Fella

fella

maria di angelo after reading the divine comedy to younger nico as a bed time story

Women in maid outfits is crossdressing to me. That's a man's uniform

What do you call fairies?

"Never speak ill of the deil” is a proverbial maxim, for mortal man never knew when his Satanic majesty might be within earshot. The invisible and alert fairies for the same reason were always mentioned with a honeyed tongue. The wily, knowing not where they might be lurking, were careful to call them “the good neighbours,” “the honest folk,” “the little folk,” ”the gentry,” “the hill folk ,” and ”the forgetful people,” the ”men of peace.‘ Klippe is the Forfarshire name for a fairy." Folk Lore in Lowland Scotland by Evelyn Blantyre Simpson (1908)

Alright, so, all this time I have been calling them “fairies,” and there are other names as well that they are often called.

“The term “fairy’ now covers a large area, the Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian elves, the daoine sidhe of the Highlands, the tuatha de danann of Ireland, the tylwyth teg of Wales, the seelie court and the unseelie court, the wee folk, and good neighbours and many others. The trooping fairies and the solitary fairies are included in it, the fairies of human or more than human size, the three-loot fairies and the tiny fairies; the domestic fairies and those that are wild and alien to man; the subterranean fairies and the water fairies that haunt lochs, streams or the sea.” A Encyclopedia of Fairies by Katharine Briggs (Published in 1976)

Keep in mind that the historical Scottish use of "fairy" was not a term for one creature that looked or acted one specific way, but instead a category for many different creatures (more on that here). For a quick example of this, you can compare how radically different creatures with "Sìth" in the name can be; such as the Cù Sìth or Baobhan Sìth.

Some of the commonly used fairy names you may recognize, while others you may not.

"Sith, sithich, fairy, fairies; ‘siodha,’ ‘siodhach,’ fay, fairy; ‘bean sith,’ ‘sitheag,’ female fairy, ‘sitheach,’ ‘sifir,’ ‘sifire,’ ‘sifreach,’ male fairy. The fairies entered largely into the lives and folklore of the Highland people. They lived in the green knolls and round hillocks, and only occasionally appeared to mortal eyes." Carmina Gadelica, Volume 2, by Alexander Carmicheal, [1900]

So, which of those do they like to be called? None, apparently! According to historic Scottish folklore, terms like “fairy” is like a slur, and if you are overheard saying it, the listener may take offence. This is why those a little more superstitious are often heard calling them other things.

"The name of fairy was not pleasing to them, and men spoke of them as “the fair folk,” or “the gueede neebours." Folklore of the North East of Scotland by Walter Gregor (1881)

For example: The Good People, The Fair Folk, The Good Neighbours, The People of Peace, and so on. These terms were seen as a less dangerous way to refer to a fairy.

Keep in mind that most fairies are said to be invisible, so people were always scared about who might be listening.

"The Scottish Fairies, in like manner, sometimes reside in subterranean abodes, in the vicinity of human habitations, or, according to the popular phrase, under the “door-stane,” or threshold; in which situation they sometimes establish an intercourse with men, by borrowing and lending, and other kindly offices. In this capacity they are termed “the good neighbours,” from supplying privately the wants of their friends, and assisting them in all their transactions, while their favours are concealed." Scottish Folk and Fairy and Folk Tales by Sir Walter Scott (1893)

Now you might be wondering, what about fae? Well, "fay" is just an older spelling of fairy, and fae is an alternative spelling.

"The word fairies' is late in origin; the earlier noun is FAYS, which now has an archaic and rather affected sound." A Encyclopedia of Fairies by Katharine Briggs (Published in 1976)

Perhaps because of that, "fay" and it's alternative spellings never appear in my historical Scottish sources that I have noticed. Instead, it is always "fairy" in either English, or Gaelic. That is not to say that the modern use of the word is wrong, because folklore does change over time, just that it does not appear to have been used in that context in the sources I find for Scottish specific historical folklore.

he really does just say things without thinking sometimes doesn’t he

Gaël René-Solaire, the obsidian fang