German nature spirits include elves, imps, fairies, dwarfs, nixies, tree spirits, solar and lunar spirits and countless other creatures who inhabit the natural world. Ancient Germanic people believed in animism, and had a strong spiritual association the environment.
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Every living thing and even rocks and clouds were imbued with essential life force manifesting as an entity or perceived as elemental or spirit energy. Spirits could manifest as animals, people of all sizes, demons, hybrids and elements of nature such as fire or a whirlwind.
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Spirits of Creation
Nature spirits were born when the Earth was young. The Earth Mother Nerthe (Nerthus, Erthe, Erde) is one of the ancient deities, a creator and elemental goddess. She appears in Lora Ley - Book One - Secrets of the Nyx. In German, the noun Erde is feminine and means earth.
German creation myths are sparse. Mythology, folklore and history were oral traditions passed down through countless generations. The Germanic tribes had no written language. In the North, the Norse evolved their own belief system from the time they settled in Scandinavia, including the familiar written fragments. The earliest runic inscriptions of the Norse appear in the 2nd century.
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Written Mythology
Most information about German history, culture, belief systems, traditions and mythology comes from the Roman writer Tacitus and his Germania of 98 CE, in Latin with plenty of second-hand information. Tacitus never went to the German lands and apparently got most of his information from first-hand accounts which are now lost.
The earliest German texts date back to the late 8th century. They include translation assistance for those learning to read Latin, and translations of Latin Christian texts (prayers, creeds, confessions) for use in missionary or pastoral work.
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As time went by some of the Christian beliefs found their way into the Old High German works of ~ 750 - 1050. Nibelungenlied, tales of the Germanic hero Siegfried, hit the medieval shelves in 1200, the Middle High German period.
The recognition of Nerthe as a primordial Earth Goddess spread across tribal and geographical boundaries. Was it she alone who created the lands, rivers, seas and skies? There's evidence of the Sky God Ziu, an older German version of Norse god Tyr. Entymology points to the same root meaning "God".
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Evolution of Nature Spirits
Of tumultuous Earth and cosmic skies the Sun was born. She regulated the cycles of nature and seasons. The spirits of nature appear as their elements emerged from the clutches of chaos - nixies, river and sea spirits arise with elemental water, solar spirits with fire, tree spirits, moss people, imps, elves and dwarfs came forth from the earth. Metallurgists and gemologists, the Dwarfs were among the first nature spirits and helped forge the earth from fire.
Demons are also born of fire and many, such as Harvest Demons, function as elemental nature spirits. Nature spirits have powers of creation as well as destruction, never in equal balance.
The Sun is a female deity Sonne, who drives her golden chariot across the sky accompanied by a wolf. In Norse lore the Wolf chases the Sun Goddess Sol, trying to catch her, and will do so at the end of the world. In Lora Ley - Book 3 - the Swan Maidens, the wolf is the companion of Sonne.
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The Moon is a male deity who reflects the light of Sonne when she disappears at day's end. He also rules tides. Nature spirits continued to evolve with the lands and seas. Some faded away and some became stronger. By the time humans started scuttling around, the Nature spirits had created much of the known world.
The Rhine River was called Renos by the Celts, who were just emerging as a people. They inhabited a large part of Germania in the Bronze Age, about 3000 BCE. The Later Latin translation is Rhenus, Rhenus Pater or Father Rhine. He's the god of all fresh water: lakes, rivers, streams, ponds. The name of the Neckar River in Heidelberg also comes from the Celtic Nek or Nekk, meaning 'wild one', Nyx or nixie.
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From there the tradition of nature worship and animism continue to develop as life gets more complex and new knowledge comes to light. Everything has a spirit. You can't take a step backward without stepping on an imp. And they bite!
Solar spirits dance on the water to make it sparkle, or touch the trees and flowers with their light. Nixies play in the rivers like fish and Dwarfs celebrate the bounty of fire and earth. Animals tiny as ants or fearsome as Bear have essential wisdom to share.
The people of Germania lived very much in the present. They didn't believe in an afterlife, but destiny was predetermined. This made them ferocious fighters because they knew if it was their time to die they would. In the warrior mentality it's better to go out in a blaze of glory than cowering behind a bush hoping the arrows miss.
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Spirits live in the breeze and morning fog. They are part of the magic of nature and have taught many secrets to humans. Even today in Saxony, the little Wood Women will come out of the forest to help heal the sick.
Harvest Spirits & Kinderschrecken
As time went by, humans formed agrarian societies, replacing a previous nomadic lifestyle decreed by availability of food and other natural resources. Agriculture spirits were just as real as the earth and sky, and a whole new category cropped up in the spirit anthology. In the North, Thor was the agriculture and weather god. In the South, harvest spirits prevailed.
Spirits weren't always nice to humans. Some preferred to avoid contact with mortals entirely, while others carried trickster elements and some are just plain deadly. Kinderschrecken developed in folk tales to make children behave, and keep them away from dangerous places such as wells, marshes and the deep thick forests.
The mythology of nature spirits changed as tales were told. Nixies became evil, snatching children into wells or swamps. Witches evolved as malevolent beings and many lived in the woods, as did malicious elves, not to mention sinister flora and fauna such as Irrwurz plant, the voracious Lindwyrm or the bad-tempered Eschenfrau who inhabits ash trees.
Monsters sprang from natural phenomena, propaganda and vivid imaginations. Elves and imps could befuddle one's senses and the danger is more terrifying if a person is out after dark. Butzemann lurks in the shadows to grab children. The dread Hafermann hunts at night.
And so, humans and nature spirits kept a wary distance. Some spirits became synonymous with fear and evil. Some ruled the harvest or weather. Some started fires. Elves and imps were considered the tools of death-dealing witches.
At one time, nature spirits were responsible for much of the beauty of the Earth and skies and breathtaking natural marvels. The hierarchy of the natural order fell into place. As the human population grew and with it distrust, the world became a more dangerous place for spirits and mortals.
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As agriculture planted people in one place, building their habitations from available resources, it was even more important to appease the spirits. In Sweden the Temple of Uppsala was dedicated to sacrifice in hopes of appeasing nature spirits. Only the male of each species, including human, was sacrificed. Soon, the mentality shifted and the need to appease the spirits was replaced by the desire to oppress and control them.
Rise of Evil Spirits
In harvest tradition the demonic Roggenmuhme is the essential anti-mother with toxic teats. In the forest, the Lindwyrm and its dragon kin become targets for knights and sword-wielding slayers. By the Rhine, the beautiful Lorelei (Loreley) sings men to their doom, her romantic legend based on the old tales of nixies and dwarfs.
Celebrations such as Carnival (Karnival, Karnivale) with riotous revelry go back to pagan times when people wore animal costumes to channel the power of the beast, and made noise to scare evil spirits away in the dark, cold months when the Undead roam. While the Germans initially had no belief in an afterlife, the Undead were alive and well in folk mythology. Creatures such as werewolves, Nachzehrer (vampires) and Headless Horsemen could spread disease, curses and death.
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With the rise of Christianity, Germania underwent a slow but steady transformation. All nature spirits became evil, even those who hadn't been before. Ancient goddesses became hag-like witches cavorting with the Devil and using supernatural powers to harm people.
For every pagan day of celebration, religious authorities paraded a Christian saint instead. Religion became God-centric instead of nature-centric, esoteric instead of relating to the common person, future oriented instead of gratification in the moment. However it did promise an afterlife and protection from evil spirits. Baptismal robes became a barbarian fashion fad. According to records, "converts" would get baptized several times just to stock up the wardrobe.
For a while, many people worshipped the pagan entities and those of Christianity. A Christianized Norse king decreed Yule should be held at the same time as Christmas. Haakon the Good was a devout Christian and hoped to spread the religion in Norway. In the end, he went back to the Old Ways.
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As civilization flourished many nature spirits preferred to avoid contact with humans. They were tired of being offended by zealous nature deniers, and exorcism attempts were just plain annoying. The human ideology no longer offered respect and homage to the spirits of nature.
Many of the old spirits went into the earth and water, deep into the forests or their immortal realms. Some, such as the Kobold and other house spirits, were comfortable in human company and found their niches in domestic life.
Malevolent creatures like the Mare attacked humans in their sleep, and rode horses to exhaustion. The concept of afterlife also created such fearsome entities as ghosts, the spirits of the dead. Demons and imps now worked for the Christian Devil, and mythology incorporated new realms of belief.
Evil real or imagined lurks in the forests and hills and places people once found comfort. The people needed to exert control over forces of nature and ancient mythologies they no longer understood. Old spirits became subservient to those of the conquerors.
And yet, they wait.
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