Bluecap
Encyclopedia
A bluecap or blue cap is a mythical fairy
or ghost
in English folklore
. They inhabit mines and appear as small blue flames. If miners treat them with respect, the bluecaps lead them to rich deposits of minerals. Like knockers
or kobolds, bluecaps can also forewarn miners of cave-ins. They are mostly associated with the Anglo-Scottish borders. Another being of the same type (though less helpful in nature) was called Cutty Soames or Old Cutty Soames who was known to cut the rope-traces or soams by which the assistant putter was yoked to the tub.
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...
or ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
in English folklore
English folklore
English folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in England over a number of centuries. Some stories can be traced back to their roots, while the origin of others is uncertain or disputed...
. They inhabit mines and appear as small blue flames. If miners treat them with respect, the bluecaps lead them to rich deposits of minerals. Like knockers
Knockers
The Knocker, Knacker, Bwca , Bucca or Tommyknocker is the Welsh and Cornish equivalent of Irish leprechauns and English and Scottish brownies. About two feet tall and grizzled, but not misshapen, they live beneath the ground...
or kobolds, bluecaps can also forewarn miners of cave-ins. They are mostly associated with the Anglo-Scottish borders. Another being of the same type (though less helpful in nature) was called Cutty Soames or Old Cutty Soames who was known to cut the rope-traces or soams by which the assistant putter was yoked to the tub.
See also
- BrownieBrownie (folklore)A brownie/brounie or urisk or brùnaidh, ùruisg, or gruagach is a legendary creature popular in folklore around Scotland and England...
(English and Scottish) - CoblynauCoblynauCoblynau are mythical gnome-like creatures that are said to haunt the mines and quarries of Wales. They are said to be half a yard tall, and very ugly. Like Knockers, they are dressed in miniature mining outfits...
(Welsh) - CofgodCofgodasA Cofgod was an household god in Anglo-Saxon paganism related to the German kobold and equivalent to the Roman penates. It is generally accepted that the English hob and Anglo-Scottish brownie are the modern survival of the cofgod.-References:* "", An Other Dictionary: Tribal English. Accessed 13...
(Archaic English) - HobHobHob or HOB may refer to:* Hob , a household spirit in Northern England* A generic term for various Dwarf-like and Elf-like magical creatures in Germanic folklore* A devil* The top cooking surface on a stove* A male ferret...
(Northumbrian English) - Knocker (Cornish)
- KoboldKoboldThe kobold is a sprite stemming from Germanic mythology and surviving into modern times in German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a candle. The most common depictions of kobolds show them as humanlike figures the size...
(German) - RedcapRedcapA Red Cap or Redcap, also known as a powrie or dunter, is a type of malevolent murderous dwarf, goblin, elf or fairy found in Border Folklore. They are said to inhabit ruined castles found along the border between England and Scotland...
(Northumbrian English) - TomteTomteA tomte , nisse or tonttu is a mythical creature of Scandinavian folklore. The tomte or nisse was believed to take care of a farmer's home and children and protect them from misfortune, in particular at night, when the housefolk were asleep...
(Scandinavian)