Etymology

erlking

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Today it means: In German literature and modern folklore, a malicious elf or spirit who preys on children. Full definition →

German Erlkönig ← Danish ellerkonge
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The story

  1. Danish · derived fromellerkonge“king of the elves”
  2. German · calque ofErlkönig
  3. English todayerlking

Partial calque of German Erlkönig (literally “alder-king”), a mistranslation of Danish ellerkonge (“king of the elves”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.