afflicted their victims. Though elves were associated with the gods and were wielders of great magic (Volund alone is responsible for creating many legendary items), they were nevertheless held to be a people rather than a pantheon. In the Germanic mind, elves were beautiful and powerful neighbors that was best avoided or appeased.
The Anglo-Saxon invasion of the Britain, followed by more Germanic settlers from Scandinavia and Jutland in later years, caused the Germanic concept of “elf” to blend with the native Celtic culture. The Celts already had conceived of the faeries, now found in the Welsh Tylwyth Teg and the Irish Daoine Sídhe. The faeries, like the elves, were closely associated with the gods, were very fair, and were a race with supernatural powers. The two concepts very naturally combined. In all likelihood, both elves and faeries are reflections of an Indo-European belief system that has been lost to the ages. The convergence of the two belief systems lent strength to them both, causing belief in both the elf and the faerie to survive into the modern era.
The Elizabethan era heralded in an age that was both an time of enlightenment and darkness in its effect on folklore. Writers were eager to record many of the myths that pervaded the countryside, but in their retellings they neutered many of the stories. The awe inspiring faerie was reduced to a mischievous sprite with butterfly wings, and the elves fell to a similar fate. Elves were miniaturized and bastardized until they became the helpers of Santa Claus at the north pole. The lamentable trend was reversed with such luminaries as Andrew Lang, the Brothers Grimm, George MacDonald, Lord Dunsany, and J.R.R. Tolkien. Elves were once again refitted with their age old grandeur and became fixtures within a new class of myth: the fantasy novel.
The Sensiahd word of the week is “morna”, meaning “great or high”. Example sentence: Eth Sendyn rh’ys ath dyn morna. The elves were a great people.