Ouph

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An elf or fairy child, especially one secretly substituted for a human baby in folklore
2. A mischievous sprite in folklore, often thought to be a fairy child left in place of a human infant
3. The offspring of the fairy folk, traditionally believed to be swapped for a real baby and raised by humans

Etymology: "Ouph" is a variant spelling of "awf," a word for a changeling, the sickly or misshapen child a fairy was believed to have left in place of a stolen human baby. The "awf" form comes from Old Norse "álfr," meaning elf, the same root that gave English "elf" itself, so the word's story runs back to the elves of Scandinavian belief. The spelling "ouph" is the one that reached a wider audience, and it is the form most readers meet today, often in literary or folkloric contexts. Its link to "elf" is easy to miss because the sounds have shifted so far from the Norse original, yet both words descend from a single notion of a supernatural being that could swap itself for a human child.

Synonyms: changeling, elf, goblin, sprite