Will o' the wisp

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For other uses, see Will o' the wisp (disambiguation).

The will o' the wisp or ignis fatuus, or in plural form as ignes fatui ("fool's fire(s)") is the phenomenon of ghostly lights sometimes seen at night or in twilight hovering over damp ground in still air, often over bogs. It looks like a flickering lamp. The will o' the wisp is said to recede if approached. Much folklore has attached to the legend, despite possible scientific explanations.

1 Terminology
2 Folklore
- 2.1 Other traditions
3 Theories of origin
4 In popular culture
5 Other titles
6 Notes
7 See also
8 Sources

[edit] Terminology

The name "Will-o'-the-wisp", or "Will of the wisp" (a wisp is a bundle of hay or straw often used to start fires) is very similar to "Jack o' lantern" ("Jack of the Lantern"), and indeed the two terms were originally synonymous (OED Concise). The names "Jacky Lantern" and "Jack the Lantern" persist in the oral tradition in Newfoundland. The lights are also often referred to as corpse candles, as in the Denham Tracts and by J. R. R. Tolkien, hobby lanterns (another term from the Denham Tracts), or by any of the various names having to do with what one supposes the lights to be (ghosts, elementals, etc.). Briggs's A Dictionary of Fairies provides an extensive list of names for the same phenomenon.

[edit] Folklore

The names will o' the wisp and jack o' lantern refer to an old folktale, retold in different forms across Ireland, Scotland, England, Appalachia and Newfoundland. One version, from Shropshire, recounted by K. M. Briggs in her book A Dictionary of Fairies, refers to Will the Smith. Will is a wicked blacksmith who is given a second chance by Saint Peter at the gates to Heaven, but leads such a bad life that he ends up being doomed to wander the Earth. The Devil provides him with a single burning coal with which to warm himself, which he then used to lure foolish travellers into the marshes (compare Wayland Smith). An Irish version of the tale has a ne'er-do-well named Drunk Jack or Stingy Jack who makes a deal with the Devil; offering up his soul in exchange for payment of his pub tab. When the Devil comes to collect his due, Jack tricks him by making him climb a tree and then carving a cross underneath, preventing him from climbing down. In exchange for removing the cross, the Devil forgives Jack's debt. However, as no one as bad as Jack would ever be allowed into Heaven, Jack is forced upon his death to travel to Hell and ask for a place there. The Devil denies him entrance, but, as a boon, grants Jack an ember from the fires of Hell to light his way through the twilight world to which lost souls are forever condemned. Jack places it in a carved turnip to serve as a lantern. [1]

[edit] Other traditions

Among European rural people, especially in Gaelic and Slavic folk cultures, the Will o' the wisps are held to be mischievous spirits of the dead or other supernatural beings attempting to lead travellers astray (compare Puck). Sometimes they are believed to be the spirits of unbaptized or stillborn children, flitting between heaven and hell (compare Wilis). Modern occultist elaborations bracket them with the salamander, a type of spirit wholly independent from humans (unlike ghosts, which are presumed to have been humans at some point in the past). They also fit the description of certain types of fairy, which may or may not have originated as human souls.

Finns, Danes and Baltic people amongst some other groups believed that a Will o' the wisp marked the location of a treasure deep in ground or water, which could be taken only when the fire was there. Sometimes magical tricks were required as well, to uncover the treasure. In Finland and other northern countries it was believed that midsummer was the best time to search for Will o' the wisps and treasures below them. It was believed that when someone hid treasure in the ground, (s)he made the treasure available only at the midsummer, and set Will o' the wisp to mark the exact place and time so that (s)he could come to take the treasure back. Finns also believed that the creature guarding the treasure used fire to clean precious metals bright again. Yet another Finnish explanation of Will o' the wisp was that it was a ghost of a dead child.

The Will o' the wisp can be found in numerous folk tales around the British Isles, and is often a malicious character in the stories. Wirt Sikes in his book British Goblins mentions a Welsh tale about a Will o' the wisp (Pwca). A peasant travelling home at dusk spots a bright light travelling along ahead of him. Looking closer, he sees that the light is a lantern held by a "dusky little figure" which he follows for several miles. All of a sudden he finds himself standing on the edge of a vast chasm with a roaring torrent of water rushing below him. At that precise moment the lantern carrier leaps across the gap, lifts the light high over its head, lets out a malicious laugh and blows out the light, leaving the poor peasant a long way from home, standing in pitch darkness at the edge of a precipice. This is a fairly common cautionary tale concerning the phenomenon; however, the Ignis Fatuus were not always considered dangerous. There are some tales told about the Will o' the wisp being guardians of treasure, much like the Irish leprechaun leading those brave enough to follow them to sure riches. Other stories tell of travelers getting lost in the woodland and coming upon a Will o' the wisp and depending on how they treated the Will o' the wisp, the spirit would either get them lost further in the woods or guide them out.

In Guernsey, the light is known as the faeu boulanger (rolling fire), and is believed to be a lost soul. On being confronted with the spectre, tradition prescribes two remedies. The first is to turn one's cap or coat inside out. This has the effect of stopping the faeu boulanger in its tracks. The other solution is to stick a knife into the ground, handle up. The faeu, in an attempt to kill itself, will attack the blade<ref>Folklore of Guernsey by Marie de Garis (1986) ASIN: B0000EE6P8 </ref>. This latter explanation may indicative of the theory that Will o' the Wisps are caused by ball lightning, the knife acting as a lightning rod.

A small side note indicates an interesting thought of Will o' the wisp. One Asian theologist ponders the relation of Will o' the wisp to that of the foxfire produced from Kitsune, an interesting way of combining mythology of the West with that of the East. ^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Theories of origin

One possible naturalistic and scientific explanation for such phenomena is that the oxidation of hydrogen phosphide and methane gases produced by the decay of organic material may cause glowing lights to appear in the air. Experiments, for example, done by the Italian chemists Luigi Garlaschelli and Paolo Boschetti, have replicated the lights by adding chemicals to the gases formed by rotting compounds. Critics claim that this theory does not easily account for reported cases which claim lights bob, swoop, soar upwards or downwards, or move against the wind.

William Corliss writes, in Remarkable Luminous Phenomena in Nature (Sourcebook Project,[2] Glen Arm, MD, 2001:290): "No satisfactory mechanism has been demonstrated whereby gases escaping from marshy areas will spontaneously ignite. Furthermore, most low-level nocturnal lights are cold—not what one would expect from burning methane. Also, no one has explained how clouds of luminous gas can maintain size and shape while engaging in erratic maneuvers over many minutes."

Others believe bioluminescent effects (e.g. honey fungus) cause the light. Other explanations include causes similar to ball lightning.

More recently, under the broader banner of 'Earth Lights', pseudoscientific theories as to how they are produced have been put forward by Professors Derr & Persinger, and Paul Devereux (who, in some circles, is considered the 'authority' on earth lights of various kinds, including ball lightning, St. Elmo's Fire and lights associated with earthquakes). Derr & Persinger put forward the theory that earth lights may be generated by tectonic strain. (NB. These are faults in the earths crust, similar to, indeed including, earthquake faults.) The theory goes that the strain causes heat in the rocks, vaporising the water in them. Piezoelectric rocks such as quartz then produce electricity, which is channeled up through this column of vaporised water, until it reaches the surface—somehow displaying itself in the form of earth lights. This theory would assert that the majority of earth lights are seen over places of tectonic strain. If it is correct, it would explain why such lights often behave in an erratic and even seemingly intelligent manner, often defying the laws of gravity. Paul Devereux's explanation, however, is much broader. He thinks that the link between the lights and the landscape is more tenuous. He says that they are probably related to many things: tectonic strain, weather conditions, local geography, 'ley lines', terrain, water table depth and so forth. This explanation, however, is rejected by most experts as highly unscientific.

Other similar theoretical explanations, however, involving light emanating from naturally occurring electric currents do not involve pseudoscientific elements. Also, electric-based theories more easily account for the claimed seemingly free movement of the lights and claims that the lights react upon the introduction of nearby objects (e.g. humans).

Another theory was put forward claiming these lights are barn owls with luminescent plumage. Hence the possibility of them floating around, reacting to other lights, etc. See A Review of accounts of luminosity in Barn Owls Tyto alba.

[edit] In popular culture

Main article: Will o' the wisps in popular culture

[edit] Other titles

The phenomenon is also known as:

Boi-tata
Corpse Fire – this name comes from lights appearing specifically within graveyards where it was believed the lights were an omen of death or coming tragedy and would mark the route of a future funeral, from the victim's house to the graveyard.
Corpse Light or Corpse Candle (in late 19th and early 20th century Newfoundland)
Dwaallicht, meaning "wandering light" in Dutch, luring people deep into peat bogs for no apparent reason.
Foxfire
Friar's Lantern
Hinkypunk in the West Country (probably derived from the Welsh Pwca (Puck))
The Hobby Lantern - used in Hertfordshire, East Anglia, and in Warwickshire & Gloucestershire as Hobbedy's Lantern
Irrlicht, german expression which derives from "irre(n)" with several meanings such as crazy, foolish, to get lost and to search and "Licht" equal to light. It is an evil ghost in German medieval fairy tales apearing as a glowing sphere of light in the dark woods, seducing people to leave the roads and pass into the woods.
Jack-o'-lantern
Jacky Lantern or Jack the Lantern (in Newfoundland)
Kolli vai pisaasu - a Tamil term used to describe a ghost (pisaasu) with burning embers (kolli) in its mouth (vai). There is a contention whether both will o' the wisp and kolli vai pisaasu are the same. Visit the Tamil Wiki.
Liderc, or Lidérc, a demon of Hungarian folklore that flies at night in the form of fiery light, scattering flames.
Luz Mala, meaning "evil light" in Argentina and some parts of South America. They are believed to be wandering, malevolent ghosts.
Peg-a-Lantern in Lancashire, or Jenny-with-the-lantern in Northumbria and Yorkshire
Saint Elmo's Fire
Spunkie – a Scots name used in the Scottish Lowlands.
Vaett Lys is the name given to Will o'the Wisp in Norway, having the literal meaning of "Vaett's Candle," the Vaett being a kind of goblin of dwarfish stature, believed to dwell in mounds.<ref>Notes and Queries Vol. 6 (140) Jul 3, 1852 Page 17.</ref>
Virvatuli "flickering fire" and aarnivalkea "treasure fire" are amongst the many Finnish names for this phenomenon. It is also called liekkiö ("flamey") when it is believed to be a ghost of a murdered child.
Walking Fire
鬼火 (onibi) Japanese for Will o'Wisp, it translates to "ghost/devil fire." It's sometimes associated with or mistaken for the trickster 人魂 (hitodama or "human soul"), blue or green floating balls of fire assumed to be souls of people with unfinished business.