A Haunting Figure of the Forest
The Erlking, or Erlkönig in German, is a mysterious and often malevolent figure from Germanic folklore and Romantic literature. He is most famously known from the poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and the eerie musical setting by Franz Schubert, which have embedded the Erlking into the imagination of Europe as a supernatural being who lures children to their doom.
Origins and Etymology
The term Erlkönig is believed to come from a mistranslation of the Danish term ellekonge, meaning “elf king,” “elven king” or “king of the elves.” When the Danish ballad Elveskud was translated into German, elle (“elf”) was misread as Erle (“alder tree”), turning the “Elf King” into the Alder King or Erlking.
This linguistic accident gave rise to a new figure: not a traditional elf-king, but a darker, more spectral being associated with death, forests, and the supernatural.
Goethe’s Poem – Der Erlkönic (1782
Goethe’s famous ballad tells the story of a father riding through the night with his sick child, who believes he sees and hears the Erlking calling to him. The father sees nothing. The Erlking whispers promises and threats. By the time they reach home, the child is dead in his father’s arms.
This poem transformed the Erlking into a deathly forest spirit, an entity that only children can perceive – a seducer of souls, a predator in the shadows.
“Who rides so late throught night and wind?
It is the father with his child…”
Schubert’s Lied – A Musical Nightmare (1815)
Composer Franz Schubert turned Goethe’s poem into a chilling art song, known for its galloping piano accompaniment that mimics the horse’s hooves and the shifting voices that portray the father, the child, the narrator, and the Erlking.
This piece brought the story to life with music, emphasizing the growing terror and tragic end.
Folklore Interpretations
While Goethe’s version is literary, the concept of the Erlking taps into older folklore themes common across Europe:
- Forest Spirits
The Erlking resembles beings like the Skogsrå of Scandinavia or Waldgeister in Germanic lands – spirits that lure or mislead travelers in the woods.
- Child-snatching Beings
Similar to changeling legends and faerie abductions, the Erlking is one of many beings believed to target children, especially those alone or sick.
- Death Personified
Some interpretations suggest the Erlking is a metaphor for death itself, coming for the child who is already ill and seeing visions others cannot.
Relation to Elves and the Supernatural
Despite his more ghostly or even demonic image in Romantic literature, the Erlking retains traces of elven lore. He promises games, flowers, and golden robes to the child – a seductive element typical of faerie glamour. In older traditions, elven kings were not benevolent – they could be dangerous, proud and vengeful.
The Erlking thus stands as t the crossroads between faerie lord, forest ghost, and psychopomp (a guide of souls).
Modern Influence
The Erlking continues to appear in music and theatre, especially in performances of Schubert’s Erlkönig. He is reimagined in literature and fantasy, as a faery monarch or malevolent nature spirit. In folklore studies, he is an example of how linguistic shifts can create entirely new mythic figures.
He is sometimes seen as a cautionary tale, warning of the dangers lurking in the wild, or the incomprehensible fear of death seen through a child’s eyes.