Misconceptions
"Autumnal Whisperings" by Linda Bergkvist
Right. Let's get straight to the point. Yes, there are faeries that look like cute, tiny creatures with wings. Yes, they appear all throughout literature, artwork, music, and movies as cute, tiny creatures with wings.
Now listen here, 'cause I'm only going to say this statement once.
Faeries are probably the most frightening creatures anyone will ever encounter in legends and folklore.
Got your attention yet? No? Well, keep reading, because I will explain.
Children of the 20th and 21st centuries have grown up to the idea that faeries are adorable. That they're so cute and harmless. They're so tiny, they fit in your hand, and they can't hurt you, right?
Wrong.
You forget that the faery in question has magic. She has magic and magic is not necessarily good or evil. Magic in itself is dangerous at the wrong hands and beneficial at the right ones. And this faery, this cute, tiny creature with wings, can easily hold your fate in the balance. This faery's magic can be anything and everything. She can cast enchantments, bestow gifts, plant curses, change forms. With magic, she's much more than the cute, tiny creature with wings.
So to answer your question, yes. You can definitely see faeries as adorable miniature versions of supermodels with strap-on wings. But for the most part, because they have magic, they're more formidable than their forms let on. The downside to all this is that they mostly act according to their general emotions. They can feel angry, sad, and joyful. They can hate, covet, succumb to boredom and therefore mischief. They might want your loved one and spirit him/her away to the faery realm. They can drive you mad. And that makes them dangerous.
Now listen here, 'cause I'm only going to say this statement once.
Faeries are probably the most frightening creatures anyone will ever encounter in legends and folklore.
Got your attention yet? No? Well, keep reading, because I will explain.
Children of the 20th and 21st centuries have grown up to the idea that faeries are adorable. That they're so cute and harmless. They're so tiny, they fit in your hand, and they can't hurt you, right?
Wrong.
You forget that the faery in question has magic. She has magic and magic is not necessarily good or evil. Magic in itself is dangerous at the wrong hands and beneficial at the right ones. And this faery, this cute, tiny creature with wings, can easily hold your fate in the balance. This faery's magic can be anything and everything. She can cast enchantments, bestow gifts, plant curses, change forms. With magic, she's much more than the cute, tiny creature with wings.
So to answer your question, yes. You can definitely see faeries as adorable miniature versions of supermodels with strap-on wings. But for the most part, because they have magic, they're more formidable than their forms let on. The downside to all this is that they mostly act according to their general emotions. They can feel angry, sad, and joyful. They can hate, covet, succumb to boredom and therefore mischief. They might want your loved one and spirit him/her away to the faery realm. They can drive you mad. And that makes them dangerous.
Who are the Fae Folk?
"The Merman King" by Edmund Dulac
The fae folk or faeries or simply Fey, are creatures with magical ability. Now they don't all just spontaneously combust into magic, mind. Some have blatant supernatural powers (changelings, sirens, domovoy). Others are magical solely by their very existence (giants, trolls, ogres). But there is no denying the fact that most faeries are closely linked to the magical powers imbued by nature. That is perhaps why the elemental classifiers exist.
Faeries are referred differently across the world. In Western Europe, they are "faeries," "the good folk," "the hidden people," or "the little people." Scandinavia and Germany mostly know them as "elves" or "nixies" or "kobolds." Persian mythology sometimes attributes the term "peris" to faeries; the peris took the form of beautiful female spirits, evil for the natural troubles they caused (drought, famine, and other natural disasters) and kind for their guidance of souls toward paradise. The "jinn" are the Arabic equivalents to faeries, though they are often just invisible spirits that grant wishes in faery tales. In India, the "bongas" are considered the evil faeries.
Faeries are referred differently across the world. In Western Europe, they are "faeries," "the good folk," "the hidden people," or "the little people." Scandinavia and Germany mostly know them as "elves" or "nixies" or "kobolds." Persian mythology sometimes attributes the term "peris" to faeries; the peris took the form of beautiful female spirits, evil for the natural troubles they caused (drought, famine, and other natural disasters) and kind for their guidance of souls toward paradise. The "jinn" are the Arabic equivalents to faeries, though they are often just invisible spirits that grant wishes in faery tales. In India, the "bongas" are considered the evil faeries.
Fae Folk History
"Rhiannon" by Alan Lee
I don't want to get too deep into the history of the Fey, so this is really just a heavily abridged summary of a summary of the actual version.
The fae folk have been around for millennia. Folklorists have surmised that these creatures stemmed not only from legendary figures, but that they were also based on perspective differences between different cultures. The Persian myths referred to creatures such as "Peris," or "Peri," which are described as creatures that have come from the sky. After seeing the pale-skinned peoples of the north, perhaps the Persians saw the Nordic and the Slavic as Peri. This might also be true for the reverse. The Vikings speak of the "Feen" or the "Feinin," roughly translating to "Fair Ones." Then there is also the Sidhe, the "Hill People." The Sidhe, in some accounts, were also referred to as the Picts. So if you are in any way curious to know where the term "faery" or "pixie" even began to take fruit, you might start there.
Faeries stemmed from legends and mythology. The Welsh--particularly that of the Mabinogion (a collection of Welsh lore mixed with Arthurian-based stories)--speak of the goddess Rhiannon, whose presence can be akin to that of the Faery Queen Morgan le Fay from the Arthurian legends. In Ireland, the mythical people of the Tuatha Dé Danann were thought to be the fae folk because they worshiped the Goddess, or the Faery Queen (technically, the name translates to "peoples of the goddess Danu," but this has since been believed incorrect since Danu isn't the name of the goddess that they worship).
By the Middle Ages, pagan beliefs--and therefore beliefs in the supernatural faery world--were becoming less and less condoned. Gone were the superstitions about the Seven Year King, the strange blood rituals, and the fear of the Wild Hunt. Instead, majority-Christian Europe typified faeries as shameful, not-so-powerful creatures cast out from heaven. Because the faeries did not pick a side between heaven and hell, they were cast down as fallen angels, and were banished to the mortal realms to live out their punishment. The faeries live with the humans, but as fallen angels go, they exist in a parallel plane, in the faery world, hidden from mortal eyes.
Faeries were always believed to be either good or bad. Up until the 15th century, the classification of the fae folk was usually limited to whether they were evil spirits or benevolent ones. It wasn't until the good ole' 15th century where alchemist Paracelsus moved to classify the fae folk into four categories: air (sylphs), earth (gnomes), fire (salamanders), and water (undines).
The depictions of the cute, tiny creatures with wings were mostly created from the Victorian era until the present day. Older accounts would have seen faeries looking like ethereal humans--more beautiful and absolutely more deadly, of course. But Victorian literature and artwork have managed to change that. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has depicted faeries as the small pixies that they are now generally known to be. Artist Arthur Rackham also drew faeries as these small creatures, and subsequently, many other artists took the same path.
Hard to imagine that the fae folk could be anything but the little creatures we know and love, huh?
The fae folk have been around for millennia. Folklorists have surmised that these creatures stemmed not only from legendary figures, but that they were also based on perspective differences between different cultures. The Persian myths referred to creatures such as "Peris," or "Peri," which are described as creatures that have come from the sky. After seeing the pale-skinned peoples of the north, perhaps the Persians saw the Nordic and the Slavic as Peri. This might also be true for the reverse. The Vikings speak of the "Feen" or the "Feinin," roughly translating to "Fair Ones." Then there is also the Sidhe, the "Hill People." The Sidhe, in some accounts, were also referred to as the Picts. So if you are in any way curious to know where the term "faery" or "pixie" even began to take fruit, you might start there.
Faeries stemmed from legends and mythology. The Welsh--particularly that of the Mabinogion (a collection of Welsh lore mixed with Arthurian-based stories)--speak of the goddess Rhiannon, whose presence can be akin to that of the Faery Queen Morgan le Fay from the Arthurian legends. In Ireland, the mythical people of the Tuatha Dé Danann were thought to be the fae folk because they worshiped the Goddess, or the Faery Queen (technically, the name translates to "peoples of the goddess Danu," but this has since been believed incorrect since Danu isn't the name of the goddess that they worship).
By the Middle Ages, pagan beliefs--and therefore beliefs in the supernatural faery world--were becoming less and less condoned. Gone were the superstitions about the Seven Year King, the strange blood rituals, and the fear of the Wild Hunt. Instead, majority-Christian Europe typified faeries as shameful, not-so-powerful creatures cast out from heaven. Because the faeries did not pick a side between heaven and hell, they were cast down as fallen angels, and were banished to the mortal realms to live out their punishment. The faeries live with the humans, but as fallen angels go, they exist in a parallel plane, in the faery world, hidden from mortal eyes.
Faeries were always believed to be either good or bad. Up until the 15th century, the classification of the fae folk was usually limited to whether they were evil spirits or benevolent ones. It wasn't until the good ole' 15th century where alchemist Paracelsus moved to classify the fae folk into four categories: air (sylphs), earth (gnomes), fire (salamanders), and water (undines).
The depictions of the cute, tiny creatures with wings were mostly created from the Victorian era until the present day. Older accounts would have seen faeries looking like ethereal humans--more beautiful and absolutely more deadly, of course. But Victorian literature and artwork have managed to change that. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has depicted faeries as the small pixies that they are now generally known to be. Artist Arthur Rackham also drew faeries as these small creatures, and subsequently, many other artists took the same path.
Hard to imagine that the fae folk could be anything but the little creatures we know and love, huh?