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Trolls


Loreoffolk

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Hello im curious as to how trolls are depicted in your countries of origin. In Sweden they are considerd to live in caves and in familys they are also considerd harmfull to people the most harmfull being the Jötnor ( has more of a giant aperance) there also charecterized as white skined but with giant noses if you want to read more about it there is a breif wikepedia entrey on the subject but im more intreged about your cultures views on trolls.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jötnar

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It will depend, some think this:

feral_Troll.jpg

some this:

4853880361_188fbd1d36_z.jpg

but i think this:

Internet-Troll.jpg

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Trolls!! Trolls are fabulous, however... I'm not sure they have Trolls in every culture.... not that the creature doesnt exist elsewhere, i mean that the name would be different. There is a fantastic artist by the name of Brian froud who worked on Dark Crsytal and The Laberynth back in the 80's.

He and his wife Wendy (Wendy makes sculptures and puppets) brought out a book depicting Trolls as they believe them to be. some wonderful artwork in there, and a lot of it is highly similar to how you describe the appearance of a troll. the only difference being that some were quite small ranging to very large according to them.

Check it out, the art and the sculpture is amazing.

here is the link to their general site: www.worldoffroud.com/

here is the link to the actual troll section: http://www.worldoffr...ooks/trolls.php

p.s. I'm relatively new to forums and stuff, so i have no idea what happened to my link above... why did the last sentence turn green?..... Answers on a post card lol!!

Edit: Also, I would like to add, that i think they are in a physical sense mythical... ie.. I don't think you can find them on earth, in our plane anyway... but I do believe that in other dimensional levels there could be something like this that occasionally crosses ours and becomes visible.

Edited by Celestae
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I've been trying to think of something in Vietnamese folklore that might translate troll but can't. Everything similar is supernatural in some way, and not quite so consistently evil, whereas as I understand it trolls are actually not all that supernatural but are consistently nasty.

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I do wonder if Troll legends have anything to do with Neanderthals...

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I do wonder if Troll legends have anything to do with Neanderthals...

That is what I always thought.

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That is what I always thought.

It has crossed my mind before, the white skin and big nose mentioned in the OP bought it back. Who knows where these legends come from, Neanderthals could fit in quite nicely.

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Guest Nathan DiYorio

While I don't have a very proper heritage that I can derive trolls from, I can at least share how I portray them while writing fiction.

The folklore of my mind is a hodgepodge of modern media influence. I grew up on stories of Freddy and Jason as well as of Hercules, Jesus, etc. Those early media figures have been indoctrinated into a form of myth in my mind, and with them are two types of trolls: the lucky trolls toys, and the ugly beasties of fantasy RPGs and novels. I don't particularly like trolls as being cute and innocent creatures, because that niche is taken on by smurfs and dwarves and gnomes and the like, and also because trolls are typically far more malevolent. However, I do like the gemstone bellies and the wild hair with bizarre 80's punk colors. So I've combined them.

My trolls are large and muscular creatures, but also plump and fairly round which sets the apart from the all-muscle ogres. Trolls are also shorter than ogres (which I typically imagine as standing between eight and ten feet tall), but larger than humans. They come in a variety of colors, all of which are dingy, and are prone to warts and dental issues. They do not have fangs, instead having a jaw structure very similar to ours. Their hair comes also in a variety of colors, a much wider array than most other species, and they very often have a gem in their belly button which matches in hue to their hair. Their hair and gem grays as they become old, which leads some (fictional) individuals to believe that the gem is there from birth and is not simply found by the troll. Trolls are not particularly intelligent creatures, although they have an affinity for gems and gold and will raid dwarf mines whenever possible. This tends to also put them at odds with Leprechauns. The trolls are a violent people, and are known to consume humans and others without hesitation. They are of the mortal races, however, and so do not possess the natural inclination for magic that the Faire Folk do. Despite this, it is rumored that the belly-stones of the troll enable the more intelligent among them to utilize limited glamour and dark magic. They are often enslaved by Unseely Fay and utilized as juggernaut and berserker soldiers. In behavior the troll is largely wild, so it is unsure for what purpose they gather valuable things. They most commonly fight with crude clubs, often simply logs from fallen trees, although they will steal better weapons if they can, and prefer axes and maces when they do.

Slight grammar bit: mortal races, such as troll and human and ogre, are not capitalized unless referred to specifically as their race or breed (though this would require a more niche description, such as Mountain Troll). Faire Folk (also known as Fay, although this is technically incorrect) are capitalized, and so are the individual Faire Races and species. Leprechauns are Faire, so they are always capitalized.

Faire is pronounced "fair", "glamour" when spelled with a "u" reflects on the innate magic unique to the Faire Folk and when spelled with an "o" refers to the earthly property of being glamorous. Keep in mind, this is simply my distinctions for fiction, and I got to rambling about it. Sorry.

Edited by Nathan DiYorio
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There are the Trolls that come from the "David the Gnome" series of books and cartoons.

Live in the woods in caves, under bridges and whatnot. Big ears, big nose, very hairy.

troll.jpg

Damnit now I need to watch "Troll Hunter".

Again!!!

That is a entertaining movie.

I think these were my favorite "Troll Hunter" trolls.

101970515_640.jpg

Edited by DieChecker
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Tomten, a troll, delivers your Christmas presents, so I wouldn't let it bother you.

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I do wonder if Troll legends have anything to do with Neanderthals...

I think it may have its origins in hermits that wer disfigured and forced to live away from society

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I think it may have its origins in hermits that wer disfigured and forced to live away from society

No Neanderthals were big and ugly

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I think it may have its origins in hermits that wer disfigured and forced to live away from society

If that's the case its saddening to think the ugly were shunned more back then than in today's materialistic society.

The disfigured and the ugly could be labelled as a source for some claims coupled with exaggerated stories to keep the children from going where they are not supposed to go. I prefer the Neanderthal source though, a bit more 'magical' in my mind.

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I don't think we need to have a "reality" behind every folk tale and fantasy figure, and hypothesizing them may be fun but is almost certainly wrong.

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that is the whole point behind folk tales they are stories that get interpretated by different genarations i wouldnt be suprise if it just came from a town in the midle of nowhere where there was a tall man with a big nose

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that is the whole point behind folk tales they are stories that get interpretated by different genarations i wouldnt be suprise if it just came from a town in the midle of nowhere where there was a tall man with a big nose

The BFG?

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In English folklore, trolls are also called ogres.

These look like the beasts in "The Three Billy Goat's Gruff", "Shreck" and "Harry Potter".

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If that's the case its saddening to think the ugly were shunned more back then than in today's materialistic society.

The disfigured and the ugly could be labelled as a source for some claims coupled with exaggerated stories to keep the children from going where they are not supposed to go. I prefer the Neanderthal source though, a bit more 'magical' in my mind.

It is sad, but quite probably the case :blush: unfortunatley, people... especially uneducated ones, are often scared of what they don't understand.

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you have to think to a peasent even 200 years ago if someone had elephantitus or giantism think how scary it would be it would be incomprihendable for an un educated mind now adays to figure out what happend let alone then

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Orcs are dreadful, Ogres grisly, Dwarves industrious, Elves snooty.... It's always fun to point out to fantasy fans just how racist their favorite literature is... and the fact that the races are imaginary doesn't change that a bit.

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I did find this wiki link to an Native American legend said to be related to the troll.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pukwudgie

http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/other/videos/freak-encounters-pukwudgie.htm

Edited by susieice
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