Finfolk
In
The Finfolk
Finman
The Finman is described as being tall and thin with a stern, gloomy face. He is said to have many magical powers, such as rowing between Norway and Orkney in seven oar-strokes, making his ship invisible and creating fleets of phantom boats. He avoids human contact, but is extremely territorial and will wreak havoc on the boats of any fishermen trespassing in 'his' waters, though he may sometimes be deterred by drawing a cross on the bottom of a craft with chalk or tar, for Finfolk abhor the sign of the Christian cross above any other device. The Finman was said to be very crafty and ever prepared to cheat men out of their silver or wives.
Finwife
The Finwife starts her life as a beautiful
Homes
The Finfolk were said to have two homes: the magical underwater world of Finfolkaheem where they lived in the winter, and the island of Hildaland.
Finfolkaheem
According to folklore, the underwater dwelling of the Finfolk, known as Finfolkaheem (literally "Finfolk's Home")[2] is regarded as the place of origin for the Finfolk, and their ancestral home. A fantastic underwater palace with massive crystal halls, Finfolkaheem is surrounded, inside and out, by ornate gardens of multi-coloured seaweed. It is never dark in Finfolkaheem, because it is lit by the bioluminescent glow of tiny sea creatures at night. Its great halls and vast rooms are decorated with moving underwater draped curtains whose colours move and dance with the currents.
Hildaland
Hildaland (literally 'Hidden Land'),[3] a paradisiacal island that was said to either be invisible, hidden just underwater, or surrounded by magical fog. Whichever, it was rarely glimpsed by humans, and young men and women stolen away there never returned. Nowadays, many people associate the very real island of Eynhallow with the magical Hildaland, touting the tale of The Farmer of Evie[4] as the reason that Hildaland/Eynhallow is now visible and relatively non-magical, though some would say otherwise.[5]
Human abduction
Unlike the "selkies" made famous by "The Great Silkie of Sule Skerry", the Finfolk are neither romantic nor friendly. Instead of courting the prospective spouse, Finfolk simply abduct them. Regarded as territorial and greedy, the Finfolk, in addition to their lust for humans, have a weakness for silver, including silver coins and jewelry. According to legend, a possible way to escape abduction is to exploit this Finfolk weakness by tossing silver coins away from oneself. The motivation for the amphibious abductions are inspired, in part, because marriage to a human is preferred over other Finfolk.
To capture the unsuspecting human bride or groom, the Orkney Finfolk cunningly disguise themselves and their fins as other sea animals, plants or even as floating clothes. The Finfolk kidnapping attempt begins by approaching the prospective mate cautiously, floating ever closer, until it is possible to leap up and grab the victim. The Finmen often use another tactic, appearing in human form disguised as
Married life
Whatever the method of abduction, the hapless human captive is ferried away (often screaming)[4] to the floating, and sometimes disappearing, mystical island of Hildaland, where the rest of one's days are spent performing rigorous duties as either the husband to the Finwife, or wife to the Finman. Yet another compelling reason for Finfolk intermarriage with humans is that, should a Finwife marry a Finman, she loses both her beauty and mystical charm. As she ages (without a human husband), her ugliness increases in increments of seven years until she becomes the Finwife hag.
References
- ^ "Johnny Croy and his Mermaid Bride". Orkneyjar. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Finfolkaheem, The Ancestral home of the Finfolk". Orkneyjar. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Hildaland, the Summer home of the Finfolk". Orkneyjar. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ a b "The Freeing of Eynhallow". Orkneyjar. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "The Eynhallow Riddle". Orkneyjar. 1990-07-14. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "The Mermaid Daughter of the Finfolk". Orkneyjar. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
References in Orkney folklore
- The Folklore of Orkney and Shetland Marwick, Ernest, W. Batsford, London 1975 ISBN 0-7134-2999-2
- ISBN 0-14-044383-5
- "Orkneyjar: the Heritage of the Orkerney Islands" Towrie S., Website 1996 - 2006
Modern renditions
- A Time to Keep and Other Stories, ISBN 0-8149-0929-9
- The Wheel of the Finfolk, R. E. Jackson, illustrated by Peter Warner, Capricorn Books, 1984, ISBN 0-7011-0487-2
- The Bone Flute, Daniel Allison, House of Legends, 2019, ISBN 978-1709378720