Alp (folklore)

Lore & Background

In medieval sources before about 1000, the Old High German word alp is attested only in a small number of glosses, defined as a 'nature-god or nature-demon, equated with the Fauns of Classical mythology ... regarded as eerie, ferocious beings ... As the mare he messes around with women.' The German word Alpdruck (literally 'elf-oppression') means 'nightmare.' In Middle High German, elves are most often associated with deceiving or bewildering people, as in the proverbial phrase 'die elben/der alp trieget mich' (the elves/elf is/are deceiving me). In later medieval prayers, elves appear as threatening, even demonic forces, as seen in Latin prayers on lead amulets and the fourteenth-century Münchener Nachtsegen. In the early modern period, elves in Northern Germany were described as doing the evil bidding of witches; Martin Luther believed his mother to have been afflicted in this way.

Reader's Guide

The Alp holds significance in German folklore as a supernatural being that explains sleep paralysis and nightmares, with the term Alptraum ('elf-dream') persisting in modern German for 'nightmare.' Its characteristics, such as the Tarnkappe and shapeshifting abilities, connect it to broader European traditions of elves, incubi, and vampires. The Alp's role in medieval and early modern texts reflects evolving perceptions from nature-demon to demonic force, influencing later folklore and literature. The word Alp declined in use after the medieval period but survived in fossilized forms like Alptraum. In the twentieth century, J. R. R. Tolkien recommended using the older German form Elb, which was introduced in the 1972 German translation of The Lord of the Rings, helping repopularize the form in German. The Alp's legacy endures in cultural references to nightmares and sleep paralysis, as well as in fantasy fiction that revived the concept of elves.

Did You Know?

• The Alp wears a magic cloak called a Tarnkappe, from which it draws its powers.
• The German word Alptraum ('elf-dream') means 'nightmare.'
• An Alp attack, called Alpdruck, involves the Alp sitting on a sleeper's chest and causing paralysis.
• People with eyebrows that meet are suspected to be Alpe.

Nature & Identity

The alp occupies a peculiar niche in German supernatural taxonomy. Unlike the vampire or the incubus, it derives its supernatural power from a specific enchanted garment known as the Tarnkappe, a magic cloak that sets it apart from both creatures it is often compared to. The word itself is the German cognate of "elf," both tracing back to a shared Common Germanic root, and the creature appears under a constellation of alternative names including trud, mar, mart, mahr, schrat, and walrider. In most tellings the alp is male, while the mara and mart function as more feminine counterparts of the same entity. Its victims skew heavily toward women, whom it targets during the night hours. Though sexual assault by the alp is described as rare, the creature does drink blood from the nipples of men and young children, with a particular fondness for breast milk. In many traditions it is classified outright as a demon, though some accounts frame it as the lingering spirit of a recently deceased relative, blurring the line between malevolent supernatural and ghostly presence.

The Nightmare & Sleep Paralysis

The most visceral and widely recognized aspect of the alp is its nocturnal assault on sleeping humans. The German compound Alpdruck, literally "elf-oppression," describes the specific attack in which the creature settles astride a sleeper's chest and grows progressively heavier until the crushing weight jolts the victim awake, gasping and unable to move. This experience, also called Alpdrücke or "elf-pressure," has long been understood as a folk explanation for what modern medicine identifies as sleep paralysis, sleep apnea, and night terrors, and may even encompass certain forms of lucid dreaming. The German word for nightmare itself, Alptraum, translates as "elf-dream," preserving the creature's name in everyday vocabulary. In Teutonic tradition the alpe were originally conceived as friendly, mountain-dwelling elf-like beings, but over time their character darkened into something malevolent. The physicality of the attack—sitting, pressing, weighing down—gives the alp a distinctly corporeal menace that distinguishes it from more ethereal supernatural threats.

Medieval Literary & Religious Presence

In medieval German sources the alp and its elf-cognates appear far more as abstract forces than as named characters. Before roughly 1000, the Old High German word survives only in a handful of glosses, where it is defined as a nature-demon comparable to the Fauns of classical mythology—eerie, ferocious, and specifically a threat to women. By the Middle High German period, the dominant motif shifts to deception: the phrase "the elves are deceiving me" recurs so frequently it borders on proverbial. Heinrich von Morungen's early thirteenth-century Minnesang captures the seductive dimension, equating bewitchment by elves with being overcome by great love. Yet in later medieval prayers, particularly the fourteenth-century Münchener Nachtsegen and Latin incantations carved into lead amulets from southern Scandinavia and Schleswig, elves take on an openly demonic character. Martin Luther reportedly believed his own mother had been afflicted by elves acting on witches' behalf. In heroic poetry, elves are largely conflated with dwarves, as seen in the figure of Alberich—whose name etymologically means "elf-powerful"—who in the epic Ortnit is revealed as the true, rapist-father of the hero.

Mischief, Decline & Modern Revival

Beyond its terrifying nocturnal attacks, the alp is credited with a catalogue of domestic mischief that echoes the trickster behavior of elves in other traditions. It sours milk, tangles hair into so-called "elfknots," chews and twists horse tails, and rides horses to exhaustion through the night. Smaller farm animals, particularly geese, may be crushed to death during a pressing attack, and cows are drained of milk because the creature savors the taste. A maid who fails to sign a cross on a baby's diaper risks the alp returning the soiled garment to the child. In the German-speaking world the word alp gradually fell out of common use after the medieval period, surviving mainly in fossilized compounds like Alptraum. Later folkloric variants include the moss people and the Weiße Frauen, or "White Women." The creature's magic cloak and mischievous nature also draw parallels to the Kobold, especially the figure Hodekin. In the twentieth century, J. R. R. Tolkien's recommendation to use the older German form Elb in his 1967 guide to The Lord of the Rings names led to Elb and Elben appearing in the 1972 German translation, effectively repopularising the archaic form in modern German.

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