In German folklore

German folklore

German folklore shares many characteristics with Scandinavian folklore and English folklore due to their origins in a common Germanic mythology. It reflects a similar mix of influences: a pre-Christian pantheon and other beings equivalent to those of Norse mythology; magical characters associated...

, the Weisse Frauen (meaning White Women) are elven

Elf

An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...

-like spirits that may have derived from Germanic paganism

Germanic paganism

Germanic paganism refers to the theology and religious practices of the Germanic peoples of north-western Europe from the Iron Age until their Christianization during the Medieval period...

 in the form of legends of light elves (Old Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

: Ljósálfar). They are described as beautiful and enchanted

Incantation

An incantation or enchantment is a charm or spell created using words. An incantation may take place during a ritual, either a hymn or prayer, and may invoke or praise a deity. In magic, occultism, witchcraft it may be used with the intention of casting a spell on an object or a person...

 creatures who appear at noon and can be seen sitting in the sunshine brushing their hair or bathing in a brook. They may be guarding treasure or haunting castles. They entreat mortals to break their spell, but this is always unsuccessful. The mythology dates back at least to the Middle Ages and was known in the present-day area of Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

.

Origins

Weiße Frauen literally means "white women" in German. The association with the color white and their appearance in sunlight is thought by Jacob Grimm

Jacob Grimm

Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm was a German philologist, jurist and mythologist. He is best known as the discoverer of Grimm's Law, the author of the monumental Deutsches Wörterbuch, the author of Deutsche Mythologie and, more popularly, as one of the Brothers Grimm, as the editor of Grimm's Fairy...

 to stem from the original Old Norse and Teutonic mythology of alven (elves), specifically the bright Ljósálfar. These "light elves" lived in Álfheim

Álfheim

Alfheim is one of the Nine Worlds and home of the Light Elves in Norse mythology and appears also in Anglo-Scottish ballads under the form Elfhame as a fairyland, sometimes modernized as Elfland .-In Old Norse texts:Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in Old Norse texts.The...

 (part of heaven) under the fertility god Freyr

Freyr

Freyr is one of the most important gods of Norse paganism. Freyr was highly associated with farming, weather and, as a phallic fertility god, Freyr "bestows peace and pleasure on mortals"...

. As mythology evolved, elves no longer lived in Álfheim

Álfheim

Alfheim is one of the Nine Worlds and home of the Light Elves in Norse mythology and appears also in Anglo-Scottish ballads under the form Elfhame as a fairyland, sometimes modernized as Elfland .-In Old Norse texts:Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in Old Norse texts.The...

 (part of heaven) but lived on earth in nature. The White Women also may represent ancient beliefs in ancestral spirits or older native goddesses and nature spirits. Jacob Grimm

Jacob Grimm

Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm was a German philologist, jurist and mythologist. He is best known as the discoverer of Grimm's Law, the author of the monumental Deutsches Wörterbuch, the author of Deutsche Mythologie and, more popularly, as one of the Brothers Grimm, as the editor of Grimm's Fairy...

 noted in particular they might come from Holda

Holda

In Germanic folklore as established by Jacob Grimm, Frau Holda or Holle is the supernatural matron of spinning, childbirth and domestic animals, and is also associated with winter, witches and the Wild Hunt...

, "Berhta

Perchta

Perchta or Berchta , also commonly known as Percht and other variations, was once known as a goddess in Southern Germanic paganism in the Alpine countries...

, white by her very name" and Ostara. According to Grimm's Teutonic Mythology and to the Mythology of All Races Series, the enchantment under which they suffer "may be a symbol of the ban laid by Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 on the divinities of the older faith." Similar in name to the Witte Wieven

Witte Wieven

In Dutch mythology and legends, the Witte Wieven are spirits of "wise women" . The mythology dates back at least to the pre-Christian era and was known in the present-day regions of the Netherlands and Belgium and parts of France...

 of Dutch mythology, the Weisse Frauen may have come from the Germanic belief in disen

Dísir

In Norse mythology, a dís is a ghost, spirit or deity associated with fate who can be both benevolent and antagonistic towards mortal people. Dísir may act as protective spirits of Norse clans...

 or land wights

Landvættir

Landvættir are spirits of the land in Norse mythology and in Germanic neopaganism. They protect and promote the flourishing of the specific places where they live, which can be as small as a rock or a corner of a field, or as large as a section of a country.-The nature of landvættir:Some scholars...

 and alven

Elf

An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...

.

Related beings

Grimm notes the image of the Weisse Frauen basking in the sun and bathing "melts into the notion of a water-holde [i.e. Holda

Holda

In Germanic folklore as established by Jacob Grimm, Frau Holda or Holle is the supernatural matron of spinning, childbirth and domestic animals, and is also associated with winter, witches and the Wild Hunt...

] and nixe". The Weisse Frauen also have counterparts in both name and characterization in neighboring countries: In the Low Countries known as the Witte Wieven

Witte Wieven

In Dutch mythology and legends, the Witte Wieven are spirits of "wise women" . The mythology dates back at least to the pre-Christian era and was known in the present-day regions of the Netherlands and Belgium and parts of France...

, and in France known as the Dames blanches

Dames Blanches (folklore)

In French mythology or folklore, Dames Blanches were female spirits or supenatural beings, comparable to the White Women of both Dutch and Germanic mythology. The Dames Blanches were reported in the region of Lorraine and Normandy...

.

There are also many legends in German Folklore regarding "Weisse Frauen", which are actually equivalent to the legends of White Ladies

White Lady (ghost)

A White Lady is a type of female ghost reportedly seen in rural areas and associated with some local legend of tragedy. White Lady legends are found around the world. Common to many of them is the theme of losing or being betrayed by a husband or fiancé...

; ghosts of the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

.

Sources

• Bellows, Henry Adams. Grimnismol. The Poetic Edda (Princeton: Princeton UP, 1936), pp. 85–107.
• Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Norse Myths. New York: Pantheon, 1980.
• Grimm, Jacob (1835). Deutsche Mythologie (German Mythology); From English released version Grimm's Teutonic Mythology (1888); Available online by Northvegr © 2004-2007, Chapter 32, pages 2-3.
• Marshall Jones Company (1930). Mythology of All Races Series, Volume 2 Eddic, Great Britain: Marshall Jones Company, 1930, pp. 221–222.
• Reginheim. Witte wieven. 2002. (in English) File retrieved 03-08-2007.