Kelpie (water spirit)

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A kelpie (also Kelpy ; Scots , possibly in Scottish Gaelic colpach , "heifer") is a supernatural water spirit that appears in British , especially Scottish folk beliefs. It is not to be confused with the Each Uisge (water horse), which is said to live on the Scottish seashores and in the inland lochs. The kelpie inhabits the flowing waters of the highlands. He appears in the form of a large horse , sometimes with a fish tail . It is found on deep rivers and promises hikers who use the riverwant to cross, carry them across. But once the hiker is on the back of the Kelpie, it pulls him down and eats him. Taking a Kelpie a veil over the head or succeeds someone, it aufzutrensen , it must this be of service.

Mythological background

In Celtic mythology, the kelpie is described as a strong and powerful horse. It serves the court of the sea god as a riding, draft and pack animal. Its fur is originally black, in some stories also white, and it mostly appears as a stray pony, but can often be recognized by its dripping mane or by the blue sheen next to the actual color of the fur. The skin resembles that of a seal, soft and cold as death when you touch it. It is reported that kelpies transform into beautiful women in order to lure men into their trap. They create illusions as shapeshifters to keep themselves hidden. You can only see their eyes above the surface of the water.

Water Horses (Each Uisge)

Kelpies belong to the mythological beings of the water horses (each uisge). There are many such creatures that resemble the Kelpie, for example the nuggle from the Orkney Islands and the shoopiltee or njogel or tangi from the Shetland Islands. On Man, the kelpie is known as Cabyll-ushtey (Manx Gaelic for water horse or glashtin ). In Wales there is a similar being called Ceffyl dŵr . In Scandinavian popular belief there is a water horse, the Bäckahästen (German: Bach horse ). In Norway it is called nøkken , which often takes the form of a horse and thus hides its true shape. In the Faroe Islands the creature is called Nykur as in Iceland, where the name Nennir occurs. The Irish and Scottish each uisge , each uisce also occasionally appear in the guise of a handsome man and live on the coasts. In Greek mythology, Poseidon, god of the seas, rules over the water horses and takes the form of a horse to seduce Demeter. It is characteristic of all water horses that they attract people, especially children, to drown and eat them in the water. The water horse encourages children to get on its back and once they have gotten on, they can no longer get off because a sticky film on the monster's back prevents them from doing so. The Each Uisge pulls the children to the bottom of the sea or lake and eats them there except for the liver, which remains floating on the surface.

Say

In many legends, a kelpie is the antagonist . A legend tells that a man wants to see his sick wife, but she is on the other side of the river Don in Scotland. A tall man offers to carry his husband across the river, as the wooden bridge was washed away. The husband agrees, and when the tall man is in the middle of the river, it is revealed that he is a kelpie and tries to pull the husband under the water. The husband, however, is able to free himself, gets to the other side of the river on his own and escapes. The angry Kelpie, cheated of his meal, throws a boulder after the husband, which can still be seen in Corgarff, a town in Aberdeenshire .

In another legend, a kelpie steals a sack of flour in Braemar , but is pelted with a magic rod by the miller. The kelpie then breaks his leg and falls into the mill ditch, in which he drowns. This was the last kelpie that was ever seen there.

The myth of this legendary figure is taken up in the song Kelpie by Jethro Tull from the album Stormwatch (1979).

In another legend, an orphan boy climbed a mountain and wanted to bathe in a lake when he saw a beautiful horse that magically attracted him. So he got on, but the supposed horse turned into a kelpie and pulled the boy into the mountain lake.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gaelic Language Dictionary , 8th edition, Acair amd Mecat Press 1993. sv kelpie 1 , kelpy
  2. ↑ Kelpie ( Memento of the original from June 4, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in the Encyclopedia Mythica @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.pantheon.org

Web links

Commons : Kelpie  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files