The history of the Fey: Changelings
Hello! Continuing my series on the history of the Fey legends, today I talk about changelings. Fey, Fay, or Fae. Whichever way you spell it, the Fey have an interesting and diverse history. So, if you want to share any information you have about my post, feel free to comment. I'd love to hear from you!
If you’re not into folklore, you may not have heard of changelings. No, I’m not referring to the 2008 movie with Angelina Jolie. 😉
Pre-Industrial Revolution eras did not have the science or medical knowledge to explain sickness, deformities, or psychological issues. So they blamed the Fey!
As with most folklore, the stories vary. Tales of changelings can be found throughout Europe. The basic root of the stories is that a fairy would take a human baby and leave their fey baby behind.
The reason a fairy made this switch is unknown. There are differing ideas. For example, the fairy could have used the human baby as a bargaining chip with a dark force (i.e., the Devil) to better the fairy’s life in some way. Or fey babies may have been healthier if fed human milk.
Regardless of the reason, the fey baby left behind for the humans to raise would be sickly or have a deformity or appear shriveled. Or the baby was ravenous but wouldn’t grow no matter how much it ate. Even if the child appeared “normal”, it would have some behavioral issue, like ill-temperament or hyperactivity.
Human parents resorted to all kinds of methods to prove their baby or child was a changeling. Some believed if you made the changeling laugh, it would go home, and the human baby would return. Or they tricked the changeling baby into speaking, thus revealing its true age, it would leave, and the human baby would reappear. But there were other methods that were cruel and resulted in abuse or the death of the child. One such technique was to hold the baby over a fire to chase the changeling away. If this worked the changeling would leave and the fairies would return the human baby.
Parents went to great lengths to prevent the fairies from making the switch at all. Some would hang sharp knives or needles above the crib like a fairy-deterring mobile. Some even thought if you paid too much attention to a baby or child that it would attract the fairies. Apparently, fairies only wanted pretty babies, so showing too much affection or adoration for a child was risky. So, I’m pretty sure baby talk was out of the question. The sweetest, and least deadly, was to wrap the baby in its father’s clothing to keep the baby-swapping fey away.
I could keep going, but I won’t! Keep checking back for more interesting tidbits on the Fey!
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