The Pixie Glade

Within this underground glade are random ramblings about pixies. Feel free to wander, and when you leave, remember the pixies. It doesn't take much effort to leave them a bowl of water to play in.

Pixies | Colt-pixies | Origins | The Godshill Pixies

Pixies

Pixies are a type of fairy who originated in Britain, also known as piskies, pigsies and pexies. There are numerous stories about pixies, most originating from areas of Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. The appearance of pixies varies between stories, but generally they are dressed in green, with red hair, and pointed ears. They usually fly by levitation, rather than having wings.

Pixies are fun-loving. One of the favourite activities for a pixie is to play in water, and they greatly appreciate a bowl of water left out for this purpose. They also like to dance by moonlight. Some pixie pastimes are more annoying for humans, though they aren't intended to harm. Some pixies like to play practical jokes on people. The most common of these is to confuse travellers with illusions so that they become lost (hence the term pixie-led to mean someone led astray or confused). It is said that wearing your coat insideout will stop a pixie from misguiding you. The humans who claim this works say it is because it confuses the pixie, though they've never asked the pixies themselves! Another possible explanation is that the pixies find the sight funny, and have no need to play tricks for fun after that amusement. On the other hand, pixies also do helpful things. Like brownies, they will come and do household chores during the night. In some areas of Cornwall, a small hole use to be left through the wall of houses, so that the pixies could enter.

Pixies are very much like humans as far as their behaviour goes. They aren't perfect in every way, nor are they evil and malevolent. If you ever meet a pixie, remember that it's character can vary greatly from others of it's kind - treat it as an individual.

Colt-pixies

In most stories a colt-pixie is a horse which leads other horses astray by neighing and getting the horses to follow. However, there are also tales of colt-pixies protecting apple orchards from apple thieves.

Origins

One explanation for where pixies came from is to say that they are demons not evil enough for hell. This is a typical example of the sort of beliefs the church spread to discredit old beliefs, so is unlikely to be true (pixies have been known to take interest in matters involving churches, which they wouldn't do if they were evil demonic creatures - see the God's Hill story). Pixies certainly don't behave in a way that can be described as anything worse than mischievous.

Another explanation is that they are the souls of unbaptised children who died. This could also be an attempt to discredit pixies, or it could be an honest mistake. The view that butterflies and moths are the souls of unbaptised children was a common one in many areas. In some pixie areas, there is a type of moth called a pigsie, a name also used for the pixies themselves. The similarity in name could well have caused confusion about what type of pigsie was being refered to.

The more popular view of where they come from is the same as with most fairies: pixies come from the land of Faerie. This place has numerous names, and confused descriptions. Some humans claim it is an underground kingdom, some claim it is an distant island, and more recently, some claim it is a separate dimension, linked to this one. It is also said that the pixies have their own realm within the land of Faerie, called pixieland. The nature of the land of Faerie is hard to be accurate about as so few have visited this place, and most that do stay for such a short time.

The Godshill Pixies

In Godshill, on the Isle of Wight, UK, lucky pixie charms are sold. This is a retelling of the story that comes with these charms: In the beginning of the 15th Century, the villagers discussed where they should build their new church. A field at the centre of the village was chosen, and work began to lay the foundations. The next day, all the work had been undone, and the building materials had been moved to the top of a nearby hill. It was decided that it must have been the pixies who had moved the material. The pixies must want the church to be built on the hill. The villagers took the pixies advice, and built the church on the hill, which later came to be known as God's Hill.