| Boggart | |
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 Postcard illustration by Randolph Caldecott from c. 1914 for the poem "The Three Jovial Huntsmen", depicting the huntsmen encountering a "boggart" | |
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Other Names |
Boggard, Baggard, Bogerd, Boggat, Bogard, Boggerd, Boggert, Bugart, Buggard, and Buggart |
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First Appearance |
English Folklore |
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Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
A boggart is a supernatural being from English folklore. Boggarts are to be found both in and out of doors, as a household spirit, or a malevolent spirit defined by local geography, a genius loci inhabiting topographical features. It is said that the boggart crawls into people's beds at night and puts a clammy hand on their faces. Sometimes he strips the bedsheets off them. The household boggart may follow a family wherever they flee. One Lancashire source reports the belief that a boggart should never be named: if the boggart was given a name, it could neither be reasoned with nor persuaded, but would become uncontrollable and destructive.
The recorded folklore of boggarts is remarkably varied as to their appearance and size. Many are described as relatively human-like in form, though usually uncouth, very ugly and often with bestial attributes. T. Sternberg's 1851 book Dialect and Folk-lore of Northhamptonshire describes a certain boggart as "a squat hairy man, strong as a six year old horse, and with arms almost as long as tacklepoles".
Other accounts describe boggarts as having more completely beast-like forms. The "Boggart of Longar Hede" from Yorkshire was said to be a fearsome creature the size of a calf, with long shaggy hair and eyes like saucers. It trailed a long chain after itself, which made a noise like the baying of hounds. The "Boggart of Hackensall Hall" in Lancashire had the appearance of a huge horse.
At least one Lancashire boggart was said to sometimes take the forms of various animals, or indeed more fearful creatures. The boggarts of Lancashire were said to have a leader, or master, called 'Owd Hob', who had the form of a satyr or archetypical devil: horns, cloven hooves and a tail.
A piece of folklore concerning a Lancashire boggart was first published in 1861; the author, Edwin Waugh, had a conversation with an elderly couple one evening about their local boggart. They maintained that the boggart was buried at a nearby bend in the road under an ash tree, along with a cockerel with a stake driven through it. Despite being buried, the boggart was still able to create trouble. A farmer's wife, the old couple claimed, just two weeks earlier had heard doors banging in her farmhouse at night, then loud laughter; she looked out to see three candles casting blue light and a creature with red burning eyes leaping about. The following morning many marks of cloven hooves were seen outside the house. The couple claimed that the boggart had unhitched their own horse and overturned their cart on occasion. "Never name it [the boggart]" the old woman repeated, and her husband stated that he would never dig near its grave.
In one old tale, said to originate from the village of Mumby in the Lincolnshire countryside, the boggart is described as being rather squat, hairy, and smelly. In the story, a farmer offers a deal to a boggart inhabiting his land; the boggart may choose either the part of the crop that grows above the ground or the part below it. When the boggart chooses the part below the ground, the farmer plants barley; at harvest time, the boggart is left with only stubble. The boggart then demands the part above ground instead, so the farmer plants potatoes. Once again left with nothing to show for his efforts, the enraged boggart leaves the area.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Boggarts from before January 1, 1930 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Dialect and Folk-lore of Northhamptonshire (1851)
- Lancashire Sketches (1855)
- Lancashire Folklore (1867)
- Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents, and Strange Events (1874)
- Folk-Lore and Legends: English (1890)
- Legends of Longdendale (1906)
- Twenty-Four Unusual Stories for Boys and Girls (1921)
Notes[]
- They are known as "Boggles" in the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.
- In the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, boggarts change form depending on the greatest fear of the nearest person.
- Boggarts are believed to be the inspiration for the Bogeyman.