In English and Scots Texts
In several Scots and in Northern Middle English folkoric ballads, Álfheim was known in as Elphame or Elfhame. In later English publications it has been called Alfheim, Elfland or 'Elfenland. The fairy queen is often called the "Queen of Elphame" in ballads such as that of Thomas the Rhymer:
'I'm not the Queen of Heaven, Thomas,
That name does not belong to me;
I am but the Queen of fair Elphame
Come out to hunt in my follie.'
Allison Peirson was burned as a witch in 1588 for conversing with the 'Queen of Elfame' and for prescribing magic charms and potions. (Byre Hills, Fife, Scotland)
On 8 November 1576, midwife Bessie Dunlop, resident in Dalry, Scotland, was accused of sorcery and witchcraft. She answered her accusers that she received tuition from Thomas Reid, a former barony officer who had died at the Battle of Pinkie some 30 years before and also from the Queen of the Elfhame which lay nearby. It resulted in a conviction and she was burnt at the stake in 1576.
Elfhame or Elfland, is portrayed in a variety of ways in these ballads and stories, most commonly as mystical and benevolent, but also at times as sinister and wicked. The mysteriousness of the land, and its otherworldly powers are a source of scepticism and distrust in many tales. Examples of journeys to the realm include "Thomas the Rhymer" and the fairy tale "Childe Rowland", the latter being a particularly negative view of the land.
Read more about this topic: Álfheimr
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