Also called Piskies, Pobel Vean (Cornish), the little people.
The tale
Pixies, or piskies in Cornwall, are small fairy folk of the West Country. They lead travellers astray on the moors, which is called being pixie-led, and the cure is to turn your coat inside out. Some pixies helped farmers by threshing corn at night, but left if given new clothes. Cornish tradition sometimes held that they were the spirits of the old heathen people, growing smaller over time.
When they are met
- on the moors
- at harvest threshing
- Midsummer
Staying on their good side
- turn your coat inside out if you are pixie-led
- leave the last crumbs of a meal for them
- never give clothes to a pixie who helps you
Honouring them, or keeping safe
- Leave a few crumbs of bread or pasty outside for them.
- Walk the moors prepared, with a map, and enjoy the old joke of being pixie-led.
What their tales teach
- the tales teach humour in getting lost
- care on the moors
- good-natured respect
Symbols
- the turned-out coat
- the fairy ring
- the moorland path
Sources
- Hunt, Popular Romances of the West of England
- Bottrell, Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall
More Celtic folklore
- The Banshee The keening woman of the fairy mound
- Selkies The seal folk who come ashore
- The Púca The shape-shifter of November
- The Aos Sí The people of the fairy mounds
- The Kelpie The water horse of the lochs
- The Tylwyth Teg The Fair Family of Wales
- Leprechaun The solitary fairy shoemaker
- Clurichaun The fairy of the wine cellar