Anglo-Saxon elves [Old English <I> ælfe</I>] are one of the best attested non-Christian beliefs in early medieval Europe, but current interpretations of the evidence derive directly from outdated nineteenth- and early twentieth-century scholarship....
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Anglo-Saxon elves [Old English ælfe] are one of the best attested non-Christian beliefs in early medieval Europe, but current interpretations of the evidence derive directly from outdated nineteenth- and early twentieth-century scholarship. Integrating linguistic and textual approaches into an anthropologically-inspired framework, this book reassesses the full range of evidence. It traces continuities and changes in medieval non-Christian beliefs with a new degree of reliability, from pre-conversion times to the eleventh century and beyond, and uses comparative material from medieval Ireland and Scandinavia to argue for a dynamic relationship between beliefs and society. In particular, it interprets the cultural significance of elves as a cause of illness in medical texts, and provides new insights into the much-discussed Scandinavian magic of seidr. Elf-beliefs, moreover, were connected with Anglo-Saxon constructions of sex and gender; their changing nature provides a rare insight into a fascinating area of early medieval European culture.
Shortlisted for the Katharine Briggs Folklore Award 2007
ALARIC HALL is a fellow of the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies
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A medieval Scandinavian context -- The earliest Anglo-Saxon evidence -- Female elves and beautiful elves -- Ælfe, illness and healing (1) : the 'elf-shot' conspiracy -- Ælfe, illness and healing (2) : ælfsiden -- Anglo-Saxon myth and gender -- Believing in early medieval history -- Appendix 1 : The linguistic history of elf -- Appendix 2 : Two non-elves