About This Book
This work applies comparative and historical methods to fairy mythology among Celtic and Teutonic peoples, explaining how oral storytelling, primitive ideas, and social contexts produce and transform traditional tales. It surveys narrative types and motifs — births of supernatural beings, changelings, robberies by fairies, the supernatural lapse of time, and swan-maidens — tracing variants and offering interpretive hypotheses. Emphasis falls on the art of story-telling, the variable reliability of tradition, and the need for careful collection and citation. Numerous case studies are drawn from oral and printed sources, and an appendix supplies principal authorities and bibliographical guidance.