Fairy tale stock characters

A dragon is a mythical creature found in the folklore of cultures throughout the world. It is generally reptilian or serpentine in form and often possesses a variety of predatory features, such as claws, wings, scales, or horns. Dragons are typically portrayed as intelligent beings capable of manipulating natural elements. Their appearance commonly incorporates reptilian, mammalian, and avian traits.

In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa.

thumb|A Virgin with a Unicorn, fresco by [[Domenichino, (Palazzo Farnese, Rome)]] The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead.

A fairy (also fay or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, and French folklore), a form of spirit, often with magical, metaphysical, supernatural, or preternatural qualities.

The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: gryps or grypus; Late and Medieval Latin: gryphes, grypho etc.; Old French: griffon) is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back legs of a lion, and the head and wings of an eagle with its talons on the front legs.

thumb|The giants Fafnir|Fafner and [[Fasolt seize Freyja in Arthur Rackham's illustration of Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen.]] thumb|Giants Zanclus|Mata and Grifone celebrated in [[Messina in August, Sicily, Italy]] In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: gigas, cognate giga-) are beings of humanoid appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word giant is first attested in 1297 from Robert of Gloucester's chronicle. It is derived from the Gigantes () of Greek mythology.

thumb|upright=1.35|Ängsälvor (Swedish "Meadow Elves") by Nils Blommér (1850)

thumb|A polemical allegory represented as a five-headed monster, 1618 A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, horror, fantasy, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes terror and fear, often in humans. Monsters usually resemble bizarre, deformed, otherworldly and/or mutated animals or entirely unique creatures of varying sizes, but may also take a human form, such as mutants, ghosts, spirits, vampires or zombies, among other things. They may or may

thumb|upright=1.3|''Look at them, troll mother said. Look at my sons! You won't find more beautiful trolls on this side of the moon.'' (1915) by John Bauer (illustrator)|John Bauer A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human beings.

mythological figure, fantasy character, witch

supernatural being in Germanic folklore

A gnome () is a mythological creature and diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, introduced by Paracelsus in the 16th century and widely adopted by authors, including those of modern fantasy literature. They are typically depicted as small humanoids who live underground. Gnome characteristics are reinterpreted to suit various storytellers and artists.

A goblin is a diminutive, grotesque, and often malevolent humanoid creature prominent in European folklore, typically characterized by its mischievous or demonic nature, small stature (around 30 cm in some traditions), furry or leathery appearance, and ability to shapeshift. Goblins are believed to dwell in subterranean areas or households, where they engage in acts ranging from pranks to murder. Their etymology derives from Old French gobelin (late 12th century), possibly linked to Medieval Latin gobelinus or Greek kobalos (meaning rogue or sprite), though some scholars trace it to earlier do

"Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; ) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of ''Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about an imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a woman's firstborn child.

A stepmother, stepmum or stepmom is a female non-biological parent married to one's preexisting parent. Children from her spouse's previous unions are known as her stepchildren. A stepmother-in-law is a stepmother of one's spouse.

right|upright|thumb|Snow Maiden (1899) by Victor Vasnetsov

thumb|upright=1.3|Kashchey the Immortal by Viktor Vasnetsov, 1848–1926 Koshchei (), also Kashchei (), often given the epithet "the Immortal", or "the Deathless" (), is an archetypal male antagonist in Russian folklore and mythology.

magical glowing bird in Slavic folklore

stock character

A merman (: mermen; also merlad or merboy in youth), the male counterpart of the mythical female mermaid, is a legendary creature which is human from the waist up and fish-like from the waist down, but may assume normal human shape. Sometimes mermen are described as hideous and other times as handsome.

Russian folk hero

fairy tale character

character in literature

archetype of a magical nurturing caretaker

magicians appearing in fantasy fiction

thumb|1920 Arthur Rackham illustration for the Irish fairytale The Hag of the Mill. "Now the Hag of the Mill was a bony, thin pole of a hag with odd feet."

non-human animal that can produce sounds or gestures resembling those of a human language

thumb|right|Saint George slaying the dragon, as depicted by [[Paolo Uccello, ]]

fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm

Serbian fairy tale

character from Russian folklore

thumb|right|350 px|Askeladden by Theodor Kittelsen (1900) Original painting owned by the National Museum, Oslo Ashlad (Norwegian "Askeladden" or "Oskeladden", full name "Esben Askelad" or "Espen Askeladd" or "Espen Oskeladd") is a main character in several tales collected in Asbjørnsen and Moe's Norwegian Folktales.

fictional character in comics (by Kornel Makuszyński, Marian Walentynowicz; since 1933)

According to Portuguese, Galician, and Asturian mythology, the Mouros or Moiros are a race of supernatural beings which have inhabited the lands of Galicia, Asturias and Portugal since the beginning of time.

thumb|Archetypical appearance of a crone.Old Woman Seen from Behind,by Vincent van Gogh. In folklore, a crone is an old woman who may be characterized as disagreeable, malicious, or sinister in manner, often with magical or supernatural associations that can make her either helpful or obsolete. As a concept, 'The Crone' is also often associated with the Jungian archetype of the Wise Woman or, if accompanied by 'The Maiden' and 'The Mother', as a member of the Triple Goddess deity archetype. As a character type, the crone shares characteristics with the hag.

archetypal Cornish and English hero and stock character

ancient Meitei folktale

thumb|Giantess Anna Haining Bates|Anna Haining Bates (née Swan) with her parents.

thumb|Patufet's monument in Josep Maria Folch i Torres|Folch i Torres's square of [[Granollers, Catalonia. Work of Efraïm Rodríguez]] thumb|Cover of the first issue of En Patufet magazine Patufet (, also known as Garbancito in Spanish) is the main character of one of the most famous folktales of Catalan tradition.

an archetypical premise common to many legends, fairy tales, and chivalric romances.

trickster character in eastern European folklore

ancient Meitei literary narrative work

type of monster in mythology and fantasy

figure of Portuguese and Galician legend

Merfolk, Mercreatures, Mermen or Merpeople are legendary water-dwelling, human-like beings. They are attested in folklore and mythology throughout the ages in various parts of the world. Merfolk, Merpeople, or simply Mer refers to humanoid creatures that live in deep waters like Mermaids, Sirens, Cecaelia etc.