German folklore is rich in traditions and legends where the goblins they are usually the main protagonists. Thus, the townspeople had the belief that these little characters caused quite harmful jokes and caused diseases to livestock, people and even, cause nightmares to the sleepers. In fact, 'albtraum', the German word for a 'bad dream', means 'elf dream'.
The archaic way aldbruck, on the other hand, it means 'the pressure of the goblin' because it was believed that nightmares were produced by the pressure that the small creatures exerted on the head of the sleeper. In this sense, the German belief in goblins corresponds to the Scandinavian superstition about the 'mara' and is also similar to the legends related to the demons incubus and sucubus.
Other stories feature the goblin king surrounded by his retinue of elves and in the great German epic of the Middle Ages (Nibelungenlied) a dwarf named Alberich plays an important role.. "Alberich" it is literally translated as "sovereign goblin", which later evolved to mean "dwarf-goblin". This modification is already observed in the early Eddas. Alberich, took the name Alberon in French and incorporated into English as Oberon, king of elves and fairies in the dramatic comedy "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by William Shakespeare.
The legend of The Erlkönig Apparently originating in Denmark in recent times, it has been the subject of debate. The name translates literally from German as "King Alder" much better than its more common English translation: "Elf King." In German it became Elfenkönig. On the other hand, it has often been suggested that Erlkönig is a poor translation of the original Danish Elverkonge or elverkonge, which means "elf king".
According to German and Danish folklore, the Erlkönig represents a harbinger of death, like the evil fairy in Irish mythology, who will appear only to the fainting person on their deathbed. According to his expression, the recumbent will understand what kind of death he will have: a hurt expression means a painful death, peaceful expressions mean a peaceful death.
In the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, The shoemaker and the goblins, a group of small naked creatures called Heinzelmänchen they help a shoemaker to carry out his work that rewards his work by giving them small clothes; delighted with their gift, they run so far that they are never seen again.
Magical and mischievous beings who still live in Germany, if you can look properly.
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