The origin of fairies is widely debated by those who recognise their existence. Here are the 4 main theories of how they came to be (note - it may be easier to think these creatures just came to be):
- Fairies are fallen angels. When God banished Lucifer to hell his angels were sent with him. On their descent from heaven to hell God stopped them midway, where they were forced to stay in the earth, air, and water. (This is a popular belief in the lore of Scotland, Scandinavia, and Ireland).
- Fairies are nature spirits. There is a multitude of spirits that populate all places and things on the planet, with fairies being just one type.
- Fairies are the souls of the pagan dead. If a person is unbaptized they are not able to go to heaven, thus becoming trapped in a netherworld on dying. They are considered to be not good enough to go to heaven and not bad enough to be doomed to a fire and brimstone existence, so their shades become fairies.
- Fairies are small human beings. 'Short' races of people existed in parts of Europe and the British Isles in the Bronze and Neolithic ages. These groups tended to keep to themselves and were thus treated with suspicion, gradually becoming endowed with the supernatural abilities and characteristics they now have.
Some may say that fairies originate from the minds of loons. These people may be right, but there is a multitude of people who would disagree. After weighing up these (admittedly) fantastical theories, you might know on which side you are.