Source etymology 1 · variant 1/2
Original entry ↗A supernatural being or spirit associated with illness, mischief, and harmful or dangerous magical influence; in later Norse sources, sometimes divided into benevolent light elves (inhabiting Álfheimr) and malevolent dark elves. · A small, magical creature similar to a fairy, often mischievous, playful, or occasionally helpful. · A member of a race of tall, slender, graceful beings with pointed ears, typically immortal or very long-lived and possessing wisdom and magical abilities. · Ellipsis of Christmas elf.
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *albʰósder. Proto-Germanic *albiz Proto-West Germanic *albi Old English ielf Middle English elf English elf From Middle English elf, from Old English ielf, ælf, from Proto-West Germanic *albi, from Proto-Germanic *albiz. Ultimately probably derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₂elbʰós (“white”). Doublet of alf, awf, and oaf. The modern fantasy literature sense was popularised by the works of J. R. R. Tolkien.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
This page abbreviates 2 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.
Inspect preserved source fields
Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.
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"expansion": "Etymology tree\nProto-Indo-European *albʰósder.\nProto-Germanic *albiz\nProto-West Germanic *albi\nOld English ielf\nMiddle English elf\nEnglish elf\n[Appendix:Glossary#derived_terms|Derived]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"white\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*albʰós\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*albiz\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gem-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-West Germanic\", \"term\" : \"*albi\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"gmw-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Old English\", \"term\" : \"ielf\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"ang\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"elf\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"elf\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"elf\">"
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"expansion": "Middle English elf"
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"expansion": "Old English ielf"
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{
"name": "inh",
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"name": "inh",
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{
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"expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *h₂elbʰós (“white”)"
},
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}
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{
"lang": "Arabic",
"lang_code": "ar",
"word": "إِلْف",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
],
"roman": "ʔilf"
},
{
"lang": "Dutch",
"lang_code": "nl",
"word": "elf",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
]
},
{
"lang": "French",
"lang_code": "fr",
"word": "elfe",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
]
},
{
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"word": "Elf",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
]
},
{
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"word": "Elfe",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
]
},
{
"lang": "Japanese",
"lang_code": "ja",
"word": "エルフ",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
],
"roman": "erufu"
},
{
"lang": "Korean",
"lang_code": "ko",
"word": "엘프",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
],
"roman": "elpeu"
},
{
"lang": "Russian",
"lang_code": "ru",
"word": "эльф",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
],
"roman": "elʹf"
},
{
"lang": "Ukrainian",
"lang_code": "uk",
"word": "ельф",
"raw_tags": [
"borrowed"
],
"roman": "elʹf"
}
],
"lexical": [
{
"pos": "noun",
"glosses": [
"A supernatural being or spirit associated with illness, mischief, and harmful or dangerous magical influence; in later Norse sources, sometimes divided into benevolent light elves (inhabiting Álfheimr) and malevolent dark elves.",
"A small, magical creature similar to a fairy, often mischievous, playful, or occasionally helpful.",
"A member of a race of tall, slender, graceful beings with pointed ears, typically immortal or very long-lived and possessing wisdom and magical abilities.",
"Ellipsis of Christmas elf."
],
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