| Grouping | Folkloric creature |
|---|---|
| Sub grouping | Household spirit |
| Similar entities | Boggart |
| Folklore | Northumbrian Folklore |
| Other name(s) | Boggle Bogill |
| Country | Scotland and England |
| Region | Lowland Scotland/Northumbria/Cumbria |
| Habitat | Within the home |
Abogle,boggle, orbogill is aNorthumbrian,[1]Cumbrian[2] andScots term for a ghost or folkloric being,[3] used for a variety of related folkloric creatures includingShellycoats,[4]Barghests,[4]Brags,[4]the Hedley Kow[1][5] and even giants such as those associated withCobb's Causeway[5] (also known as "ettins", "yetuns" or "yotuns" inNorthumberland and "Etenes", "Yttins" or "Ytenes" in the South and South West).[5][6] They are reputed to live for the simple purpose of perplexing mankind, rather than seriously harming or serving them.
The name is derived from the Middle-EnglishBugge (from which the termbogey is also derived) which is in turn a cognate of the German term wordbögge (from whichböggel-mann ("Goblin") is derived)[7][8][9] and possibly the Norwegian dialect wordbugge meaning "important man".[10] The WelshBwg could also be connected,[7] and was thought in the past to be the origin of the English term; however, it has been suggested that it is itself a borrowing fromMiddle English.[11][12]
The Irish Gaelic word "bagairt" meaning "threat" could also be related.[citation needed]
Terms such asettin andyotun are derived from Middle Englisheten,etend, from Old Englisheoten (“giant, monster, enemy”), fromProto-Germanic *etunaz (“giant, glutton”), fromProto-Indo-European *h₁ed- (“to eat”) and is cognate withOld Norsejötunn.[13]
One of the most famous usages of the term was byGavin Douglas, who was in turn quoted byRobert Burns at the beginning ofTam O' Shanter:[14]
OfBrownyis and of Bogillis full is this Buke.
There is a popular story of a bogle known asTatty Bogle, who would hide himself in potato fields (hence his name) and either attack unwary humans or cause blight within the patch. This bogle was depicted as ascarecrow, "bogle" being an old name for "scarecrow" in various parts of England andScotland.[15] Another popular Scottish reference to bogles comes inThe Bogle by the Boor Tree, aScots poem written byW. D. Cocker. In this ghostly ode, the Bogle is heard in the wind and in the trees to "fricht wee weans" (frighten small children).
In theScottish Lowlands circa 1950, a bogle was a ghost as was abogeyman, and a Tattie-Bogle was a scarecrow, used to keep creatures out of the potato fields. All three words were in common use among the children.
It is unclear what the connection is between "Bogle" and various other similarly named creatures in various folklores.[16] The "Bocan" of theHighlands may be a cognate of the NorsePuki however,[17] and thus also the English "Puck".[18][19][20]
TheLarne Weekly Reporter of 31 March 1866, in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, carried a front-page article entitled Bogles in Ballygowan, detailing strange goings on in a rural area where a particular house became the target for missiles being thrown through windows and on one occasion through the roof. Local people were terrified. The occurrences appeared to have ceased after several months and were being blamed on the fact that the house in question had been refurbished using materials from an older house that was apparently the preserve of the "little people". This is one of the few references in Northern Ireland to "bogles" although the phrase "bogey man" is widely used.
