Elves in Anglo-Saxon England: Matters of Belief, Health, Gender and Identity

Alaric Hall

Boydell Press, Jan 1, 2007 - History - 226 pages

Anglo-Saxon elves (Old English aelfe) 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non-Christian beliefs in early medieval Europe, but current interpretations of the evidence derive directly from outdated nineteenth- and early twentieth-century scholarship.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.

What people are saying

Review: Elves in Anglo-Saxon England: Matters of Belief, Health, Gender and Identity

User Review  - Larisa Hunter - Goodreads

Wow. This was one of the hardest books I have ever had to read, but was well worth it. I feel like I should have had a companion book to help with some of the language used in the book, as I am not a ...

Review: Elves in Anglo-Saxon England: Matters of Belief, Health, Gender and Identity

User Review  - Tahni - Goodreads

I really enjoyed the information provided in this book, but it is very dense and very scholarly. I can't really fault it for being so - it is what it was meant to be and it was successful in being so ...

Contents

• A medieval Scandinavian context: 21
• Componential analysis of Norse words for beings: 31
• Semantic field diagram of Norse words for beings: 32
• Monstrosity in medieval Scandinavia: 52
• The earliest AngloSaxon evidence: 54
• Componential analysis of Old English words for beings: 67
• Female elves and beautiful elves: 75
• Words glossed by hsegtesse and words glossing those words: 86
• the elfshot conspiracy: 96
• selfsiden: 119
• AngloSaxon myth and gender: 157
• The linguistic history of elf: 176
• The phonological development of self: 178
• Index: 221

Bibliographic information

• Title: Elves in Anglo-Saxon England: Matters of Belief, Health, Gender and Identity; Volume 8 of Anglo-Saxon studies, ISSN 1475-2468
• Author: Alaric Hall
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Boydell Press, 2007
• ISBN: 1843832941, 9781843832942
• Length: 226 pages
• Subjects: History / Medieval