Hesperia

From Latin Hesperia, from Ancient Greek Ἑσπερία (Hespería).

(Greek mythology) One of the Hesperides.


Hesperides

From Latin Hesperides, from Ancient Greek Ἑσπερίδες (Hesperídes).

(Greek mythology) A group of nymphs who tend a blissful garden filled with trees that grew golden apples in a far western corner of the world, located in Libya or the Atlas Mountains in North Africa at the edge of the encircling Oceanus; they are said to be the daughters of Hesperus.

(Greek mythology) The garden of the Hesperides.


Hesperid

(Greek mythology) any one of the Hesperides

Հեսպերիդ

any one of the Hesperide — see also Hesperides


Gordias

Borrowed from Latin Gordiās, from Ancient Greek Γορδίας (Gordías).

(Greek mythology) The name of at least two members of the royal house of Phrygia, the best-known of which was reputedly the founder of the Phrygian capital city Gordium, the maker of the legendary Gordian knot, and the father of the legendary king Midas.


Keres

From Ancient Greek Κῆρες (Kêres, literally “Death Spirits, Doom, Heart”).

der

(Greek mythology) The goddesses of death, specifically cruel and violent deaths, including death in battle, by accident, murder or ravaging disease. They numbered in the thousands and were the daughters of Nyx and Erebus, and the sisters of Thanatos and Hypnos. Their Roman counterparts were the Letum or the Tenebrae.


Afrasiab

(Iranian mythology) A mythical king and hero of Turan.

[Book Pahlavi needed] (plʾsy̲d̲ʾp̄' /frāsiyāb/)


leshy

(Slavic mythology) A male woodland spirit in Slavic mythology who protects wild animals and forests.


melonhead

(US) One of a group of legendary beings, known in parts of Michigan, Ohio, and Connecticut, and generally described as small humanoids with bulbous heads who occasionally emerge from hiding-places to attack people.


mythscape

Forlorn and diminishing, these pathetic gods still inhabit the American mythscape.

2003, Richard Walsh, Reading teh Gospels in the Dark, page 173:

Kosovo was at the centre of the Serbian mythscape but it was not, in ethnic terms, an unequivocally Serbian territory.

2012, Christopher Clark, The Sleepwalkers, Penguin, published 2013, page 24:

The entire complex of sites constitutes a “sacred geography,” a meaningful mythscape, for each site consists of the petrification of events from the Before World of the primordial past.

2013, Robin M Wright, Mysteries of the Jaguar Shamans of the Northwest Amazon, page 217:

A landscape based on myth, or expressed in terms of myth.


Chloris

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Χλωρίς (Khlōrís, literally “Greenfinch”), from χλωρός (khlōrós, “greenish-yellow, pale green”).

bor

(Greek mythology) A nymph and the goddess of flowers and spring. She is a daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, the wife of Zephyrus, and mother of Karpos. Her Roman counterpart is Flora.


Karpos

From Ancient Greek καρπός (karpós, literally “Fruit”).

(Greek mythology) A god/personification of fruit.


Favonius

(Roman mythology) The god of the west wind. He is also the husband of Flora and the father of Karpos. He is the Roman counterpart of Zephyrus.


mytheme

From myth + -eme, popularized by Claude Lévi-Strauss.


Alala

From Ancient Greek Ἀλαλά (Alalá), from Ancient Greek ἀλαλή (alalḗ, literally “loud cry, war cry”).

der

(Greek mythology) A goddess, personification of the war cry/battle cry


Glaucus

From Ancient Greek Γλαῦκος (Glaûkos, from γλαυκός (glaukós, literally “greyish-blue, bluish-green, glimmering”)).

from <i class="Polyt mention" lang="grc">γλαυκός</i> (glaukós, literally “greyish-blue, bluish-green, glimmering”)

(Greek mythology) A Greek prophetic sea-god, born mortal and turned immortal upon eating a magical herb. It was believed that he commonly came to the rescue of sailors and fishermen in storms, having once been one himself.

(Greek mythology) A mythical Lycian soldier and captain in the Trojan War.

(Greek mythology) Son of Sisyphus, and a mythical Corinthian king.

(Greek mythology) one of the sons of Priam.

(Greek mythology) One of the twelve younger Panes.


Vígríðr

(Norse mythology) A plain that will be the site of a battle between the gods and Surtur during Ragnarok.


Wigrid

(Norse mythology, archaic) Vígríðr (plain that will be the site of a battle during Ragnarok)


Titanean

For Lightning she'd have strook: or by some Spell / The bold Titanean Brethren rais'd from Hell

1702, Edward Sherburne, The Tragedies of L. Annaeus Seneca the Philosopher:

[The sandstone] is broken into immense angular fragments forty feet and less, in diameter, which lie about like the work of Titanean quarrymen.

1861, First biennial report of the progress of the geological survey of Michigan:

(mythology) Of the Titans, literally or figuratively.


Zagreus

(Greek mythology) An obscure figure in Greek mythology who, according to Orphic tradition, was the son of Zeus and Persephone who was destroyed by the Titans but reborn through the intervention of Zeus as Dionysus.


gallu

Learned borrowing from Akkadian 𒋼𒇲 (gallûm, “Gallu”).

lbor

A great demon or devil of the ancient Mesopotamian Underworld.


Myrrha

From Latin Myrrha, from Ancient Greek Μύρρα (Múrrha).

Byblis lies motionless in mute desperation and her transformation is told only briefly, whereas Myrrha herself asks for her metamorphosis, gives a speech (10.483-7), and Ovid leads us step by step through her transformation (10.489-502).

1975, Karl Galinsky, Ovid's Metamorphoses: An Introduction to the Basic Aspects, page 89:

The resemblance between this Myrrhina and the Myrrha who seduces her father is all the greater in that in one of the versions of the myth of Adonis, his mother is transformed by metamorphosis into not a myrrh tree but a sprig of myrtle.

1977, Marcel Detienne, The Gardens of Adonis: Spices in Greek Mythology, page 63:

In the succeeding book, Ovid depicts another woman tortured by abnormal but not impossible passion: Myrrha, in love with her father, Cinyras.

2006, David M. Robinson, Closeted Writing and Lesbian and Gay Literature: Classical, Early Modern, Eighteenth-Century, page 175:

(Greek mythology) The daughter of Cinyras, king of Cyprus, who tricks her father into having sexual intercourse with her and escapes the king's wrath by being transformed into a myrrh tree, later giving birth to Adonis.

Smyrna

daughter of Cinyras and mother of Adonis


hengeyokai

1985, David Cook, Oriental Adventures, TSR Inc., →ISBN
Hengeyokai are intelligent, shape-changing animals. Several subraces exist, each a different type of animal. They are found throughout the Oriental world, usually on the fringes of human-settled lands.

1998-01-28, Lee Gold, Re: B5 Filk: You Picked A Fine Time To Leave Us Sinclair, rec.music.filk
If a hengeyokai fails to concentrate (or perhaps gets distracted -- due to being beaten, seeing a mouse, fatigue), the human form's ears may get pointed or a tail may appear.

Hengeyokai transfer between forms almost instantly, though when in human form, they often retain some mark of characteristic of their true animal nature.

2001, Laurence C. Bush, Asian Horror Encyclopedia: Asian Horror Culture in Literature, Manga and Folklore, Writers Club Press, page 69:

2013-10-12, Jasin Zujovic, Hengeyokai level adjustment, rec.games.frp.dnd
I've been watching Inuyasha yesterday (too bad that's a German dub and I can understand almost nothing) and that got me wanting to make myself a hengeyokai character... and then I remembered the level adjustment.

(folklore) A legendary Japanese animal with the ability to shapeshift into human form.


nightwalker

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-nightwalker.wav

* night + walker
* (vampire): since they are traditionally said to avoid sunlight and go out at night.

(archaic, euphemistic) A prostitute who looks for clients on the streets.


shapechanger

A creature that can supernaturally change its physical form.


Lupercus

Unadapted borrowing from Latin Lupercus.

Πὰν Λυκαῖος
Πὰν Λυκαῖος#Ancient_Greek

(Roman mythology) A god who protected flocks, in some sources identified with Faunus in the aspect of Innus, and by extension as the equivalent of the Greek Πὰν Λυκαῖος (Pàn Lukaîos, “Lycaean Pan”).


Balder

Among the Norse, the god Balder is the most closely associated with the solstices. In a myth that explains the actions of the midsummer and midwinter Sun, Balder, the son of the god Odin, was said to die at the hands of his evil brother, who wielded a mistletoe stake each summer solstice. He was reborn at the winter solstice, or what is still known in Germany as Mother Night (the 'mother' in question being the goddess who brings the new born Sun back into existence).

2005, A. Bhatnagar, William Charles Livingston, Fundamentals of Solar Astronomy, page 3:

It is difficult to understand how the author of The Traditions of the God Balder (Die Uberlieferungen vom Gone Balder) from 1920 in which he compared the Balder cult with earlier Mediterranean beliefs could come out so strongly in favor of Kossinna's ex Septentrione lux scarcely a decade later.

2008, Bernard Thomas Mees, The Science of the Swastika, page 175:

What he does not mention is that Balder is the Norse counterpart of Helios (the Greek forerunner of Sol); he was the god of light, son of Odin and Frigg, as Helios was the son of Hyperion and Theia.

2008, Michael Ward, Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis, unnumbered page:

Balder, the radiant god of sunshine, reminds us not only of Apollo and Orpheus, but of all the other heroes of sun myths.

2010, H. A. Guerber, Hammer of Thor: Norse Mythology and Legends, page 246:

(Norse mythology) The Norse god of light and purity, a son of Odin and Frigg, known for his beauty and near-invulnerability.


Astrape

From Ancient Greek ἀστραπή (astrapḗ, literally “lightning”).

uder

(Greek mythology) The goddess/personification of lightning, sister of Bronte, and an attendant of Zeus. Her Roman counterpart is Fulgora.


Bronte

From Ancient Greek βροντή (brontḗ, “thunder”) or Βρόντης (Bróntēs, “Thunderer, name of one of the cyclops”).

der

(Greek mythology) One of the Cyclops, who forged Zeus's thunderbolts.

(Greek mythology) The goddess personifying thunder.


Fulgora

(Roman mythology) The Roman goddess/personification of lightning. She is the Roman counterpart of Astrape.


sparklepire

From the bloated, purple-faced, shroud-wrapped corpse feared throughout Europe in the 18th century to the ‘sparklepire’ brought into vogue by Stephenie Meyer, the vampire as a concept has come a long way since its folkloric origins, and horror and paranormal romance authors have brought the entire concept to an interesting evolutionary point.

2009 August 16, Janet Neilson, “The Evolution of Vampire in Fiction”, in Hub Magazine, number 95, page 5:

This probably includes: talking donkeys, gods, flying dragons, garden fairies, vampires, sparklepires, ghosts, and Harry Potter.

2012 April 2, Kermit [username], “Re: I am now a Creationist”, in talk.origins (Usenet):

KEVIN: Well, that's your classic vamp. Now factor in your Nosferatu, your Twilight sparklepires, your Thirty Days of Night nocturnal shark people and the hundred of variations on the classic...

2012 October 11, Freezer [username], “[MSTing] Unbreak My Spark - Part 4”, in rec.arts.tv.mst3k.misc (Usenet):

(fandom slang, humorous) A vampire who sparkles, such as those featured in the Twilight series.


Anzu

Learned borrowing from Sumerian 𒀭𒉎𒂂𒄷 (AN.IM.DUGUD^(MUŠEN) /Anzû/, “a mythical dragon-like bird”), origin unknown, perhaps from 𒀭 (An, “heaven”) + 𒍪 (zu, “to know”).

lbor

(Mesopotamian mythology) A divine storm-bird in several Mesopotamian religions.


glampire

Well, it's basically a supernatural Dawson's Creek—a humiliatingly addictive soap opera in the meadows, with glampire Edward (Pattinson) as Dawson and Native American beefcake Jacob (Taylor Lautner) as Pacey.

2009 November 19, Aaron Mesh, “Women Who Run With the Werewolves: New Moon Reviewed”, in Willamette Week:

“Because they couldn't even tell a real vampire from a glampire. Lucy didn't know anything.”

2011, Hannah Jayne, Under Wraps, Kensington Books, →ISBN, page 171:

[…] Anyway, you have to go to Annandale today. It's your cure day surprise. You get to kill a glampire."
"Christ. One of those vampire poseurs?"
"Oh yes. With the white face paint and dopey satanic rituals and everything. […]

2011, Drew Magary, The Postmortal, Penguin Books, →ISBN:

(slang, sometimes used attributively) A glamorous or beautiful vampire; a person who pretends to be a vampire.


Thunor

Learned borrowing from Old English Þunor. Doublet of thunder.

The attributes of the most important deities of our distant ancestors, Tiw, Woden, and Thunor, whose names are perpetuated in those of three of our weekdays, are by no means clearly defined. It is not to be assumed that Woden and Thunor were identical with the Norse Odin and Thor, about whom more is known.

1962, John Godfrey, The Church in Anglo-Saxon England, page 63:

Thunor still survives in properly edited texts of Beowulf; on funeral stones, to ensure that the dead can rest in peace; on jewels and amulets as a charm; and he can even be spotted on a holy font 'perpetually preaching that the Christian soldier should FIGHT AS LEAST AS BRAVELY against Baseness as ever did the Hammer-wielder'.

2000, Andrew Wawn, The Vikings and the Victorians: Inventing the Old North in Nineteenth-Century Britain, page 232:

Many people consider Thunor to be the most approachable of the Saxon gods.

2009, Alaric Albertsson, Travels Through Middle Earth: The Path of a Saxon Pagan, page 27:

(mythology) An Old English deity identified with Thor and associated with Jupiter.


antigod

(mythology) A preternatural being opposed to the gods.


Cybele

From Latin Cybelē, from Ancient Greek Κυβέλη (Kubélē).

(Greek mythology) A mother goddess of the ancient peoples of Asia Minor.


Embla

(Norse mythology) The first female human in the Edda.


Fudō Myōō

(Japanese mythology) a guardian deity primarily revered in Vajrayana Buddhism as the principal of the Five Wisdom Kings, also known as Acala.


protogenos

From Ancient Greek πρωτόγονος (prōtógonos, “first-born”).

uder

(Greek mythology) Any of the first order of deities to come into existence, according to Greek cosmogony.


Eisa

(Norse mythology) A minor goddess, a daughter of Logi.


Ōkuninushi-no-mikoto

Borrowed from Japanese 大国主命 (Ōkuninushi-no-mikoto).

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The Japanese god of nation-building, farming, business, and medicine, as well as love and good matches.


Toshigami

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The god of the coming year, celebrated at New Years.


Sanbō Kōjin

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The Japanese god of fire, the hearth, and the kitchen.


kodama

(Japanese mythology) A type of Japanese tree spirit.


Ōkuninushi

Borrowed from Japanese 大国主 (Ōkuninushi).

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The Japanese god of nation-building, farming, business, and medicine, as well as love and good love matches.


Helheim

(Norse mythology) The realm of the dead, (also known as Hel), the domain of the goddess Hel. Located beyond Niflheim, (one of the Nine Realms).


merteen

In the “how to make a porn video” within the video, Sprinkle plays an older mermaid who sexually initiates a “merteen” played by Sirena.

2000 February 8, Virginia Vitzthum, “Annie Sprinkle swims forward”, in Salon:

Realization filled the merteen's eyes with sadness.

2005, Rachel Roberts, The Heart of Avalon, CDS Books, →ISBN, page 120:

I paddle board, boogie board, and I use a monofin when I swim. You put your two feet in a fin and workout in the water. It’s a great way for merfolk—mermen, merteens, whoever—to connect with the water.

2012 July 27, Maria Denardo, “Rockefeller's Center”, in The Daily Dan:


merlad

The merlad and merlass watched the sphere for a moment and with a flick of their shiny tails, vanished again.

2003, Susan K. Hamilton, Darkstar Rising, Xlibris, published 2003, →ISBN, page 433:

I have to admit, he's a handsome merlad with his beautiful brown eyes, shiny black hair, and dark brown skin, but I can't have a boyfriend.

2006, S. L. Bynum, Kalena, the Sea Princess, Lulu, published 2006, →ISBN, page 10:

“At first everyone was standoffish and now they're too friendly,” Thorgil complained, swiping at a merlad who was attempting to grab her hair.

2009, Nancy Farmer, The Islands of the Blessed, Simon & Schuster, published 2009, →ISBN:

(fantasy) A young male merperson, male equivalent of mermaid


merguy

"I don't know. But he's still breathing, or whatever it is merguys do. We've got to try and revive him somehow," said Sabrina thoughtfully.

1999, Ellen Titlebaum, Sabrina Down Under, Archway, →ISBN, page 32:

Step right up and see the merboy, merguy, merman. Where does his ding-dong go?

2012, Zoraida Cordova, The Vicious Deep, Sourcebooks Fire, →ISBN:

“Here, entertain yourself. I'm only expecting merguys to be at the meeting today, and there are no pictures of them.” Either the male mers didn't get out much or, more likely, men had written all the history books.

2012, Suzanne Johnson, River Road, Tor, →ISBN:


merprincess

Ariel is a merprincess who finds life in the sea under the protective eye of her father to be a type of imprisonment.

1997, Carleton Papers in Applied Language Studies, volumes 14-19, page 109:

We have the merprince and merprincess and tonight we will finish defeating the soldiers at the mercastle.

2003, Gretel Killeen, My Sister's a Sea Slug, Random House Children's Publishing UK, published 2012, →ISBN:

“As long as that merprincess is out there, the more that city will crumble and die. […]

2013, Cheri Jones, The Adventures of a Mermaid Princess, Trafford Publishing, →ISBN, page 26:


merprince

She sighed audibly when the merprince rescued the young mermaid and whisked her away to his kingdom as his bride, thus ending the story.

2005, Tracey V. Bateman, Kansas Home: Hearts Adrift Find a Place to Dwell in Four Romantic Stories, Barbour Publishing Incorporated, →ISBN, page 49:

Down the beach, a group of mergirls and boys were facing off with the same merprince who'd spoken through the mirror.

2005, Rachel Roberts, The Heart of Avalon, CDS Books, →ISBN, page 18:


merdaughter

The Sea King's merdaughters have only one tail.

1993, Todd Strasser, Mark Rifkin, & Gil DiCicco, Disney's the Villian's Collection: Stories from the Films, Disney Press, →ISBN, page 61:

He does this again in Action Comics #224 (Sep. 1958) in which he meets a merman, Vul-Kor and his merdaughter, Lya-La, […]

2012, Lori Maguire, “Supervillains and Cold War Tensions in the 1950s”, in Joseph J. Darowski, editor, The Ages of Superman: Essays on the Man of Steel in Changing Times, McFarland & Company, →ISBN, page 21:

Below, a concert is underway by Triton (Martin Lopez), the sea king’s Merdaughters (Dakota Booher, Lexi Jusino, Ashley Moller, Lara Monti, Clare Pepe, Sarah Vidal), written by court composer, Sebastian (Kenny Copeland).

2013 April 23, Nancy Horak, “The Little Mermaid Broadway-Style”, in The Magazine of Santa Clarita:


psychomanteum

Coined by Raymond Moody in 1993 in his book Reunions: Visionary Encounters with Departed Loved Ones.

A dark, mirrored room dedicated to communication with the spirit realm.


Toutatis

From Gaulish. Cognate with Proto-Germanic *þeudō (“people, nation”).

cog

(Celtic mythology) A god worshipped in ancient Gaul and Britain.


Belisama

(Celtic mythology) A goddess worshipped in ancient Gaul and Britain.


Taranis

From the Celtic deity, from Proto-Celtic *toranos (“thunder”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tenh₂- (“thunder”), related to Proto-Germanic *þunraz.

(Celtic mythology) The Celtic god of thunder.


Borvo

From Latin attestation of the Gaulish and Lusitanian deity, from Proto-Celtic *borvo (“froth, foam”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to be hot, boil”).

der

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic god of healing associated with hot springs.


Sucellus

From the Celtic/Gaulish name, represented as carrying a hammer, the god's name could mean "good striker," from Proto-Celtic *su- (“good”) + a root related to *kellāko- (“war, fight”), from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- (“to break, beat, strike”).

(Celtic mythology) The Gaulish god of agriculture, forests and alcoholic drink.


Alaunus

From Celtic/Gaulish name, possibly from Proto-Celtic *aleti (“to grow, nourish”). Or, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *el- (“to flow”); in either case, related to the city Altinum in Venetia.

(Celtic mythology) A Gaulish god of healing and prophecy.


Andarta

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic goddess of warriors.


Artio

(Celtic mythology) The Celtic goddess of bears.


Aveta

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic mother goddess, a goddess of fresh water springs.


Brigantia

Borrowed from Latin Brigantia, from Proto-Celtic *Brigantī, *brigantī, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰérǵʰonts, from the root *bʰerǵʰ-. Doublet of Bragança.

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic goddess of victory.


Grannus

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic god of spas, healing thermal and mineral springs, and of the sun.


Maponos

Of Celtic origin, from Gaulish mapos (“son”) + the augmentative suffix -onos.

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic god of youth.


Nantosuelta

(Celtic mythology) A Gaulish goddess of nature, the earth, fire, and fertility.


Sirona

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic goddess of healing associated with healing springs.


Segomo

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic god of war worshipped in Gaul.


Rosmerta

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic goddess of fertility and abundance.


Ogmios

(Celtic mythology) A Celtic god of eloquence.


Damona

(Celtic mythology) The Celtic goddess of cows.


Ersa

From Ancient Greek Ἕρσα (Hérsa, literally “Dew”).

uder

(Greek mythology) The goddess/personification of the dew.


Argiope

(Greek mythology) Any one of several figures of Greek mythology.

A naiad, daughter of the river god Nilus, wife of Agenor and mother of Europa, Cadmus, Phoenix and Cilix.

In classical Greek mythology, Argiope was a NYMPH of Mount Parnassos in Phokis, central Greece. By the bard Philammon, she gave birth to an even greater musician, her son Thamyris.

2013, Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology, McFarland, page 34:

A naiad, mother of Thamyris by Philammon and possibly daughter of the river god Cephissus.

A naiad of the town of Eleusis, mother of Cercyon by Branchus; sometimes identified with the above daughter of Cephissus.

A daughter of Teuthras, king of Teuthrania, who married Telephus, son of Heracles.


Bebhionn

From Irish Bébinn, seemingly from bean (“woman”) + binn (“melodious”). More at Bébinn.

(Irish mythology) A goddess of birth in Irish mythology.


Adrastea

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἀδράστεια (Adrásteia, literally “inescapable”).

bor

(Greek mythology) The goddess of divine retribution


Thebe

(Greek mythology) One of daughters of Zeus.


Himalia

(Greek mythology) A nymph, a mistress of Zeus.


Euporie

(Greek mythology) A Greek goddess of abundance.


Euanthe

From Ancient Greek Εὐάνθη (Euánthē, from εὐ- (eu-, “good-, well-”) + άνθη (ánthē, “blossoms”)). Cognate with Evanthia.

bor

(Greek mythology) A goddess sometimes listed as the mother of the Graces.


Helike

(Greek mythology) A nymph who took care of Zeus in his infancy on Crete.


Praxidike

(Greek mythology) The goddess of judicial punishment and the exactor of vengeance.


Hermippe

(Greek mythology) A daughter of Boeotus. She was married to Orchomenus but had a son with Poseidon.


Thyone

(Greek mythology) Semele, mother of Dionysus.


Taygete

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ταϋγέτη (Taügétē).

bor+

(Greek mythology) One of the Pleiades (daughters of Atlas and Pleione).


Eurydome

(Greek mythology) The mother of the Graces by Zeus.


Pasithee

(Greek mythology) Alternative form of Pasithea


Sinope

From Latin Sinope, from Ancient Greek Σινώπη (Sinṓpē), from Hittite 𒅆𒉡𒉿 (Šinuwa).


Kiviuq

(mythology) A legendary hero in Inuit epics.


Ijiraq

(mythology) A monster in Inuit mythology.


Bergelmir

From the Old Norse name; the second element means "yeller," from the verb *gallmr, from Proto-Germanic *galmaz (“echo”). The first element has been variously interpreted as berg (“mountain”), berr (“bare”), and a variant of bjǫrn (“bear”).

(Norse mythology) A frost giant in Norse mythology.


Hati

(Norse mythology, patronymised Hróðvitnisson) The vargr (giant wolf) who chases Máni (the Moon) across the night sky until Ragnarök, when he will swallow Máni; son of Fenrir and brother of Sköll.


Surtur

From Old Norse Surtr (“the swarthy one”).

(Muspelheim, we suppose, with its numerous fiery inhabitants, and their mighty chief Surtur, the dark, the incomprehensible, the great evil principle, had no beginning; or if it had, the Odinian theologians were unacquainted with it.)

1839, Samuel Astley Dunham, History of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, volume 2, page 44:

1847 [1770], Paul Henri Mallet, Thomas Percy (translator), I. A. Blackwell, Walter Scott (editors), Northern Antiquities, [1756, Paul Henri Mallet, Monuments de la mythologie et de la poesie des Celtes, et particulierement des anciens Scandinaves], page 496,
We must also remark, that in the Eddaic Poems there is no mention made of Surtur and the Elves of Light existing in Muspellheim previous to the formation of Ymir, […] .

In Journey into Mystery #97 (1963), writer/editor Stan Lee and artist/cc-plotter Jack Kirby introduced their version of Surtur, one of the greatest enemies of the gods in Norse mythology.

2006, Gina Renée Misiroglu, Michael Eury, The Supervillain Book: The Evil Side of Comics and Hollywood, page not identified:

(Norse mythology) A very powerful jotun (giant) and chief of Muspellheim, described in the Eddas as wielding a flaming (or shining) sword and as battling the gods and killing Freyr during Ragnarok.


Ymir

(Norse mythology) The first creature to come into being and the ancestor of all jötnar. Upon his death, the gods fashioned the world from his body.


Galatea

74 Galatea
Acis and Galatea (mythology)
Galatea
Galatea, New Zealand
Leucippus (daughter of Galatea)

/ˌɡæləˈtiːə/

(Greek mythology) Galatea; a woman who prayed for her daughter to be turned into a son, Leucippus.

(Greek mythology) Galatea; a sea-nymph in Ovid's story of Acis and Galatea.

(Greek mythology) Galatea; name given in the 18th century to the animated statue sculpted by Pygmalion.


Sao

From Ancient Greek Σαώ (Saṓ, literally “the rescuer”), from the verb σῴζω (sṓizō, “to save”).

bor

(astronomy) A moon of Neptune, named after the nymph.


Neso

(Greek mythology) Any of various figures in Greek mythology. See Neso (mythology).


Drighten

(historical, mythology) Alternative form of drighten.


Stokerian

en-adj

Stokerian (comparative more Stokerian, superlative most Stokerian)

more Stokerian (comparative)
most Stokerian (superlative)

Of or relating to Bram Stoker (1847–1912), Irish novelist and short story writer, best known for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula.


Allat

(Arabian mythology) A pre-Islamic Arabian goddess.


kourotrophic

(Greek mythology) Relating to the goddess Kourotrophos.


ageless sleep

She is, indeed, most wondrous fair: Gold of sunshine in her hair. Lips that shame the red, red rose. In ageless sleep, she finds repose. The years roll by, but a hundred years, to a steadfast heart, are but a day.

1959, Erdman Penner, Sleeping Beauty (film)

(mythology, fiction, fantasy) A magical state of suspended animation, where-in the recipient is placed in a state of ageless, deathless, everlasting sleep. Well-known examples are Endymion (the lover of the Greek moon goddess, Selene), and the princess from Sleeping Beauty.


eternal sleep

She is, indeed, most wondrous fair: Gold of sunshine in her hair. Lips that shame the red red rose. In ageless sleep, she finds repose. The years roll by, but a hundred years, to a steadfast heart, are but a day.

1959, Erdmann Penner, Sleeping Beauty (film)

(mythology, fiction, fantasy) A magical state of suspended animation, a state of ageless, deathless, everlasting sleep. Well-known examples are Endymion (the lover of the Greek moon goddess, Selene), and the princess from "Sleeping Beauty".


daywalker

(fantasy) One who can go out in the sunlight, distinguished from vampires etc. who cannot.


Buffista

> Well, to *you* I yield precedence, but the rest of these whippersnappers
> ought to bow to my half-century. And I've been a Buffista from Day One.

2002 February 19, Bill Reid (quoting Charles Stanley), “Re: Am I the only old man here?”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Of course if they entice the 'Buffy crowd', there'll be a lot of Buffistas reading Jinx High for the first time and complaining about it ripping off the Buffy episode "The Witch" (my first usenet post about Buffy was to abml about a certain rather obvious plot resemplance^([sic]) there).

2005 August 31, William George Ferguson, “Re: New release of Tregarde series?”, in alt.books.m-lackey (Usenet):

We didn't discuss it further, and continued sitting on our asses watching the TV. But a couple weeks later, late at night, another Buffista pondered the idea online.

2007, Allyson Beatrice, Will the Vampire People Please Leave the Lobby?: True Adventures in Cult Fandom, Sourcebooks, Inc., →ISBN, page 189:

(slang) A fan of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Buffyite

46 and proud to be a Buffyite. One of the best shows on the tube.

1998 May 25, Georg McLaughlin, “Re: Newbie (ages ?)”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Buffyites [felt] the show had slipped this year, falling into a very administration-like (and un-Buffy-like) us vs. them moral schema.

2005, Rhonda Wilcox (quoting Eric Alterman), Why Buffy Matters: The Art of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I. B. Tauris & Co Ltd (2006), unnumbered page

Although Internet communities are virtual, it is the hypothesis of this paper that the virtcom can become a real community, by means of which Buffyites and Angelites can regularly interact.

2009, Mary Kirby-Diaz, “Buffy, Angel, and the Creation of Virtual Communities”, in Mary Kirby-Diaz, editor, Buffy and Angel Conquer the Internet: Essays on Online Fandom, McFarland & Company, →ISBN, page 18:


Buffyholic

Anyway, I was thinking that some of us Buffyholics could meet there and perhaps organize a Denver "goober" for Buffy's season premiere.

1998 August 13, barklage [username], “Starcon 98 (Denver)”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Cordesman was introduced to Buffy by Buffyholics in his family, watched an episode or two, perceived analogies between the show and America's approach to threats of biological warfare, and developed Buffy into compounds that expressed his views on security.

2003, Michael Adams, Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Lexicon, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 100:

Before “Prophecy Girl,” I thought Buffy was a pretty cool show with some great moments, way better than anything else on the box. In its wake, I was an obsessive Buffy'''holic.

2009, Justine Larbalestier, “A Buffy Confession”, in Glenn Yeffeth, editor, Seven Seasons of Buffy: Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors Discuss Their Favorite Television Show, BenBella Books, →ISBN, page 78:


vampireyness

If I remember correctly, the episode $teve's talking about also featured Nick getting caught on camera by a TV news crew, and he was unable to hypnotise her to make her forget because she had physical evidence of his vampireyness.

2001 July 28, Adam James Fitzpatrick, “Re: A few questions about Angel 2.21 - SPOILERS”, in aus.tv.buffy (Usenet):

For reasons that defy explanation, they're PUNS. Monstrous puns. Puns so eye-rollingly BAD, they're an abomination to the vampire's refined senses. This affront to their immortal good taste leaves them writhing in agony—exposing all manner of vampireyness.

2013, Rita Harris, Heather Harwood, Your Guide to Spotting and Outing Bloodsuckers at Work, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 4:

Age Suitability: Teens and above due to vampireyness and possible bad language.

2013, Nine Worlds Geekfest 2013 Programme and Schedule, page 53:

(informal) The state or quality of being vampirey.


Buffaholic

For all you UK Buffaholics out there, there's an SMG interview in this week's (month's?) TV Hits magazine.

1999 January 14, Jonathan Nickson, “SMG interview”, in alt.fan.sarah-m-gellar (Usenet):

I'm am^([sic]) always online late Tuesday....gotta see what the Buffaholics thought about the new ep. I love Feb sweeps <G>.

2001 February 10, Karen Marie, “Re: Smackdown & Thunder”, in alt.pro-wrestling.wwf (Usenet):

I am a 36-yr-old mother of two pre-shcoolers and I am a proud Buffaholic (not too mention Angelholic).

2001 December 18, Sharon V, “True Age Demographic”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):


Buffian

Sorry to have missed meeting the Canberra Buffians.

2000 January 17, Rachel, “Re: Inaugural ACT Buffy Meet”, in aus.tv.buffy (Usenet):

In all this time it still hasn't occurred to you that Buffians couldn't possibly give less of a shit about ratings?

2001 May 31, Forge [username], “Re: Wonky wins in Finale Ratings! Outraged DA fans demand recount!”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Yay - 'nother Buffian :D

2002 June 2, Trin, “Re: ROLL CALL!”, in uk.religion.pagan (Usenet):


Aetna

From the Latin Aetna, from either Ancient Greek Αἴτνη (Aítnē, “Aetna”) or αἴθω (aíthō, “I burn”), or from a Sicanian dialect Italic base *aith-na (“fiery one”), all from Proto-Indo-European *ai-dh, from *h₂eydʰ- (“burn; fire”). Doublet of Etna.

(Greek mythology and Roman mythology) A nymph in Sicily who, according to legend, gave her name to the volcanic Mount Etna.


Phaedra

Euripides
Hippolytus (play)
Jean Racine
Phaedra (Seneca)
Phaedra (mythology)
Phèdre
Seneca the Younger

From Latin Phaedra, from Ancient Greek Φαίδρᾱ (Phaídrā).
The myth has been retold several times, in plays (in classical times in Euripides's Hippolytus and Seneca the Younger's Phaedra, later in Racine's Phèdre), and more recently in other media.

We notice that Racine's Phaedra, like Euripides', displays high moral dignity because she considers her passion for Hippolytus to be abominable.

1981, Normand Berlin, The Secret Cause: A Discussion of Tragedy, page 46:

Why did Seneca decide to postpone his own Phaedra’s suicide until after Hippolytus' death? The question is by no means as futile as it may sound.

1993, Albert S. Gérard, The Phaedra Syndrome: Of Shame and Guilt in Drama, page 20:

I may add that the notion that Aphrodite is especially cruel because she destroyed Phaedra, who was an innocent victim, since she had no choice, is not a perception that would have been shared by the ancient audience. Not only is it at the very least arguable—in fact likely—that in ancient eyes Phaedra did have a choice,¹⁶⁶ but also the very notions "innocent victim since she had no choice" and "cruel because destroying an innocent victim" are unstable cultural concepts.

2003, Christiane Sourvinou-Inwood, Tragedy and Athenian Religion, page 331:

(Greek mythology) The wife of Theseus, who falls in love with but is spurned by her stepson Hippolytus, then commits suicide, but is the cause of his later death (details vary between versions).


Arthurianism

The use of Arthurian legend in literature, history, etc.

arturianismo

the use of Arthurian legend in literature


Asclepiades

From Ancient Greek Ἀσκληπιάδης (Asklēpiádēs).

(Greek mythology) A child of Asclepius and Epione (or Aristodama).


Aegle

From Ancient Greek Αἴγλη (Aíglē, literally “brightness, gleam, glow, radiance, splendour—usually referring to the past”).

lbor

(Greek mythology) The goddess/personification of good health and the glow of health, one of the daughters of Asclepius.


Galahad

From Old French Galahad, of obscure origin and meaning. Suggestions include Old Welsh, or biblical Gilead.

(Arthurian legend) Sir Galahad, son of Sir Lancelot, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table famously known for his purity and who was one of the three achievers of the quest for the Holy Grail.

(rare) A male given name from the Celtic languages in occasional use since the 19th century.

Flagstaff County
Flagstaff County#English

A hamlet in Flagstaff County, in east-central Alberta.


dahu

Perhaps still sore at being called crétins des Alpes by lowlanders, the Savoyards, in the early days of mass tourism, would sometimes take gullible visitors on dahu hunts. These entailed all-night vigils out in the open, where the would-be trophy hunter had to crouch and hide so as not to be seen by the sharp-eyed dahu.

2017, Stephen O'Shea, The Alps: A Human History from Hannibal to Heidi and Beyond, W. W. Norton & Company, →ISBN:

(mythology) A legendary goat-like animal reputed to live in the mountains of France, Switzerland, and Italy.


pseudodragon

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-pseudodragon.wav

From pseudo- + dragon, introduced in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game.

(fantasy) A small dragon-like creature, not a true dragon.


Fomorian

Probably Old Irish fo- (“under”) + mor, mur (“ocean”).

(Irish mythology, mythology) A member of the semi-divine race that were said to have inhabited Ireland in ancient times.


Fomorian

(Irish mythology) Of or relating to the race of semi-divine creatures said to have inhabited Ireland in ancient times.


Fuxi

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the modern Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 伏羲 (Fúxī), variously understood and treated as a solar god, protoplast, culture hero, legendary emperor, and protohistorical tribal chief or as an imperial or prehistoric dynasty (氏, shì) in China before the Xia. The two characters may be phonetic but have the meaning "concealed from", "submitting to", or "prostrate before" 羲 (xī), a character that also appears in the name of the early solar goddess 羲和 (“Xīhé”), q.v.

The Chineſe ſay that Fo-hi, the Founder of their Monarchy, fix’d his Court in this Province; and began his Reign about the Year 2952, according to ſome Authors, whoſe Opinion if true confirms the Chronology of the Septuagint.

[1738, J. B. Du Halde, “PROVINCE VII. HO-NAN.”, in A Description of the Empire of China and Chinese-Tartary, Together with the Kingdoms of Korea, and Tibet, volume I, London, page 102:

(Chinese mythology) A legendary ancient Chinese ruler and culture hero, typically the brother of Nüwa.


Ophiotaurus

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ὀφιόταυρος (Ophiótauros, “cow-serpent”).

bor

(Greek mythology) A mythical creature, part bull and part serpent.


Ianthe

From Ancient Greek Ἰάνθη (Iánthē, literally “purple/violet flower”).

der

(Greek mythology) One of the 3,000 Oceanids, the daughters of Oceanus and Tethys.

(Greek mythology) The Cretan girl who married Iphis after Isis turned Iphis from a woman into a man.


Arethusa

/ˌæɹɪˈθjuːzə/

From Ancient Greek Ἀρέθουσα (Aréthousa, literally “The Waterer”).

uder

(Greek mythology) A nereid nymph, who became a fountain.

(Greek mythology) One of the Hesperides nymphs.


Antiope

90 Antiope
Antiope (Amazon)
Antiope (mother of Amphion)

(Greek mythology) An Amazon, daughter of Ares and sister to Melanippe and Hippolyte, (and possibly Orithyia), queens of the Amazons,. She was the wife of Theseus, and the only Amazon known to have married.

(Greek mythology) The daughter of the Boeotian river god Asopus, according to Homer.

Antíope

the daughter of the Boeotian river god Asopus


Thisbe

(Greek mythology, Roman mythology) One of a pair of ill-fated lovers, whose story forms part of Ovid's Metamorphoses.


Klytia

(Greek mythology) An Oceanid, who was known for her unrequited love for Helios.


Feronia

(Roman mythology) A Roman goddess of wildlife, fertility, health and abundance.


Panopaea

(Greek mythology) two of the Nereids. Panope is also the name of one of the daughters of Thespius and Megamede and mother of Heracles' son, Threpsippas.


Danae

(Greek mythology) The mother of Perseus by Zeus.


Elpis

From Ancient Greek Ἐλπίς (Elpís, literally “Hope”).

(Greek mythology) The goddess and personification of hope.


Concordia

58 Concordia
Concordia
Concordia (mythology)

(Roman mythology) The goddess of harmony and concord. She is the Roman equivalent to Harmonia.


Melete

Translingual: Melete

From Latin Melete, from Ancient Greek Μελέτη (Melétē).

(Greek mythology) The Muse of meditation, one of the three original Boeotian muses.


Nysa

(Greek mythology) A mythical land in Greek Mythology.


Pales

(Roman mythology) The deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock in Roman mythology.


Nemausus

(Celtic mythology) The patron god of Nîmes during Roman times.


Mellona

(Roman mythology) The goddess of bees, and honey.


Aristaeus

/æɹɪˈsteɪəs/

/æɹɪˈstiːəs/

/əˈɹiːstɪəs/

From Ancient Greek Ἀρισταῖος (Aristaîos, literally “Most Excellent, Most Useful”).

bor

(Greek mythology) A minor god of rustic, rural arts such as beekeeping, herding and hunting.


Tyche

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Τύχη (Túkhē), from τύχη (túkhē, “fortune”). Compare Latin Tychō.

The goddess Tyche was a very important deity in the Hellenistic world.¹⁵ "She was not blind chance, but some order of affairs that men could not comprehend."¹⁹ Tyche played her part in great events and in small ones[…].

1933, Richard Mansfield Haywood, Studies on Scipio Africanus, Johns Hopkins Press, page 12:

2000, Terence L. Donaldson (editor), Religious Rivalries and the Struggle for Success in Caesarea Maritima, Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, page 113,
At Caesarea, several gems depicting a Tyche, as well as a possible statue of Tyche found at Caesarea, show attributes of Isis.

(Greek mythology, in the singular) The goddess of luck/fortune; counterpart of the Roman Fortuna.


Stheno

Ancient Greek Σθενώ (Sthenṓ, literally “forceful”).

uder

(Greek mythology) The eldest and most ferocious of the gorgons.


Pistis

From Ancient Greek Πίστις (Pístis) from Ancient Greek πίστις (pístis, “faith, trust”).

(Greek mythology) A goddess personifying trust, faith and trustworthiness, corresponding to Roman Fides.


Dies

(Roman mythology) One of the Protogenoi, the Protogenos personification of day. She is the daughter of fellow Protogenoi, Nox/Nyx (Night) and Erebus (Darkness), and sister-wife of Aether. She is the Roman counterpart of Hemera.


manthing

“I left you for dead on that hillside and those puny little manthings would never help one of our kind.”

2005, Ed Greenwood, James M. Ward, Jeff Grubb, We Three Dragons: A Trio of Dragon Tales for the Holiday Season:

The manthings had invaded their home, killing many and forcing them to flee.

2009, Clint Romag, Fury of the Sasquatch:


Twilighter

If you look at the town, and around the ever-increasing number of tourists who have come to take pictures with anything that says “Forks,” you will find signs heralding businesses' support of the Twilight books—irresistible to the voracious Twilighter (as Meyer's fans call themselves).

2010, Tracey Baptise, Stephenie Meyer, Chelsea House, →ISBN, page 47:

A prequel on Carlisle would answer all of these questions and give Twilighters a better understanding of the leader of the Cullen family.

2010, Michelle Pan, Bella Should Have Dumped Edward: Controversial Views & Debates on the Twilight Series, Ulysses Press, →ISBN, page 83:

For one “Twilighter” in particular, the friendships she formed formed helped her through a particularly rough patch, when her husband's kidney failed and he was in need of a transplant.

2014, Michelle Groover, “Twilight and Twitter: An Ethnographic Study”, in Claudia Bucciferro, editor, The Twilight Saga: Exploring the Global Phenomenon, Scarecrow Press, →ISBN, pages 85–86:

(fandom slang) A fan of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight book series or the related films.


Twimom

For "Twilight" fans, the Runaways' iconic power may be difficult to grasp. (And for many of those girls' Twimoms, it may be difficult to remember.)

2010 April 9, Ann Hornaday, “Kristen Stewart has style and substance in hard-rocking 'The Runaways'”, in The Washington Post:

The next six hours consisted of 40-something-year-old TwiMoms who couldn't wait to get a glance of Carlisle, rude people trying to cut in line, and an insane lady bringing her fussy baby who wouldn't stop crying.

2012, Julith Perry, "'Breaking Dawn' renews series", The Mentor (Manhattan High School, Manhattan, Kansas), Volume 100, Issue 11, 27 November 2012, page 6

Even though we're writing legal teens doing legal things, we did get our fair share of shit for being “TwiMoms” writing “TwiPorn.”

2013, Anne Jamison, Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World, BenBella Books, published 2013, →ISBN:

(fandom slang) A mother who likes Stephenie Meyer's Twilight book series or the associated films.


fanpire

The self-proclaimed fanpires gawked, squealed and begged for autographs and photos with the stars.

2008 November 18, Derrik J. Lang, “Fans flock to 'Twilight' premiere in Los Angeles”, in USA Today:

Have you devoured the "Twilight" books? Are you obsessed with Edward? Can you recite the entire "Twilight" movie? Do you have Bella on the brain? Then you just might be a "Twilight" fanpire.

2009 July 16, “An event to sink your teeth into”, in The Charleston Gazette:

That their emotional relationship is foregrounded over sex may also explain why the mothers of Meyer's “fanpires” are great enthusiasts of the books, too.

2012, Victoria Nelson, Gothicka: Vampire Heroes, Human Gods, and the New Supernatural, Harvard University Press, published 2012, →ISBN, page 136:

(fandom slang) A fan of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight book series or the associated films.


Twifan

Naff ending and slow pacing notwithstanding, you can't really call this swoonfest a terrible movie (unless you want to be tweeted to death by Twifans).

2010 April 8, “To tide over the Twi-hards”, in Daily News, South Africa:

There are even goodies, too, for Twifans whose love of cooking is just as strong as their love for vampires and werewolves.

2010, Amanda McGuire Rzicznek, "'Twilight' cookbook adds spice", The BG News (Bowling Green State University), Volume 104, Issue 159, 7 July 2010, page 8

As any Twifan could tell you, long before Snowqueens Icedragon changed some names in her popular fic “Master of the Universe” and published it as Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James, the wank surrounding her, her attitudes, and her relationship to the fandom had already reached epic proportions.


demihuman

No wonder Columbus was dubious. Though perfectly charming, in a Droopy-esque way. it would take a lot of imagination (or desperation) to convert this into a demihuman sex siren.

1986, BBC Wildlife, volumes 4-5, page 393:

Halflings look upon other demihuman and humanoid races as stock for the stew pot.

1991, Roger E. Moore, Dragon Magazine, TSR, →ISBN:

In the AD&D game, humans are more motivated by ambition and the desire for power than the demihuman races are. Thus, humans advance further and more quickly. Demihumans can attain significant levels in certain classes, but they do not ...

1995, David Zeb Cook, Jean Rabe, Warren Spector, Steven E. Schend, Dungeon master guide for the AD&D game, TSR:

In one version we learn that the people who built Nan Madol settled at the site because they were "constantly afraid of the people of the center of Pohnpei," both the various demihuman, cannibalistic creatures and "real people" who resided ...

1995, Isla: A Journal of Micronesian Studies:

... fact from the moment he first lays eyes on the demihuman M'ling, before he has any notion of Moreau or his surgical feats. "I had never beheld such a repulsive and extraordinary face before, and yet — if the contradiction is credible — I ...

2002, Gary Westfahl, George Edgar Slusser, No Cure for the Future: Disease and Medicine in Science Fiction and Fantasy, →ISBN:

We can watch this happen, on page and screen, in werewolves. We can safely say that the werewolf is a widespread figure, not exclusive to European mythology. But it is also not a generic manifestation of the global demihuman.

2009, S. K. Robisch, Wolves and the Wolf Myth in American Literature, University of Nevada Press, →ISBN, page 207:

features of a thousand faces upon that awful head: human faces, demihuman, reptilian, serpentine, batrachian, vulpine. […]and many others for which I have no ready descriptive terms.

2009, Brian Stableford, The Return of the Djinn and Other Black Melodramas, Wildside Press LLC, →ISBN, page 89:

Demihumans, like . . . yourself . . . the vampires . . . orcs, dwarves, trolls, demons, pixies, all of them have a stake in the fate of humanity . . .”

2010, Marc Mattaliano, The Demihuman Archives, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN, page 120:

(fantasy, mythology) A member of a human-like race; in fantasy, sometimes distinguished from the more bestial humanoid races.


Erebos

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἔρεβος (Érebos).

(Greek mythology) Alternative form of Erebus


Eumolpus

Translingual: Eumolpus

(Greek mythology) The son of Poseidon and Chione, who became one of the first priests of Demeter and one of the founders of the Eleusinian Mysteries.


obol

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ὀβολός (obolós) (literally “spit” or “iron rod”). Doublet of obole and pul.

In Classical Athens, there were six obols to one drachma.

(historical) A silver coin of Ancient Greece.


skinwalking

(folklore, mythology) In certain Native American mythologies, the ability to transform into any animal when wearing its pelt.


Fames

(Roman mythology) A goddess who is a personification of famine and hunger. She is the Roman counterpart of Limos.


world egg

2009, David A. Leeming, Kathryn Madden, Stanton Marlan, Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion: L-Z, page 183:

With this shaping of chaos into a world-egg, or earth-sphere, arises then, according to the representation of these cosmogonies, the first being, the 'first-born,' or the first man.
In Africa a Dogon myth says that in the beginning, a world egg divided into two birth sacs, containing sets of twins fathered by the creator god, Amma, on the maternal egg.

1868, Johann Peter Lange, Genesis, Or, the First Book of Moses, page 181:

The Mande people say that in the beginning the creator placed various kinds of seed in the world egg.

2010, David Adams Leeming, Creation Myths of the World: Parts I-II, page 313:

(mythology) A mythological motif, found in the creation myths of many cultures and civilizations, of an egg from which the universe or some primordial being is "hatched".


Xuthus

(Greek mythology) A son of Hellen and Orseis, and founder (through his sons) of the Achaean and Ionian nations.


Óðr

From Proto-Germanic *wōþuz (“rage, manic inspiration, furor poeticus”), from Proto-Indo-European *wet-. Cognate with Old English wod and German Wut.

der

(Norse mythology) In Norse mythology, the husband of Freya and father of Hnoss and Gersemi.


zombocalypse

The makers of "Zombieland" disagree though, and their film is an excellent argument that even the zombocalypse can be funny.

2009, Nate Knife, "'Zombieland' awakens laughter", Clarion (University of Denver), Volume 116, Issue 19, 6 October 2009, page 12

"Dawn of the Dead," the second and arguably best in Romero's canon, depicts survivors that try to wait out the zombocalypse in a monument to consumerism.

2009, Mike Riechers, "Dawn of the Dead", in "Frightful, funny films for Halloween", The Daily Cardinal (University of Wisconsin-Madison), 30 October 2009 - 1 November 2009, page 6

So we all expect that post zombocalypse earth will see us ditch our smartphones, […]

September 2014, Terrence Jarrad, “Hotware”, in PC PowerPlay, number 231, page 78:

(slang, horror) The breakdown of society as a result of a zombie outbreak.


wolfwoman

A female werewolf or female lycanthrope.


ghostling

“That's why I brought you here,” whispered the ghostling next to me. We floated over to a corner. “She ain't leaving her body,” he said.

2008, Linda Alice Dewey, The Ghost Who Would Not Die:

Blink stood next to Knot. The ghostling's lavender eyes widened as his hand gripped Knot's arm.

A small, young, diminutive, or inferior ghost.


Ded Moroz

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Ded Moroz.wav

Borrowed from Russian Дед Моро́з (Ded Moróz, “Old Man Frost”).

bor

A fictional man in Slavic culture who delivers presents to children on New Year's Eve.


Ullr

2013, Samantha-Rae Tuthill, Where Did Old Man Winter, Jack Frost Come From?. Accuweather.com.
"For the Norse mythologies, Ullr was the god of winter. Son of a frost giant, he would rule Asgard in Odin's absence in the winter."

2014, Norse Mythology for Smart People, Ullr
"...Ullr is an excellent archer, hunter, skater, and skier, handsome, warlike, and an especially apt deity to invoke before a duel."

"Ullr is a very old god of the northern lands, so old that by the time the Iron Age Norse myths were written down, not much more was known about him except that he was a god of archery, hunting, and the winter."

2014, Raven Kaldera, Ullr Lord of Winter:

(Norse mythology) An Áss associated with archery and skiing; the stepson of Thor.


sciapod

To the modern viewer, though, it is the weirdness that most enthrals: the rich, demonic and comical features, like the sciapod – a man deploying his single swollen foot to shield himself from the sun.

2012, Simon Garfield, On the Map, Profile Books, page 48:

(Greek mythology) A member of a mythical race of humans living in Africa, who have one single, large foot which they use to shade themselves from the rays of the sun.

ciápode

a member of a mythical African race, who have a single, large foot


dragonlord

"One whom the dragons will speak with," he said, "that is a dragonlord, or at least that is the center of the matter. It's not a trick of mastering the dragons, as most people think. Dragons have no masters. The question is always the same, with a dragon: will he talk to you or will he eat you? If you can count upon his doing the former, and not doing the latter, why then you're a dragonlord."

1970, Ursula K. Le Guin, The Tombs of Atuan:

(fantasy) One who has power over dragons.


Seshat

From the Ancient Egyptian šsꜣ "scribe" + feminine determinative t; šsꜣ.t "female scribe".

Seshat represents the organizational capacity of keeping records—knowledge, information, etc.
Seshat is depicted carrying the reed pen and palette, and records deeds in eternity/space, i.e. memory. As such, Seshat is referred to as: The Enumerator, Lady of Writing(s), Scribe, Head of the House of the Divine Books (Archives), Lady of Builders...

2001, Moustafa Gadalla, Egyptian Divinities: The All Who Are the One, page 50:

The link between the measurement of space and measurement of time is also clear from early periods in the activities of the goddess Seshat, the goddess associated with the foundation ceremony, during which the orientation of buildings was established.

2010, Kate Spence, “Establishing direction in early Egyptian burials and monumental architecture”, in Iain Morley, Colin Renfrew, editors, The Archaeology of Measurement: Comprehending Heaven, Earth and Time in Ancient Societies, page 176:

At least eight separate Egyptologists, in addition to myself, have suggested that the ancient Egyptians directly identified Seshat as a form or aspect of Nebt-het (101).

2010, Tamara L. Siuda, Nebt-het: Lady of the House, 2nd edition, page 14:

The most important of these scenes shows the king leaving his palace with the goddess of writing, Seshat, in order to lay out the foundations for the temple.

2010, Zahi A. Hawass, Wonders of the Horus Temple: The Sound and Light of Edfu, page 8:

(Egyptian mythology) The Egyptian goddess of writing and wisdom, often depicted as a scribe or recordkeeper.


Sokar

(Egyptian mythology) An Ancient Egyptian hawk god of the Memphite necropolis.


Vertumnus

(Roman mythology) The Ancient Roman god of seasons, change, and plant growth, capable of changing his form at will.


Dracula sneeze

From a likening of the positioning of the arm during such a sneeze to stereotypical depictions of the fictional vampire Dracula holding one side of his cape over his face, specifically from Bela Lugosi in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) and Tom Mason (double for Lugosi) in Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959).

Wang also encouraged the use of the "Dracula sneeze," or sneezing into the crease of your elbow as you bring your arm to your face.

2009 September 9, Patrick Cowles, “H1N1 plagues campuses”, in The Daily Titan, volume 85, number 4, California State University, Fullerton, page 3:

Regarding prevention, the school has begun encouraging sick community members to use the “Dracula sneeze,” sneezing into their elbows to avoid getting germs on their hands and then onto doorknobs and plumbing fixtures.

2009, Jeremy B. Merrill & Russell M. Page, "Swine Flu Hogs Campus Spotlight", The Claremont Port Side (Claremont Colleges), Volume 7, Issue 1, October 2009, page 7

Use a closed fist or assume the Dracula sneeze pose to temper germ transmission.

2011, Phineas Mollod, Jason Tesauro, The Modern Gentleman, 2nd Edition: A Guide to Essential Manners, Savvy, and Vice, Ten Speed Press, →ISBN, page 177:

(informal) The act of sneezing into the crook of one's elbow so as to help prevent the spread of germs.

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
Bela Lugosi
Dracula
Plan 9 from Outer Space
Tom Mason (actor, born 1920)


little folk

(folklore, fantasy) Small magical humanoid creatures, such as elves, leprechauns, and fairies.


Krampus

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Krampus.wav

A beast in the folklore of Alpine countries, said to punish misbehaving children during the Christmas season.


Agartha

(mythology) A legendary city said to be located in the Earth's core.


smallfolk

(fantasy, mythology) Small humanoid creatures, such as gnomes and halflings.


Hawaiki

Borrowed from Maori Hawaiki, from Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *Sawaiki, Doublet of Hawaii and Savai'i.

(mythology) The original home of the Māori, before they travelled across the sea to New Zealand. It also features as the underworld in many Māori stories.


Midgardian

(Norse mythology) an inhabitant of Midgard


Midgardian

en-adj

Midgardian (comparative more Midgardian, superlative most Midgardian)

more Midgardian (comparative)
most Midgardian (superlative)


Asgardian

(Norse mythology) an inhabitant of Asgard


Asgardian

Asgardian (comparative more Asgardian, superlative most Asgardian)

more Asgardian (comparative)
most Asgardian (superlative)


Alectryon

And there he lingered till the crowing cock, / The Alectryon of the farmyard and the flock, / Sang his aubade with lusty voice and clear, / To tell the sleeping world that dawn was near.

1873 August, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “[I. Tales of a Wayside Inn.] The Student’s Tale. Emma and Eginhard.”, in Aftermath, Boston, Mass.: James R[ipley] Osgood and Company, late Ticknor & Fields, and Fields, Osgood, & Co., →OCLC, page 27:

(Greek mythology) A youth charged by Ares to stand guard outside his door while the god indulged in illicit love with Aphrodite. He fell asleep and was transformed into a rooster as punishment.


Arthuriana

From Arthurian + -ana or Arthur + -iana.

This chapter deals with the most complex geographic site in Arthuriana because of the intricate array of possibilities offered by clues, some supporting a link between Glastonbury and Arthur […]

1996, Frank D. Reno, The Historic King Arthur, page 221:

(Arthurian legend) Things relating to King Arthur.


Eumenides

From Ancient Greek Εὐμενίδες (Eumenídes, “gracious ones”).


Philomela

From Latin Philomela, from Ancient Greek Φιλομήλη (Philomḗlē), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) + μῆλον (mêlon, “apple; fruit; sheep”), but folk-etymologized since at least Ovid's time as "lover of song".

affix

(Greek mythology) the sister of Procne who is raped and mutilated by her brother-in-law Tereus and supposedly transformed into a bird by the gods.


Mímir

From Old Norse Mímir, meaning “the rememberer” or “the wise one”.

(Norse mythology) A figure in Norse mythology renowned for his knowledge and wisdom, beheaded during the Æsir-Vanir War, after which Odin receives secret knowledge and counsel from the severed head.


Agarthan

en-adj

Agarthan (comparative more Agarthan, superlative most Agarthan)

more Agarthan (comparative)
most Agarthan (superlative)

(mythology) Of or relating to the legendary city of Agartha.


Agarthan

(mythology) A native or inhabitant of Agartha.


Laelaps

(Greek mythology) A dog who never failed to catch what he was hunting.


Levana

(Roman mythology) An Ancient Roman goddess involved in rituals relating to childbirth.


merfriend

“I told you that you are the best merfriend ever. Let's go sit with her and make her feel at home.”

2012, Debbie Dadey, Trouble at Trident Academy, Aladdin, →ISBN, page 76:

Helen asked Eleni, “Would you like to join me and my merfriends on an adventure?”

2014, Despina Karfis, The Magical Pool, Trafford Publishing, →ISBN, page 7:

“I love singing, and I'm pretty good says my, umm, merfriend, if that's even a word.”

2015, Jillian Verbicky, The Tail of an Angel, Xlibris, →ISBN:


merkid

Here's hoping they get married and spend their days swimming in the sun, merkids in tow.

2009, "Q&A with Aimee Friedman", in Aimee Friedman, Ocean of Secrets, Scholastic Children's Books (2012), unnumbered page

Humpback whales were huge. All they had to do to swallow a mermaid was open their gigantic mouths wide. She was the smallest merkid in their class.

2012, Debbie Dadey, Whale of a Tale, Aladdin, →ISBN, pages 16–17:

Every merkid in the entire gymnasium seemed to be holding their breaths.

2015, Janet Gurtler, Cora's Decision, Stone Arch Books, →ISBN, page 30:


mersister

In the 2008 Broadway version of The Little Mermaid, the song, by Alan Menken (music) and Howard Ashman (lyric), was also performed by the mermaids (or mersisters).

2009, Thomas S. Hischak, Mark A. Robinson, The Disney Song Encyclopedia, The Scarecrow Press, →ISBN, page 40:

Remember, these are the people who kidnapped us and were going to cut out mine^([sic]) and my mersisters' vocal cords!

2012, Robert E. Thornsberry, The Accidental Mermaid, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 206:

Now that the mersisters were gone, that seemed more important than ever.

2013, Catherine Hapka, Mermaids in the Backyard, Random House, →ISBN, page 75:

(fantasy) The female sibling of a merperson.


merfamily

"The land fairies say the pollution in the cove has been making all the sea creatures sick. I imagine that includes the merfamily. […]

2008, Donna Varnes, The Cove, Xulon Press, →ISBN, page 271:

Internally, the floor had been built up with flat rocks, therefore, even at high tide, it never contained more than two feet of water, and in the evening the entrance was always damned up by large boulders so that any incoming water did not disturb the sleeping merfamily.

2012, Annie McLeod, Man or Beast, Glass Jar Publishing (2012), page 54

To visit the undersea realm of Artur, the High Prince, and the rest of the royal merfamily, she has to fin it to the Cayman Islands.

2012, MaryJanice Davidson, Swimming Without a Net, Jove (2007), back cover blurb


merwitch

[…] You see, we have been hunting the merwitch's slimy giant eel for many years now and always fall short of destroying it. […]

2013, Jessica Eppley, The Book of Siavon: Vol. 2: The Tail of Murias, Booktango:

"Sharks are unique, temperamental, always have been. Now they're under the control of Calandra, a particularly nasty merwitch whose goal is to rule the oceans."

2013, Missy Fleming, Into the Deep, Fire and Ice, →ISBN, page 59:

The merwitch slowly opened her eyes.

2014, Mary Man-Kong, Magical Mermaid Adventure, Random House Children's Books, →ISBN:


Endymion

Endymion
Endymion (poem)
John Keats
Sebastiano Ricci

The heavenly bodies may keep their secrets two or three thousand years yet; but one or other of them will betray them to some wakeful favorite, some Endymion beyond Latmos, perhaps in regions undiscovered, certainly in uncalculated times.

a. 1864, Walter Savage Landor, Pericles and Aspasia, Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, published 1905, page 82:

(Greek mythology) A man described variously as a handsome Aeolian shepherd, hunter, or king, who was loved by Selene or Artemis (the two being often conflated) and was said to rule and live at Olympia in Elis, as well as venerated and said to reside in Caria, southwest Asia Minor, on Mount Latmus.


Aramaneak

Transliteration of Old Armenian Արամանեակ (Aramaneak).

translit

(Armenian mythology) A legendary patriarch of the Armenian nation, the eldest son of Hayk.


Uther

From Middle English Uther, from Middle Welsh Uthyr.

(Arthurian legend) The father of King Arthur.


cowalker

(mythology) A phantom or astral body deemed to be separable from the physical body and capable of acting independently; a doppelganger.


Spuffy

In contrast, the Spuffy 'shipper may be an older, more highly-educated career professional, but she must use the Internet to access the fanfiction she desires to read, because it is not available anywhere else.

2013, Mary Kirby-Diaz, “Ficcers and 'Shippers: A Love Story”, in Jennifer K. Stuller, editor, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Intellect Books, →ISBN, page 44:

Spuffy—as Spike/Buffy are often called—changed all that.

2013, Michelle Sagara West, “For The Love Of Riley”, in Glenn Yeffeth, editor, Seven Seasons of Buffy: Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors Discuss Their Favorite Television Show, BenBella Books, →ISBN, page 71:

Relations between these viewers – who had come to self-identify as 'Spike-Buffy relationship fans' or 'Spuffy shippers' for short – and the writers of the show reached their nadir at the end of season six, when the writers decided to show the Spuffy shippers just how wrong they were by writing a scene in which Spike attempts to rape Buffy: […]

2014, Joseph Crawford, The Twilight of the Gothic?: Vampire Fiction and the Rise of the Paranormal Romance, University of Wales Press, →ISBN, pages 129–130:

(fandom slang) The ship of characters Spike and Buffy Summers from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Bangel

My only hope at this point is that SMG refuses to appear on Angel in the future, thus saving us from the inevitable Bangel ending for that series.

2003 May 14, Chris Zabel, “Re: How Does Joss Whedon Feel...”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

She never seemed to have any trouble writing Bangel or Spuffy scenes.

2004 November 1, EBailey140 [username], “Re: What is it about Riley...”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

And we get Andrew's definitive judgement on the Bangel versus Spuffy controversy, […]

2009 March 13, Stephen Tempest, “Review of BtVS 8.23 'Predators and Prey”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

(fandom slang) The ship of characters Buffy Summers and Angel from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Steroline

(fandom slang) The romantic pairing of the characters Stefan Salvatore and Caroline Forbes from the American television series The Vampire Diaries.


cosmic egg

Some say that Amma was the cosmic egg and fertilized himself.

2009, David A. Leeming, Kathryn Madden, Stanton Marlan, Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion: L-Z, page 183:


thread of life

(Greek mythology) A metaphor for a person’s lifespan, as generated by Clotho, measured out by Lachesis, and terminated by Atropos.

livstråd

metaphor for the lifespan of an individual


serpopard

(Egyptian mythology, Mesopotamian mythology) A mythical animal resembling a serpent-necked leopard, known from Ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian depictions.


Nephthys

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Νέφθυς (Néphthus), from Egyptian nbt-ḥwt, O9 t:H8

(Egyptian mythology) An ancient Egyptian goddess, the wife of Set and sister of Isis, Osiris, and Set, worshiped as a protective goddess and nurse of the pharaoh and associated with funerary rites and the transition from life to death.

Νέφθυς

ancient Egyptian funerary and protective goddess


adlet

Adlets are wont to hunt on all fours, and so were born stories of giant black dogs that accost travelers.

2006, Aaron Rosenberg, Various, Chosen RPG, Impressions, →ISBN:

An adlet is part-human and part-canine, […]. They can be cannibals, eating other dogs. When they first hunt prey they go for the victim's throat and drink the fresh blood.

2012, Lisa Regan, Vampires, Werewolves and Zombies, Amber Books Ltd, →ISBN, page 71:

... that one of their ancestors has been married to a dog and that they have canine blood in their veins. This does not mean, of course, that they can transform themselves into an Adlet or that they enjoy any special protection from its attentions.

2016, Dr. Bob Curran, Andy Paciorek, The Carnival Of Dark Dreams, →ISBN, page 56:

"We could mate with humans, but then we'd have to expose our existence, and there's no guarantee that the baby will be an adlet." She cleared her throat. "Of course, I'd love a human baby just as much as an adlet, but we need more halflings […]"
[…]
The dogs mated with other dogs and stayed in their canine form, but the halflings mated with both humans and dogs and so the adlets continued to spread across the land, always evolving. Some adlet families are more human than dog, ...

2019, Laura Greenwood, Skye MacKinnon, Under the Ice, Peryton Press:

(cryptozoology, mythology) A cryptid in Inuit mythology and folklore in Canada and Greenland, a tall, dog-legged humanoid (sometimes identified with inland Native Americans).


Ywain

A knight of the Round Table and the son of King Urien in Arthurian legend.


earth-drake

From Middle English *erthedrake, from Old English eorþdraca, equivalent to earth + drake (“dragon”).

(Anglo-Saxon mythology, fantasy) Alternative form of earthdrake


lares and penates

A calque of Latin lares et penates. See lar and penates.

The particular gods of the household were its lares and penates.

1995, Antony Kamm, The Romans: An Introduction, page 87:

(Roman mythology) The household deities of ancient Rome, respectively overseeing the family and its house and storerooms.


Danaus

From Latin Danaus, from Ancient Greek Δᾰνᾰός (Dănăós).

(Greek mythology) a mythical king who founded Argos


Enbilulugugal

(Mesopotamian mythology) One of the three aspects of the god Enbilulu, as the power presiding over growth and abundance.


Icarus

From Latin Īcarus, from Ancient Greek Ἴκαρος (Íkaros).

(Greek mythology) A Greek mythological figure, son of Daedalus, who escaped from the Cretan labyrinth of Knossos by flying with wings made from feathers and wax, but flew too near to the sun, which melted the wax in the wings, so he fell down and drowned in the Aegean Sea.


vimana

(mythology) A mythological flying palace or chariot described in Hindu texts and Sanskrit epics.


Nausicaa

/nɔːˈsɪkeɪə/

From Latin Nausicaa, from Ancient Greek Ναυσικάα (Nausikáa).

But no catastrophe occurred. I lived to watch on a strange shore a black and youthful Nausicaa, with a joyous train of attendant maidens, carrying baskets of linen to a clear stream overhung by the heads of slender palm-trees.

1904–1906, Joseph Conrad, chapter XXXIX, in The Mirror of the Sea, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y., London: Harper & Brothers, published October 1906, →OCLC:

(Greek mythology) A princess who aids Odysseus.


Zalmoxis

(mythology) A divinity among the Getae, an ancient people of the lower Danube.


billow maiden

(mythology) Any of the nine daughters of the sea-god Ran in Norse mythology.


Warharmi

From the figure's name in Yuman languages (Yuma, Kumeyaay, etc).

(mythology) An ambiguously gendered figure in Yuman (Kumeyaay, Yuma, etc) mythology who brought the Yumans seeds, the techniques of agriculture, and the tradition of painting oneself before war.


Nandi

The Shiva temple […] had the requisite ten or twelve steps, a platform, and a Nandi.

2015, Tridip Suhrud, translating Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, Sarasvatichandra I, Orient BlackSwan 2015, p. 3

(Hindu mythology) The name of a bull used as a mount by the god Shiva, or a representation of this bull.


lamassu

Learned borrowing from Akkadian 𒀭𒆗 (lamassu).

lbor

An Assyrian protective deity, often depicted as having the head of a human, the body of an ox or lion, and the wings of a bird.


deadland

After the feverish days over deadland trails, — The repose of the gray-veiled and quiet-eyed twilight, The shimmering haze of the blue mountain valley, And the tranquil blue deep of the pool

1920, Lew Sarett, Many Many Moons: A Book of Wilderness Poems, page 46:

To return to the deadland of desolation and desert, to choke in its dust, to be lashed in the face with its wind, to feel a loneliness of time and space, a loneliness of emptiness, […]

1964, Michael Yatron, The Lunatic, the Lover, and the Poet: A Novel, page 51:

He runs out of gas, and back on the ground meets up with a girl who is motoring through the deadland to meet her boss in Phoenix for some obscure technocratic purpose.

Within that deadland lies Kurash Qwellinir, the Shattered Hills.

1981, Stephen R. Donaldson, The power that preserves, →ISBN, page 390:

These must be the real deadlands. Here, there is no new growth to camouflage what the wars have done.

2005, Ellen Dee Davidson, Stolen Voices, →ISBN, page 99:

Wasteland; a desert or other place that does not support life.

Does the hideous famine that gnaws the entrails with fiery fangs and burns up the wrenched and tortured tissues till the land sickens with its burden of deadland dying—does that show His pity?

1905, Frederick C Vernon-Harcourt, From Stage to Cross: The Record of a Rolling Stone, page 236:

A band of iron fastens around his neck, a long chain drags him to the ground, pulling him away from his people to the deadland of the south — to the land of strangers, unknown and terrifying.

Nations that imprison, torture, assassinate, or drive their writers into exile fall into the deadlands of their own darkness.

2011, Ben Okri, A Time For New Dreams, →ISBN:

I could not find out whether the victims are intoxicated before execution : it is highly probable, as the African's, and especially the Yoruban's, object is to send these messengers to deadland in the best of tempers.

1866, Leone Levi, Annals of British Legislation: Digest of blue books - Volume 2, page 222:

A conquering race would scarcely credit that its heroes would, after death, betake themselves to the deadland of the beaten and enslaved aborigines.

1946, Lewis Spence, British Fairy Origins, page 77:

“Do not do it,” said the god, “You cannot escape Ungit by going to the deadlands, for she is there also."

They feared lest passing souls, which had just quitted the bodies of dying people, should enter their huts and carry off the souls of the inmates to deadland.

1990, Sir James George Frazer, The Golden Bough: Taboo and the perils of the soul, page 70:

[…] the unseen world of the spirits and ancestors. […] as messengers bearing questions to the "deadland" of royal ancestors.

2000, Francesca Piqué, Leslie H. Rainer, Palace Sculptures of Abomey: History Told on Walls, page 12:

The afterlife, especially in belief systems that do not include reward or punishment such as heaven and hell.


Rudra

(Vedic religion) A Rigvedic deity, associated with wind or storm and the hunt.


Chelone

From Ancient Greek χελώνη (khelṓnē, “tortoise”).

uder

(Greek mythology) A woman who became the tortoise as punishment for disobeying a summons from the gods.


Fintan

(Irish mythology) In the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, the father of Cethern.


Danu

Learned borrowing from Old Irish, from a reconstructed nominative form of the genitive Danann (also spelled Donand or Danand).
In particular, Danann is attested in the term Tuatha Dé Danann, which is typically translated "tribe of Danu" but used as the collective name for certain Irish gods (or, more prosaically, the people of a particular wave of immigration to Ireland, in the traditional history).
The etymology is controversial and has been debated since the 19th century. Some scholars identify Danu with the goddess Anu, perhaps as a contraction of día Anu ("goddess Anu").

This [battle] appears in Celtic history as that in which the Tuatha dè Danann, the tribes of the goddess Danu fought and conquered the Fir Bolg on Midsummer's Day.

1897, The Westminster Review, Volume 148: July-December 1897, page 17:

The old poets thought that the tribes of the goddess Danu were of a perfect beauty, and the creators of beautiful people and beautiful arts.

1897, W. B. Yeats, “The Tribes of Danu”, in The New Review, Volume 17: July-December 1897, William Heinemann, page 550:

1987, Peter Alderson Smith, W. B. Yeats and the Tribes of Danu: Three Views of Ireland's Fairies, C. Smythe, page 52,
She may be the same as Danu, or she may be the same as the Morrigu.

(Irish mythology) A hypothesised goddess of Irish mythology.


werejaguar

The rain god appears as a werejaguar, part human, part snarling beast.

A pottery figure of a Mexican god who was thought to assume the shapes of many animals. Here he is shown as a werejaguar.

1973, Nancy Garden, Werewolves, Lippincott (1973), page 115 (image caption)

Before your eyes, the shaman has transformed himself into a werejaguar!

2008, Buried Treasures: Young Explorers' Guide, QA International, →ISBN, page 33:

(fiction, mythology) A shapeshifter who can assume the form of a jaguar.


Enkidu

From Akkadian 𒂗𒆠𒆕 (EN.KI.DÙ, literally “Enki's creation”).

der

Companion of Gilgamesh in the poem Epic of Gilgamesh from ancient Mesopotamia.


Grendel

(mythology) A monster or giant slain by Beowulf in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem.


lightning bird

A mythological creature in South African tribal folklore: a large, vampiric, black and white bird that can summon thunder and lightning and is said to consume blood and to seduce women in the form of a man.


zompire

He'd wanted to clear each casino out from the zompire infestations, but knew he'd never be able to do it alone.

2012, Alexia Purdy, Disarming, Lyrical Lit. Publishing (2012), unnumbered page

“Who knows? I've never actually dealt with zombies before. If I get bit ... it might turn me into a zompire!” he said, only half jokingly.

2013, Lorraine Kennedy, Skinwalkers: Song of Wolves: Volume 1, unnumbered page:

Behind her, ten other zompires snarled at me, baring their own thorny fangs.

2015, James Leck, After Dark, Kids Can Press, →ISBN, page 198:


veche

From Old East Slavic вѣче (věče, “council”)
or modern Russian ве́че (véče)

(paganism) a modern assembly of Rodnovers, atavistically based off the medieval veche.


Autolycus

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Αὐτόλυκος (Autólukos).

(Greek mythology) In Ancient Greek mythology, a son of Hermes and Chione. A successful robber, he was capable of changing his own form and that of the goods he stole.


dragonkin

Dragonkin have the innate ability to detect magic at will, as a free action. They have an overpowering desire to acquire magic items, and target characters who possess these items in preference to others. If possible, a dragonkin will grab a magic item from its opponent and flee with it, taking the item back to its cave.

2000, “Appendix 4: New Monsters”, in Pool of Radiance: Attack on Myth Drannor (Forgotten Realms), Wizards of the Coast, →ISBN, page 84, column 1:

Half and quarter blood dragonkin have very obvious physical differences, as well as many abilities and attributes of their dragon ancestors. Eighth blood dragonkin will have some physical traits of the dragon as well as some attributes.

2015, Heather Gunn, Aspect Core Rulebook, FC 2015 SC (page 30):

(fantasy) A person who is partly descended from dragon(s).

In October 2003, a dragonkin by the calling Starblade created a thread on otherkin in a Livejournal community for debates. The thread began with Starblade giving his personal views of being a “dragon spiritually” and so thus would fit under the term otherkin which then spawned a large debate over otherkin.

2014, House of Chimeras, “History of the Draconic Community - 2001 - present”, in The Chimeras Library, published 2015:


Hayagriva

(Hinduism) An avatar of the Lord Vishnu in Hinduism.


Clytemnestra

From Latin Clytaemnēstra, Ancient Greek Κλυταιμνήστρα (Klutaimnḗstra).

Κλυταιμνήστρα

(Greek mythology) wife of Agamemnon, whom she killed after the Trojan War, whereupon was killed herself by their son Orestes


Bubastis

Borrowed from Latin Bubastis, from Βούβαστις (Boúbastis), from pr (“house”) + bꜣstt (“Bastet”).

1861, Bubastis, entry in W. Smith (editor), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Volume 1, John Murray, page 515,
But it seems more natural to suppose here, as in other instances of Egyptian religion, that the worship of Bubastis was originally the worship of the cat itself, which was subsequently refined into a mere symbol of the goddess. The fact that the ancients identify Bubastis with Artemis or Diana is to us a point of great difficulty, since the information we possess respecting the Egyptian goddess presents little or no resemblance between the two divinities.

(Egyptian mythology) The goddess Bastet.


Thyonian

en-adj

Thyonian (comparative more Thyonian, superlative most Thyonian)

more Thyonian (comparative)
most Thyonian (superlative)

(Greek mythology) Of or relating to Thyone.


Spillow

Well, I'm beginning a campaign for Spike and Willow in 02. Wanna join for Spillow?

2002 October 10, Stephen Weick, “Re: The Bright side of Deep Down.”, in alt.tv.angel (Usenet):

Spillow is best. Spillow the drinkin' & gal-chasin' pair. They won't put Willow with a man romantically, I promise you that.

2002 October 10, Rose, “Re: Spike and Willow (spoilers for Same Time)”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

You're all forgetting Spillow

2005 July 16, Yelps [username], “Re: What Happens When Buffy Is Done Baking?”, in alt.tv.angel (Usenet):

(fandom slang) The ship of characters Spike and Willow Rosenberg from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Spander

And lord knows, if you want there's plenty of Spuffy and Spander to last a lifetime.

2004 April 29, Kathryn Burlingham, “Re: You want fries with that?”, in soc.motss (Usenet):

Yeah, the Spander shippers really got off on that one.

2006 September 10, Don Sample, “Re: AOQ Review 7-2: "Beneath You"”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Spander 'shippers prefer long NC-17 rated stories, regardless of genre.

2013, Mary Kirby-Diaz, “Ficcers and 'Shippers: A Love Story”, in Jennifer K. Stuller, editor, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Intellect Books, →ISBN, page 46:

(fandom slang) The ship of characters Spike and Xander Harris from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


neckbiter

From neck + biter, likely after the pattern of ankle-biter.

With Welcome to the Rileys in the can awaiting release, Stewart is already back into the world of neckbiters and werewolves.

2009 April 4, Amy Longsdorf, “Kristen Stewart: Still indie at heart”, in Toronto Star:


Chakrapani

Transliteration of Sanskrit चक्रपाणि (cakrapāṇi, “chakra-handed”); ultimately from चक्र (cakra, “chakra”) + पाणि (pāṇi, “hand”).

translit

Name of Vishnu, bearer of the Sudarshana Chakra.


Chitragupta

A Hindu god assigned with the task of keeping complete records of actions of human beings on the earth.


kinnari

It’s a small sculpture in the form of a bird with the head of a woman, a type of mythical creature known as a kinnari.

2015 September 24, Ken Johnson, “Review: ‘Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms’”, in New York Times:


kinnara

Transliteration of Sanskrit किन्नर (kinnara).

(Indian mythology) A celestial lover and musician, half-human and either half-horse or half-bird.


Fama

(Roman mythology) The Roman equivalent of the Greek Pheme, a personification of fame and renown.


Bhavani

A Hindu goddess, Durga in her amiable form.


Kamakshi

Borrowed from Sanskrit कामाक्षी (kāmākṣī).


gytrash

(mythology) A legendary black dog (or sometimes a horse or mule) said to haunt lonely roads in northern England and lead people astray.


Ixtab

(mythology) The Yucatec Mayan goddess of suicide, represented as a dead woman with a rope around her neck.


Prester John

(mediaeval folklore) A legendary Christian king of a distant Eastern or African kingdom.


Typhonomachy

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Τῡφωνομᾰχία (Tūphōnomăkhía), from Τῡφῶν (Tūphôn) + μάχη (mákhē, “battle, fight”).

bor

(Greek mythology) The battle between Zeus and the fearsome monster Typhon


Eurybia

(Greek mythology) A sea goddess in Ancient Greek mythology.


chindi

According to Navajo beliefs, a harmful ghost that leaves a person's body when they die and may remain around their possessions.


Aesculapian snake

en-noun

Aesculapian snake (plural Aesculapian snakes)

A European species of nonvenomous snake, Zamenis longissimus, associated with Asclepius (Roman counterpart: Aesculapius) in Ancient Greek mythology.


werewolfess

I'm just an insignificant bard, prey to an evil werewolfess, who has been robbed of my belt

2004, Melody Tiamat, The Dragon's Bard 2: Land's End, page 196:


hell-born

en-adj

hell-born (comparative more hell-born, superlative most hell-born)

more hell-born (comparative)
most hell-born (superlative)


Buffyfic

en-noun

Buffyfic (countable and uncountable, plural Buffyfics)

Also, this is, amazingly enough, my first ever Buffyfic, so be kind.

2001 January 17, vicpusateri [username], “Fic: Xander Steps Up [1/1]”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer.creative (Usenet):

I'll probably be switching back and forth between this and a Buffyfic I'm writing, but there shouldn't be any more huge gaps *crossing fingers*

2002 August 12, Katie M, “See No Evil, See No Good (Part 24/?)”, in alt.tv.er.creative (Usenet):

The first Buffyfic I ever read was set in the Bronze: Changing Hands (I think that was the title).

2004 March 1, MSey [username], “Re: FIC Stepping Out 1/1 Buffy/Angel PG”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer.creative (Usenet):

(countable, fandom slang) A fanfic based on the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Twific

Finally, in the third section, we discuss Bella's enhanced agency in Twifics in which authors give her a desiring gaze that is not limited to Edward.

2011, Malin Isaksson, Maria Lindgren Leavenworth, “Gazing, initiating, desiring: Alternative constructions of agency and sex in Twifics”, in Mariah Larsson, Ann Steiner, editors, Interdisciplinary Approaches to Twilight: Studies in Fiction, Media and a Contemporary Cultural Experience, Nordic Academic Press, →ISBN, page 128:

Regarding to a huge number of Twifics, it is impossible to make some general claims about them because the genre and the level of originality depend on the skills and age of an individual writer.

2012, Eva Strýčková, "How the Vampire in a Volvo Ran Over the Prince on a White Horse: The 'Twilight Saga' and its Influence on the Phenomenon of Vampires", thesis submitted to Tomas Bata University, page 40

Shades obviously riffs on that story as well as on other popular Twifics.

2013, Anne Jamison, Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World, BenBella Books, →ISBN:

(fandom slang) A fanfic based on the Twilight novel series and the associated films.


Xanderista

I used to be a major Xanderista. But this season, he's bugged me a lot.

1999 April 11, QueenChase [username], “Re: Who does Xander Love?”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

Victoria P. is a staunch Xanderista, and will take Xander's part in almost any discussion, even when she knows he is wrong.

2000 June 7, vicpusateri [username], “Re: OT: Challenge to Regulars”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

I recall that Xanderistas did react in the way you describe, even coining the term "Xander Slander".

2003 February 11, Rose, “Re: So Xander has (Spoilers for "First Date")”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

(Buffy the Vampire Slayer fandom slang) A fan of the character Xander Harris from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.


Angelista

Most of the rabid Angelistas have defended his hiding as nothing more than an issue of self-protection against Buffy's fantasy of Angel being staked by Giles, and yet in "Amends," Angel himself finally decided it would be better to die than to ever pose a threat again.

1999 April 6, Micky DuPree, “Re: Is Marti Noxon a man-hating sadist?”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

I'm an Angelista who likes Xander too, but Xander irritates me occasionally so I can still go dualistic from time to time. ;-)

1999 May 14, DesertRoaz [username], “Re: EW article about Angel's show”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

The split was between the Angelistas and the Xanderistas.

2002 December 2, William George Ferguson, “Re: Buffy fan subgroups”, in alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer (Usenet):

(Buffy the Vampire Slayer fandom slang) A fan of the character Angel from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.


Harpocrates

From Ancient Greek Ἁρποκράτης (Harpokrátēs), from Egyptian ḥr-pꜣ-ẖrd, from ḥr (“Horus”) + pꜣ (“the”) + ẖrd (“child”).

(Greek mythology) The god of silence, secrets and confidentiality.

Roman goddess of trust and confidentiality


three sisters

A calque from an Iroquoian language, compare Mohawk áhsen nikontatenò:sen, Oneida áshʌnaɂtekutahnú·tele, and Onondaga ahsę́ naˀdegųdęhnų́·dæ·ˀ.
First attested in 1850 in the context of Iroquoian mythology (see quote below). Use in reference to the plants themselves first attested in the 1890s (see also below).

Perhaps the most beautiful conception in the mythology of the Iroquois, is that in relation to the Three Sisters, the Spirit of Corn, the Spirit of Beans, and the Spirit of Squashes.

1850 December 14, “The Iroquois Confederation”, in Evert A. Duyckinck, George L. Duyckinck, editors, The Literary World, volume 7, number 202, quoting Lewis H. Morgan, League of the Ho-dé-no-sau-nee, or Iroquois, New York, page 474:

They used to tell of three sisters who lived in the gardens, and watched over the corn, beans and squashes. We know that these vegetables live in the same soil; and the Indians said it was because the three sisters loved to be together, and never quarreled.

1895, Dorothy Tanner, “The Things of the Garden”, in Legends from the Red Man's Forest, Chicago: A. Flanagan, page 69:

(obsolete, Iroquois mythology) The spirits or gods of corn, beans, and squash considered collectively.


Aidos

(Greek mythology) The goddess or personification of humility, modesty.


Chakradhar

From Sanskrit चक्रधर (cakradhara), literally "discus-bearer".


caladrius

From Medieval Latin caladrius, from Byzantine Greek χαλαδριός (khaladriós), from Ancient Greek χαραδριός (kharadriós).

(mythology) A mythical bird that had healing powers.


Ephialtes

From Ancient Greek Ἐφιάλτης (Ephiáltēs).

Éphialtès

either the ancient Greek statesman or a mythological Giant


world to come

Translation of Hebrew הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא (ha'olám habá, literally “the coming world”).

der

הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא

(Judaism) The Jewish afterlife or mythic future, usually thought to occur after the coming of the Messiah, in which the righteous are rewarded for their good deeds and the wicked punished for their evil deeds


afairyist

From a- + fairy + -ist, based on atheist.

But consider this: your typical atheist does not believe in fairies, goblins, sprites, water nymphs, demons, angels, ghosts or elves either. Why not call him an 'afairyist', or an 'agoblinist', or an 'anymphist', and so endlessly on?

2010 March 30, A. C. Grayling, Ideas That Matter: The Concepts That Shape the 21st Century, Basic Books, →ISBN, page 38:

Nobody can actually say for certain that anything doesn't exist, but I'm an atheist in the same way as I am an aleprechaunist and an afairyist and an apinkunicornist.

2019 February 24, Dawkins on Religion, spoken by Richard Dawkins, via Al Jazeera:

(very rare, humorous) A person who does not believe in fairies.


Acoetes

(Greek mythology, Roman mythology) One of several mythological characters.

One of several mythological characters.
An attendant of Bacchus.

One of several mythological characters.
The father of Laocoön.

A Theban character in Statius’s Thebaid.


Tiki

(mythology) The first human, in Polynesian mythology.


Sutekh

From Egyptian sw-W-t:x-A40 (swtḫ), a New Kingdom variant of s-t:X (stẖ).

(Egyptian mythology) An ancient Egyptian god, variously described as the god of chaos, the god of thunder and storms, or the god of destruction.


Pazuzu

Learned borrowing from Akkadian 𒉺𒍪𒍪 (Pazūzu).

lbor

(mythology) In Assyrian and Babylonian mythology, the king of the demons of the wind, often depicted as a combination of diverse animal and human parts.


Magonia

(mythology) A cloud realm from which felonious aerial sailors were said to come in flying ships, according to an ancient treatise against weather magic by the Carolingian bishop Agobard of Lyon.


Nüwa

zh-l

女媧／女娲 (Nǚwā)

The first sovereign was Fuxi, the heavenly sovereign, and first ancestor of 100 emperors. His marriage to his sister, Nüwa, balanced yin and yang.

2008, Essential Visual History Of World Mythology, National Geographic Society, →ISBN, page 334:

(Chinese mythology) a goddess who repaired heaven and created the Earth


Round Table

Then, after a while, King Arthur said: "Let us go and see if, haply, this youth's name is marked upon any of the seats of the Round Table, for I think it should be there."

1905, Howard Pyle, The Story of the Champions of the Round Table, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, page 21:

(Arthurian legend) King Arthur's table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate, all having equal status since the table has no head.


lilith

[A] Mandaic specimen from Kutha (BM 91715) which contains two independent incantations separated by a line: a historiola relating the expulsion of a particular lilith and the report of a dream purportedly dreamt by the client[.]

2004, The Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society, volume 29, page 31:

It describes the liliths who are divorced with these words: “naked are you sent forth, nor are you clad, with your hair disheveled and let fly behind your backs.” And indeed, the drawing of the lilith depicts her as naked[.]

2013, Practicing Gnosis: Ritual, Magic, Theurgy and Liturgy, page 384:

A drawing and a few inscriptions indicate the appearance of a lilith, as a young naked woman with long dishevelled hair and prominent breasts and genitals […].

2017, Ronald Hutton, The Witch, Yale University Press, published 2018, page 68:

(mythology) A type of female Mesopotamian demon, typically seen as coming to men in dreams and as endangering women during pregnancy or childbirth.


Rhene

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ῥήνη (Rhḗnē).

bor+

the paramour of King Oïleus of Locris and the mother of either or neither of his sons Medon and Ajax.

Rene

nymph, paramour of Locrian king Oïleus, disputed mother by him of Medon or Ajax

an oread of Mount Cyllene, lover of Hermes and the mother by him of Saon of Samothrace.

Rene

oread of Mouth Cyllene, lover of Hermes, mother by him of Samothracian Saon


Igraine

(Arthurian legend) The mother of King Arthur.


Niniane

(Arthurian legend) A priestess in Arthurian legend who succeeded Viviane as Lady of the Lake.


purging place

Originally as a calque or translation of various Latin or Spanish terms.

Is this, said I, the Papists purging place?

1603, Elizabeth Melville, Ane Godlie Dreame, l. 262:

A place where purging occurs, particularly:

(Christianity, now rare) The place where the soul is purged of sin: Purgatory.


Purgatory

(Christianity) An intermediate state after death in which some of those ultimately destined for Heaven must first undergo purification.


marilith

A marilith can also constrict with her deadly tail. If the tail hits in combat, it wraps around a victim, automatically inflicting 4- 24 points of crushing damage each round.

1993, Doug Stewart, Gary Gygax, Monstrous Manual, page 338:

If you play with certain demons (mariliths, vrocks, hezrous, bone devils, nalfeshnees, pit fiends, or water demons), you could eventually get Yeenoghu anywhere, and then he could get you Demo.

2001, Kate Nepveu, “some tough questions?”, in rec.games.roguelike.nethack (Usenet):

(fantasy) A powerful female demon with six arms and the lower body of a snake.


Orthrus

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ὄρθρος (Órthros).

(Greek mythology) A two-headed dog who guarded Geryon's cattle and was killed by Heracles.


aunicornist

From a- + unicorn + -ist, based on atheist.

Nearly everyone but small children are asantaists, while the same is true of aunicornists — even if they have never once decided as an absolute fact, or even as a matter of faith, that unicorns do not exist.

2016 January 30, Nicholas Bittner, The Roads Around Religion, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 11:

(humorous) A person who does not believe in unicorns.


Skuld

From Old Norse Skuld, from Proto-Indo-European *skel- (“to be obligated”). See English should.

der

(Norse mythology) the Norn of the future


Hypsipyle

From Latin Hypsipylē and its etymon, the Ancient Greek Ῠ̔ψῐπῠ́λη (Hŭpsĭpŭ́lē).

(Greek mythology) The daughter of Thoas and Myrina, queen of Lemnos at the time of the curse by Aphrodite, the island’s subsequent androcide, and the Argonauts’ two-year sojourn on the island, during which time she bore Jason twin sons.


Siege Perilous

(mythology) In Arthurian legend, a vacant seat at the Round Table, reserved by Merlin for the knight who would one day be successful in the quest for the Holy Grail.


Nergal

From Sumerian 𒀭𒄊𒀕𒃲 (ᵈGÌR-UNUG-GAL /nergal/).

(Mesopotamian mythology) A deity worshipped throughout ancient Mesopotamia, associated with war, pestilence, and the Sun.


atoothfairyist

From a- + tooth fairy + -ist, based on atheist.

(very rare, humorous) A person who does not believe in the tooth fairy.


Agravain

(Arthurian legend) One of the knights of the Round Table in Arthurian legend.


Brynhild

(mythology) Alternative form of Brunhild


reverse mermaid

en-noun

reverse mermaid (plural reverse mermaids)

(cryptozoology) A mythical creature, woman from the waist down, fish from the waist up.


Aatxe

Borrowed from Basque Aatxe (“young bull”).

(mythology) A spirit in Basque mythology, a cave-dwelling shapeshifter usually taking the form of a young bull. Arising from his lair at night, more so in stormy weather, Aatxe attacks malevolent people such as criminals and, in addition, safeguards people by keeping them at home when danger is nearby.


Draculaesque

en-adj

Draculaesque (comparative more Draculaesque, superlative most Draculaesque)

more Draculaesque (comparative)
most Draculaesque (superlative)

Reminiscent of the fictional vampire Count Dracula.


gandharva

Borrowed from Sanskrit गन्धर्व (gandharva).

(Indian mythology) A spirit, usually depicted as a singer or musician.


duergar

Borrowed from Old Norse dvergr; cf. Icelandic dvergar. Doublet of dwarf.

(mythology) One of a race of ugly dwarfs, particularly associated with the Simonside Hills of Northumberland in northern England.