Drake (fairy)
Encyclopedia
A Drake is type of fairy
figure found across European folklore
that mixes the characteristics of fairy beings, and dragons.
Even though the term "drake" has become synonymous to legendary dragons, fairy drakes stand alone as their own folkloric figure. Heterogeneous by nature, drake descriptions vary according to local folklore. Generally, they appear to be little house fairy beings who smell like rotten eggs, wear red caps and white tunics, except for when they fly, for it is then that they become a will o' wisp figure, changing into a tiny flaming ball with a big head, and a long trail, giving the illusion of a tiny dragon, which also gives them the nickname "Fire-drake" - a term that runs synonymous to the dragons of Norse, Teutonic, and Celtic mythology who are said to guard treasures, such as the creature
that kills Beowulf
in the 8th/11th century English poem. Unsurprisingly enough, fairy drakes are also said to guard treasures when encountered in their will o' wisp form. This description changes in Finnish folklore, where the krat (drake variant) is always depicted as a tiny dragon, yet still is depicted as a house fairy. They form strong bonds with families (especially the fathers), being able to travel across the world doing chores for their masters, bringing them essential medicine, exotic foods, and gifts, in exchange for being taken cared of. They can also become revengeful, able to unleash powerful destructive forces.
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
figure found across European folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
that mixes the characteristics of fairy beings, and dragons.
Even though the term "drake" has become synonymous to legendary dragons, fairy drakes stand alone as their own folkloric figure. Heterogeneous by nature, drake descriptions vary according to local folklore. Generally, they appear to be little house fairy beings who smell like rotten eggs, wear red caps and white tunics, except for when they fly, for it is then that they become a will o' wisp figure, changing into a tiny flaming ball with a big head, and a long trail, giving the illusion of a tiny dragon, which also gives them the nickname "Fire-drake" - a term that runs synonymous to the dragons of Norse, Teutonic, and Celtic mythology who are said to guard treasures, such as the creature
The Dragon (Beowulf)
The final act of the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, depicts the hero Beowulf's fight with a dragon, the third monster he encounters in the epic. Returning from Heorot, where he killed Grendel and Grendel's mother, Beowulf becomes king of the Geats, and rules peacefully for 50 years until a slave...
that kills Beowulf
Beowulf
Beowulf , but modern scholars agree in naming it after the hero whose life is its subject." of an Old English heroic epic poem consisting of 3182 alliterative long lines, set in Scandinavia, commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature.It survives in a single...
in the 8th/11th century English poem. Unsurprisingly enough, fairy drakes are also said to guard treasures when encountered in their will o' wisp form. This description changes in Finnish folklore, where the krat (drake variant) is always depicted as a tiny dragon, yet still is depicted as a house fairy. They form strong bonds with families (especially the fathers), being able to travel across the world doing chores for their masters, bringing them essential medicine, exotic foods, and gifts, in exchange for being taken cared of. They can also become revengeful, able to unleash powerful destructive forces.