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A goblin is an imaginary evil, crabby, and mischievous creature described as a grotesquely disfigured or gnome
Gnome

A gnome is a mythical creature characterized by its extremely small size and wiktionary:subterranean lifestyle. The word gnome is derived from the New Latin gnomus....
-like phantom, that may range in height from that of a dwarf
Dwarf

A dwarf is a creature from Continental Germanic mythology, fairy tales, fantasy fiction, and role-playing games. It usually has magical talents, often involving metallurgy....
 to that of a human
Human

A human being, also human or man, is a member of a species of bipedalism primates in the family Hominidae . Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago....
. They are attributed with various (sometimes conflicting) abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constant annoying little creatures somewhat related with the brownie.

rding to "The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English," the name is probably derived from the Anglo-French
Anglo-Norman language

The Anglo-Norman language is a term traditionally used to refer to the variety of French used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles following the Norman conquest in 1066....
 gobelin (which was rendered, in Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration....
, as gobelinus), which is probably a diminutive of Gobel, a name related to the word kobold
Kobold

The kobold is a sprite of German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a mundane object....
 (a German sprite).






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A goblin is an imaginary evil, crabby, and mischievous creature described as a grotesquely disfigured or gnome
Gnome

A gnome is a mythical creature characterized by its extremely small size and wiktionary:subterranean lifestyle. The word gnome is derived from the New Latin gnomus....
-like phantom, that may range in height from that of a dwarf
Dwarf

A dwarf is a creature from Continental Germanic mythology, fairy tales, fantasy fiction, and role-playing games. It usually has magical talents, often involving metallurgy....
 to that of a human
Human

A human being, also human or man, is a member of a species of bipedalism primates in the family Hominidae . Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago....
. They are attributed with various (sometimes conflicting) abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constant annoying little creatures somewhat related with the brownie.

Etymology

According to "The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English," the name is probably derived from the Anglo-French
Anglo-Norman language

The Anglo-Norman language is a term traditionally used to refer to the variety of French used in England and to some extent elsewhere in the British Isles following the Norman conquest in 1066....
 gobelin (which was rendered, in Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin

Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration....
, as gobelinus), which is probably a diminutive of Gobel, a name related to the word kobold
Kobold

The kobold is a sprite of German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a mundane object....
 (a German sprite). In addition, there also exist various other alternative spellings of the word goblin, including: Gobblin, gobeline, gobling, goblyn, gobelinus (Medieval Latin).

Dwarf
Dwarf

A dwarf is a creature from Continental Germanic mythology, fairy tales, fantasy fiction, and role-playing games. It usually has magical talents, often involving metallurgy....
s, hiisi
Hiisi

Hiisi are a kind of tutelary spiritual beings in mythology of the Baltic Sea area, especially in Finland. Most often they are considered to be malicious or at least very horrifying....
, folletto, duende
Duende (mythology)

A duende is a fairy- or goblin-like mythological Mayan character. While its nature varies throughout Spain, Portugal and Spanish-speaking Americas, in many cases its closest equivalents known in the Anglophone world are the Irish leprechaun, the Scottish Brownie , the Danish-Norwegian Nisse, or the Swedish Tomte....
, tengu
Tengu

are a class of supernatural creatures found in Japanese folklore, Japanese art, Japanese theater and Japanese literature. They are one of the best known yokai and are sometimes worshipped as Shinto kami ....
, Menninkäinen
Menninkäinen

In Finnish mythology and lore, a mennink?inen is believed to be a leprechaun-like inhabitant of the forests. Fairy tale depictions often involve riddling, dominance struggles and favors elicited....
 and kallikantzaroi are often translated into English as 'goblins'. The Erlking
Erlking

The Erlking is a character depicted in a number of German language literature as a malevolent creature who haunts forests and carries off travellers to their deaths....
 and Billy Blind
Billy Blind

Billy Blind, Billy Blin, Billie Blin, or Belly Blin is an English and Scottish household spirit, much like a Brownie . It appears, however, only in ballads, where it frequently advises the characters....
 are sometimes called goblins. 'Goblin' is often used as a general term to mean any small mischievous being.

According to some traditions, goblin comes from Gob or Ghob, the king of the gnomes , whose inferiors were called Ghob-lings.

Skratta (which means "to laugh" in modern Swedish) is an old Scandinavian word for a goblin or monster (modern Icelandic skratti, a devil).

A creature resembling a goblin, but larger than a human, is often considered an Ogre
Ogre

An ogre is a large, cruel and hideous humanoid monster], featured in mythology, folklore and fiction. Ogres are often depicted in fairy tales and folklore as feeding on human beings, and have appeared in many classic works of literature....
 or a Troll
Troll

A troll is a fearsome member of a race of creatures from Norse mythology. Originally more or less the Nordic equivalents of giant , although often smaller in size, the different depictions have come to range from the fiendish giants ? similar to the ogres of England ? to a devious, more human-like folk of the wilderness, living underground...
.

Origins in folklore

One fabled origin for goblins is in Britain
Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
. They then began to spread all through the UK from there they sneaked aboard ships. Where they sailed to France then rapidly spread all over Europe They have no homes, being nomadic, dwelling temporarily in mossy cracks in rocks and tree roots.

Sir Walter Scott in his Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft ascribed gnomes, kobolds and goblins, along with Scottish bogles, to all correspond with a caricature of the Sami people
Sami people

The S?mi people, are the indigenous people Indigenous peoples of Europe inhabiting S?pmi , which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway, Finland and the Kola Peninsula of Russia....
.

  • The Benevolent Goblin, by Gesta Romanorum (England)
  • The Boy Who Drew Cats
    The Boy Who Drew Cats

    "The Boy Who Drew Cats" is a Japanese fairy tale collected by Lafcadio Hearn in Japanese Fairy Tales....
     (Japanese fairy tale)
  • Chinese Ghouls and Goblins
    Chinese Ghouls and Goblins

    Chinese Ghouls and Goblins is a book on the supernatural in Chinese folklore written by United Kingdom author Gerald Willoughby-Meade and published in London in 1928....
     (England 1928)
  • Erlking
    Erlking

    The Erlking is a character depicted in a number of German language literature as a malevolent creature who haunts forests and carries off travellers to their deaths....
     is a malevolent goblin from German legend.
  • The Goblin of Adachigahara (Japanese fairy tale)
  • The Goblin Pony, from The Grey Fairy Book (French fairy tale)
  • The Goblins at the Bath House (Estonia), from A Book of Ghosts and Goblins
    A Book of Ghosts and Goblins

    A Book of Ghosts and Goblins is a 1969 anthology of 21 fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders....
     (1969)
  • The Goblins Turned to Stone (Dutch fairy tale)
  • Gwyn ap Nudd
    Gwyn ap Nudd

    In Welsh mythology, Gwyn ap Nudd was king of the Tylwyth Teg and also, in later tradition, identified as the ruler of Annwn . He escorted the souls of the dead there, and led a pack of supernatural hounds, Cwn Annwn ....
     was ruler over the goblin tribe. (Welsh folklore)
  • Shiva
    Shiva

    Shiva: is a major Hinduism god, and one aspect of Trimurti. In the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is seen as the supreme God. In the Smarta tradition, he is one of panchadeva....
     has a cohort of goblins and ghouls (India).
  • Twenty-Two Goblins (Indian fairy tale)


Goblin Places

  • Bryn y Ellyllon: 'The Hill of the Goblins', Somerset
    Somerset

    Somerset is a Counties of England in South West England. The county town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county. The Ceremonial counties of England of Somerset borders the counties of Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west....
    , UK
  • 'The Gap of Goeblin', a hole and underground tunnel in Mortaine, France.
  • Goblin Combe
    Goblin Combe

    Goblin Combe is a valley in North Somerset which stretches from Redhill, Somerset, near Bristol International Airport on the A38 road through to Cleeve, Somerset on the A370 road....
    , in north Somerset, UK
  • Goblin Valley State Park
    Goblin Valley State Park

    Goblin Valley is a State Park in Emery County in central Utah, in the western United States. Its eminent feature is its thousands of hoodoo and hoodoo rocks, which are formations of mushroom-shaped rock pinnacles, some as high as several meters....
    , Utah, U.S.
  • Goblin Crescent, Bryndwr
    Bryndwr

    Bryndwr is a suburb of Christchurch New Zealand, and is one of the few places in New Zealand with a name of Wales origin.It was given its Welsh name by Charles Jeffreys who bought there in 1880....
    , Christchurch, NZ


Early Fiction

  • The Goblins
    The Goblins

    The Goblins is a Literature in English#Caroline and Cromwelliam literature era stage play, a comedy written by Sir John Suckling . It was premiered on the stage in 1638 in literature and first published in 1646 in literature....
    , a comedy play by Sir John Suckling (1638 England)
  • Goblin Market
    Goblin Market

    Goblin Market is a poem by Christina Rossetti. Throughout her lifetime, Rossetti claimed that the poem, which features remarkably sexual imagery , was a children's poem....
    , a poem by Christina Rossetti
    Christina Rossetti

    Christina Georgina Rossetti was an English poet, who wrote a variety of romantic, devotional, and children's poems. She is best known for her long poem Goblin Market, her love poem "Remember", and for her Christmas poem "In the Bleak Midwinter"....
     (1859 England)
  • The Princess and the Goblin
    The Princess and the Goblin

    The Princess and the Goblin is a children's fantasy novel by George MacDonald. It was published in 1872 by Strahan & Co.The sequel to this book is The Princess and Curdie, in which Princess Irene and Curdie are a year or two older, and must overthrow a set of corrupt ministers who are poisoning Irene's father, the king....
     by George MacDonald
    George MacDonald

    George MacDonald was a Scotland author, poet, and Christian minister.Though no longer well known, his works have inspired admiration in such notables as W....
     (1872)
  • Davy and the Goblin by Charles E. Carryl
    Charles E. Carryl

    Charles Edward Carryl was an American children's literature author.Born in New York, his father was a prosperous businessman. Carryl became a successful businessman and stockbroker, and for 34 years from 1874 he held a seat on the New York Stock Exchange....
      (1884)
  • The Hoard of the Gibbelins
    The Hoard of the Gibbelins

    The Hoard of the Gibbelins is a fantasy short story by Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany. It was first published in The Sketch in London and in The Book of Wonder in 1912....
     in The Book of Wonder
    The Book of Wonder

    The Book of Wonder is the seventh book and fifth original short story collection of Irish literature fantasy writer Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany, considered a major influence on the work of J....
     by Lord Dunsany (1912)


See also

  • Goblin (disambiguation)
    Goblin (disambiguation)

    *A goblin is a legendary creature, related to gnomes or elves.**A Orc is a fictional humanoid in the Middle-earth stories created by J.R.R. Tolkien....
  • Goblins in modern fiction
    Goblins in modern fiction

    Two major branches of goblins exist in popular fiction, including fantasy settings. Alongside J. R. R. Tolkien's descriptions of Orcs, the older branch is inherently evil and malicious, with varying coloring and generally matted and filthy hair....
  • Hobgoblin
    Hobgoblin

    Hobgoblin is a term typically applied in folklore to describe a friendly or amusing goblin.The word seems to derive from 'Robin Goblin', abbreviated to 'hobgoblin', 'hob', or 'lob'....
  • Nilbog
    Nilbog

    Nilbog is a movie from the 1900's.*Nilbog, a type of Goblin *Nilbog, the name of a fictional town from Troll 2*Nilbog High, a fictional school from Guitar Hero II...
  • Redcap
    Redcap

    A Red Cap or Redcap, also known as a powrie or dunter, is a type of imaginary malevolent murderous dwarf, goblin, elf or fairy found in English Folklore....
  • Ghoul
    Ghoul

    A ghoul is a mythological monster from Arabian mythology that dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The English language word comes from the Arabic name for the creature: ????? ghul, which literally means "demon"....
  • Imp
    Imp

    An imp is a mythology being similar to a fairy or demon, frequently described in folklore and superstition. The word may perhaps derive from the term ympe, used to denote a young grafting tree....
  • Gremlin
    Gremlin

    A gremlin is an English folkloric creature, commonly depicted as mischievous and mechanically oriented, with a specific interest in aircraft. Although their origin is found in myths among airmen, claiming that the gremlins were responsible for sabotaging aircraft, John W....
  • Kallikantzaroi
  • Kyöpelinvuori
    Kyöpelinvuori

    Ky?pelinvuori, in Finnish mythology, is the place where dead women haunting. It is rumoured that virgins who died at a young age gather there after their death at the start of their afterlife....
  • Kobold
    Kobold

    The kobold is a sprite of German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a mundane object....
  • Orc (Middle-earth)
    Orc (Middle-earth)

    In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy writings, Orcs or Orks are a race of creatures who are used as soldiers and henchmen by both the greater and lesser villains of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings — Morgoth, Sauron and Saruman....
  • Uruk-hai
    Uruk-hai

    The Uruk-hai are fictional characters in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional universe of Middle-earth. They are introduced in The Lord of the Rings as an advanced breed of Orc that serve Sauron....
  • Sprite (creature)
    Sprite (creature)

    The term sprite is a broad term referring to a number of preternatural legendary creatures. The term is generally used in reference to elf-like creatures, including fairy, dwarf, and the likes of it, but can also signify various spiritual beings, including ghosts....
  • Brownie
  • Troll
    Troll

    A troll is a fearsome member of a race of creatures from Norse mythology. Originally more or less the Nordic equivalents of giant , although often smaller in size, the different depictions have come to range from the fiendish giants ? similar to the ogres of England ? to a devious, more human-like folk of the wilderness, living underground...
  • Wirry-cow
    Wirry-cow

    A wirey-cow, wirry-carl [] etc. was in Scotland, a bugbear, goblin, ghost, ghoul or other frightful object. Sometimes it was used for the Devil, or a scarecrow....
  • Wight
    Wight

    :wikt:wight: from Old English word wiht, is a Middle English word used to describe a creature or a living being. It is akin to Old High German wiht, meaning a creature or thing....
  • Halloween
    Halloween

    Halloween is a holiday celebrated on October 31. It has roots in the Celtic mythology of Samhain and the Christian holy day of All Saints. It is largely a Secularity celebration, but some Christians and Paganism have expressed strong feelings about its religious overtones....
  • Vinayakas
    Vinayakas

    The were a group of four troublesome demons who created obstacles and difficulties in Hindu mythology, but who were easily propitiated.One theory of the origin of Ganesha is that he gradually came to prominence in connection with the ....
  • Dwarf
    Dwarf

    A dwarf is a creature from Continental Germanic mythology, fairy tales, fantasy fiction, and role-playing games. It usually has magical talents, often involving metallurgy....
  • The Goblin Mirror
    The Goblin Mirror

    The Goblin Mirror is a 1992 fantasy novel by science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. It was first published in a hardcover edition by Ballantine Books under its Del Rey Books imprint, and featured cover art by Cherryh's brother, David A....
     (novel)
  • Magical creatures (Harry Potter)# Goblins


Further reading

  • British Goblins: Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions by Wirt Sikes
  • Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were by Michael Page & Robert Ingpen
  • The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures by Pierre Dubois
  • Goblins! and The Goblin Companion by Brian Froud
  • Spirits, Fairies, Gnomes and Goblins: an Encyclopedia of the Little People by Carol Rose


Online


Text
  • Children's Books Online:


Comic
  • Goblins - Life Through their Eyes Created by Tarol Hunt, the comic is about a world based similar to Dungeons & Dragons with some tribe members of goblins as the main characters and the cultural and social complexities they have to bear with.