Heimchen are house crickets (Acheta domesticus) in German folklore, said to bring luck or foretell disaster. Dwarfs might take the form of Heimchen if they enter a home. They're among the House Spirits of German folklore.
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Heimchen is a diminutive of home (Heim) in German. House crickets are gray / brown insects of the Gryllidae or "true cricket" family. They're usually found on the ground. House crickets can fly but prefer to walk.
Many cricket species have wings developed for singing, but not flight. In some the wings are short or absent. Those without wings don't chirp. The wings are highly specialized. Although female crickets may have wings they lack the sound equipment of the male.
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Heimchen is the same word in singular and plural. The house cricket can also be called Herdschmiedl (hearth smith), Haimemüese (house muse/mouse) and Heunemänken. In old German Heune translates to giant, while Mänken means little man or dwarf.
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House crickets can be kept as pets or served as food. They're among the most popular prey animals for predators including spiders, snakes, lizards, toads, frogs, bats, rats, mice, scorpions and birds, as well as parasitic insects and their own cannibal kin.
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Crickets are a delicacy of for many palates. A good source of protein and other nutrients, crickets are eaten throughout the world. They can be munched whole, roasted or ground into powder as a food additive.
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In the North and Western Palatinate if the German Rhineland, the house cricket is called Krikelmaus (krikel "to creak"; also colloquial: "cricket"; Maus is mouse). It functions as Kinderschreck to scare children into bed on time. Kinderschreck literally means "child fright".
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Other notorious bedtime bogeys include Nachtkrapp, or Night Raven; and Butzemann, the German bogeyman. They lurk in dark shadows and are both fond of snatching small children who aren't in bed on time.
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In Silesia, the chirping stridulations of the house cricket indicate a spirit of the dead nearby. Despite its tiny size the house cricket can chirp loudly, and the sound seems to come from everywhere at once. It sings by rubbing its wings together.
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The wings are serrated, with rough patches to produce the sound. A female doesn't need to stridulate, just find the male. Once the crickets mate the female produces a hundred eggs a day, to c. 3,000 in her lifetime. Crickets live about 90 days.
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From the east Czechian and east central German border, or the Vogtland, comes a local legend. The Heimchen are little men about 2 ft (0.6 m) tall. They live on a meadow in a mountain cave lit up by a massive carbuncle or garnet gem.
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Music plays and gemstones glitter everywhere. The cave entrance isn't always accessible. The Heimchen or Bergvolk (mountain folk) may be invisible to mortal eyes. They keep miniature golden sheep.
The shepherdess, Ilsa, is a young woman under enchantment. Dressed in white, perhaps a White Lady, she carries a golden shepherd's staff and waits for redemption. Revenants are many in German lore including headless horsemen, Aufhöcker, Fire Men and werewolves.
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Heimchen are associated with German primal goddess Perchta (Berchte, Percht, Berchta), who lives in a well. Like her sister goddess Frau Holle in the north, Perchta receives the spirits of children who die in infancy.
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In later lore they're the spirits of unbaptized children, howling round her cart are she passes through the mortal realm. Perchta and Holle both have the epithet "dunkle Großmutter" or Dark Grandmother. When Perchta goes out, a Heimchen sits on her nose and stridulates.
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According to Leviticus 11 of the Hebrew Bible, Yahweh decrees:
"All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. There are, however, some winged creatures that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper."
The meaning of the first line is still debated; however, crickets as food have divine approval.
In the form of small people, Heimchen can help a household or farmer to prosper. Like the domestic elves they don't like to be seen. In one story a group of Heimchen work diligently to help the town become wealthy.
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A man comes to the town and says Perchta can't be trusted, as Heimchen are the souls of unbaptized children. People avoid and vilify the Heimchen, and Perchta decides it's time to leave. She and her Heimchen cross the stream and never return.
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The chthonic aspect of Heimchen emerges in their nocturnal habits, subterranean habitats and as the humanoid manifestation of Dwarfs. Perchta connects to the underworld and spirits of the dead. She's also a benevolent guide who taught humans to spin flax into linen.
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Linked to earth and nature magic, harmony and prosperity, Heimchen relate to house and garden spirits like Kobolds and elves. Domestic elves include Heinzelmännchen (brownies) around Cologne, Germany; or Wichtelmänner in the story of the elves and the shoemaker.
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Crickets have various songs. The loud calling song attracts females and discourages other males. An aggressive song is triggered by detection of another male cricket in the area.
The courting song is produced to seduce a nearby female cricket. After mating the male cricket sings a triumphal song which may encourage the female to lay eggs instead of mating with someone else.
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House crickets can grow c. 21 mm (0.63 - 0.83 in) in length. In some areas crickets are kept as pets for luck. They're also used in cricket fighting. Crickets can be ferocious and kill each other in a fight for territory, especially in crowded conditions.
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Crickets are a good source of essential fats and they will also eat each other. This behavior happens in a swarm or depletion such natural resources as salt and protein. In this case scientists find even in an environment with edible plants, the crickets kill and eat each other.
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Crickets are omnivores, eating lettuce and vegetables, plant shoots, grains such as wheat, fruit, potatoes and aphids. They also consume insect larvae, including that of their own species, as part of their normal diet.
In the original Pinocchio, the talking cricket is an advisor without a name. When Pinocchio refuses to listen, the cricket says, "You are a puppet and what's worse, you have a head of wood". Pinocchio throws a mallet and kills the cricket.
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In Brazilian folklore, the chirp of crickets foretells an event, good or bad depending on the color of the cricket. In northern Brazil crickets portend death and are killed. In many cultures a cricket is a fortunate sign and it's bad luck to kill one.
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