A () is a type of

hobgoblin A hobgoblin is a household spirit, typically appearing in folklore, once considered helpful, but which since the spread of Christianity has often been considered mischievous. Shakespeare identifies the character of Puck in his ''A Midsummer Nigh ...

(an amusing goblin) in French folklore and fairy tales. Female lutins are called (). A ''lutin'' (varieties include the '' Nain Rouge'' or "red dwarf") plays a similar role in the folklore of Normandy to household spirits in England, Germany and Scandinavia. ''Lutin'' is generally translated into English as: brownie,

elf An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes ...

, fairy, gnome, goblin,

, imp, leprechaun, pixie, puck, or sprite. It sometimes takes the form of a horse saddled ready to ride, and in this shape is called Le Cheval Bayard.Brewer
pp.283-84
Lutins sometimes tangle people's or horses' hair into

elf-locks In folklore, fairy-locks (or elflocks) are the result of fairies tangling and knotting the hairs of sleeping children and the manes of beasts as the fairies play in and out of their hair at night. English tradition The concept is first attested in ...

. A French fairy tale, " Le Prince Lutin", written in 1697 by Marie Catherine d'Aulnoy has a description of the "air, water and terrestrial ''lutin''": "You are invisible when you like it; you cross in one moment the vast space of the universe; you rise without having wings; you go through the ground without dying; you penetrate the abysses of the sea without drowning; you enter everywhere, though the windows and the doors are closed; and, when you decide to, you can let yourself be seen in your natural form." In this story a red hat with two feathers makes the lutin invisible. ''Lutins'' also assist Père Noël in Lapland.

Lutins in Quebec

Belief in ''lutins'' also spread to North America, particularly the

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source o ...

province of Quebec, as spirits in the form of either pets (such as dogs or rabbits) or other common animals. Completely white cats are especially considered likely to be ''lutins'', although seemingly any distinctive animal that lives in or near the home may be regarded as such. These ''lutins'' may be good or evil, with good ''lutins'' being attributed powers ranging from control of the weather, to shaving the beard of the master of the house before he woke on Sundays. Evil or offended ''lutins'' may harass the house-owner with any number of minor troubles, such as blunting a scythe or filling shoes with pebbles. Salt is considered abhorrent to them, and they are thought to go out of their way to avoid crossing it when spilled on the ground.

Lutins in Detroit

The Nain Rouge appearance is said to presage terrible events for the city. The Nain Rouge appears as a small childlike creature with red or black fur boots. It is also said to have "blazing red eyes and rotten teeth." (Skinner 1896)

Lutins in Newfoundland

French-Newfoundland culture also mentions the lutin, particularly in connection with causing

fairy-locks In folklore, fairy-locks (or elflocks) are the result of fairies tangling and knotting the hairs of sleeping children and the manes of beasts as the fairies play in and out of their hair at night. English tradition The concept is first attested in ...

.Gary R. Butler, ‘The Lutin Tradition in French-Newfoundland Culture: Discourse and Belief’, in The Good People: New Fairylore Essays, ed. by Peter Narváez, Garland Reference Library of the Humanities, 1376 (New York: Garland, 1991), pp. 5–21.

Sources

The Fairy Mythology (France) by Thomas Knightly (1870)
{{Fairies Hobgoblins French legendary creatures Norman folklore Canadian legendary creatures Culture of Quebec Household deities

Lutins in Quebec

Lutins in Detroit

Lutins in Newfoundland

See also

Sources