goblin

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɡɒb.lɪn/ (UK); /ˈɡɑb.lɪn/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

inherited from Middle English gobelin,^[2][3][4] borrowed from Anglo-Norman gobelin.^[2][4] A spirit called Gobelinus is named in the 12th-century Latin chronicle of Orderic Vitalis as haunting the region of Évreux in Normandy.^[4][2][5] Barnhart notes that the French word is recorded about 250 years after the English one, but its appearance in that Latin text suggests it was in use long before.^[5]

The deeper origin is uncertain.^[4] Merriam-Webster derives it, through Medieval Latin, from Greek kobalos “rogue”,^[3] and Wiktionary suggests a blend of a Germanic word related to kobold with Late Latin cobalus “mountain sprite”, from the same Greek word.^[1] Random House derives it from Middle High German kobold,^[6] while Barnhart thinks kobold is probably of different origin.^[5] Another suggestion is a diminutive of the personal name Gobel.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A mischievous and ugly demon, in a text from before 1327.^[7][4] The later Wycliffe Bible (late 14th century) renders Psalm 91 with “a gobelyn goynge in derknessis”.^[4]

Semantic evolution

The word has kept its core meaning of a small, grotesque, malicious spirit.^[2][3][6] In later fantasy fiction a goblin became an ugly, warlike humanoid, often one of a whole race.^[1] It displaced the native Old English pūca, whose descendant survives as puck.^[1]

Timeline

• 12th century – Medieval Latin Gobelinus, a spirit haunting Évreux.^[4][5]
• before 1327 – “mischievous and ugly demon”.^[7]
• late 14th century – in the Wycliffe Bible.^[4]
• 1829 – goblinish, goblinism and other derivatives.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. In folklore, a small, grotesque sprite that is mischievous or malicious toward people.
2. In fantasy fiction, an ugly, evil humanoid creature.

Word family

• hobgoblin

Related words

• kobold
• cobalt
• puck
• gremlin
• gnome

Usage notes

Random House contrasts three malevolent beings: goblins are demons of any size, often in human or animal form, that torment people, gnomes are small, ugly, old-looking beings who live underground and guard treasure, and gremlins belong to modern folklore and disrupt machinery.^[6]

References

1. [1] [2] [3] [4] Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. [1] [2] [3] [4] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. [1] [2] [3] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. [1] [2] [3] [4] Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
6. [1] [2] [3] Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. [1] [2] [3] Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press