Draft:Elf
Elves are mythical humanoids originating in Germanic folklore. They are typically depicted as tall, ethereal beings with pointed ears who are particularly attuned with nature and magic. The popular image of elves was enormously influenced by J. R. R. Tolkien's works, and this is the idea many elves align with.
The otherkin community grew out of elven communities in the 90s, and elves have continued to have a strong presence in otherkin spaces. They have also formed many sub-communities based on shared culture, memories and ideas about themselves. As a result, many see elf as the archetypal kintype. Elves may also be considered a subtype of fae.
Experiences
Some elves emphasize a common 'elven way' of life, something they see as a path that must be actively walked.[1]
Many consider attunement to nature and magic to be an inherent feature of elfness.[1][2]
Relationship to Tolkien's work
The relationship of elves' self-conception to the works of Tolkien has been much discussed. The Silver Elves assert that while the Silmarillion was inspiring to them, it was not foundational in shaping their elven identity.[3] In Who are, or were, the elves?, the Elf Liberation Society state that "although Tolkien's characters themselves are fictional, the truths he expressed are far from fictional".[4] Seavixen argues that myths should not be privileged as more truthful or authentic than the stories of Middle Earth.[5]
the silver elves also mention "... a respected scholar of religious studies who recently offered the opinion in his research that if we hadn’t been inspired by the Silmarillion, then we Silver Elves wouldn’t have continued the work of our sisters". find that paper and its perspective on this?
As an alien species
Some see elves as an alien species
there's a lot of crossover between old elf communities and new age beliefs in general, starseeds, space travel, etc etc
A writer for the Elf Liberation Society argues that legends about aliens could be an evolution of beliefs about elves.[4]
elenari are sometimes described as 'space elves'
louis padron also considers himself such
History
Elven communities were the forebearers of the otherkin community.
elf queen's daughters, silver elves, elfinkind digest, otherkin came later
Community
Elves have formed many sub-communities, with certain specific groups rising to prominence.
The Silver Elves
incredibly prolific writers
something about how they've been positioned as an authority and how people have used their (very koanistic) writings to justfy various definitions of otherkinity
Elenari
shared memories of worlds, culture, language
lots of different subtypes
some other nonhumans (such as dragons) have memories of being on elenari homeworlds too
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ilon Bluesky. "The Elven Way" (Archived version)
- ↑ Rialian. "On Being an Elf in a Human's World" (Archived version)
- ↑ The Silver Elves. (October 30th, 2019) "How Much Have We Silver Elves Been Influenced by Tolkien and the Silmarillion?"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Elf Liberation Society. "Who are, or were, the elves? A view from the inside" (Archived version)
- ↑ Seavixen. "Tolkien. Is. Not. A. Reference."