Lancashire Folk-lore: Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County PalatineHarland, John
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Lancashire Folk-lore: Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County Palatine
Harland, John
Folklore -- England -- Lancashire; Lancashire (England) -- Social life and customs
Scotch Bogle, the French Goblin, the Gobelinus of the Middle Ages, and
the German Kobold, are probably only varied names for the Grecian
Khobalus, whose sole delight consisted in perplexing the human race, and
evoking those harmless terrors that constantly hover round the minds of
the timid. So, also, the German Spuck, and the Danish Spogel, correspond
with the more northern Spog; whilst the German Hudkin, and the Icelandic
Puki, exactly answer to the character of the English Robin
Goodfellow."[4] Our modern devil, with his horns and hoof, is derived
from the Celtic Ourisk and the Roman Pan.
Some of our elves and satyrs are arrayed in the costumes of Greece and
Rome; and the Fairy Queen, with her attendants, have at times too many
points of resemblance to escape being identified as Diana and her
nymphs. The Roman Jupiter, by an easy transformation, becomes identical
with the Scandinavian Thor--the thunderbolt and chariot of the former
corresponding to the hammer and wagon of the latter. Odin takes the
place of Mercury. Loki is the same as Lucifer, for, like him, he was
expelled from heaven for disobedience and rebellion. Hother encountered
Thor, as Diomede did Mars. "The Grendels of the north answer to the
Titans of the south; they were the gods of nature to our
forefathers--the spirits of the wood and wave." Jupiter's eagle, the
war-sign of the Romans, is similar in character to Odin's raven among
the Danes; both nations considered that if the bird appeared to flutter
its wings on the banners, conquest was certain; but if they hung
helplessly down, defeat would surely follow. Warcock Hill, on the
borders of Lancashire and Yorkshire, has probably derived its name from
the unfurling of this terrible ensign during the conflicts between the
Saxons and the Danes for the possession of Northumbria;--the local
nomenclature of the district attests the presence of colonists from both
nations, and extensive traces of their fortifications still remain as
evidence that our slopes and hill-tops formed at once the battle-fields
and the strongholds of the country.
The power of the Devil, his personal appearance and the possibility of
bartering the soul for temporary gain, must still be numbered among the
articles of our popular faith. Repeating the Lord's Prayer backwards is
said to be the most effectual plan for causing him to rise from beneath;
but when the terms of the bargain are not satisfactory, his exit can
only be secured by making the sign of the cross and calling on the name
of Christ.[5]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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