What Is a Pukwudgie?

Where do pukwudgies come from?

These miniscule spirits appear in the folklore of numerous Algonquin peoples, sometimes going under other names such as “bagwajinini,” “bogwejimenak,” “paueeseegug,” and so on. While most of the stories of the pukwudgies agree on a few particulars, they also vary considerably, especially from one tribe or region to another. Among the Ojibwe and other Great Lakes tribes, the Pukwudgies are considered mischievous but largely good-natured, while the Wampanoag peoples of southern New England describe the pukwudgies as “capricious and dangerous” and best avoided. In fact, some Wampanoag stories even attribute the death of their cultural hero Maushop to the pukwudgies.

Like their nature, the abilities of the pukwudgies vary with the telling, though the most common powers assigned to them include “the ability to turn invisible, confuse people or make them forget things, shapeshift into cougars or other dangerous animals, or bring harm to people by staring at them.” According to the Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures by Pierre Dubois, “They are never without bows, and their arrows unleash lightning and storms,” while the Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology by Theresa Bane says that they “possess magical arrows that can create fire at will.”

What does a pukwudgie look like?

“Standing no more than three feet tall,” writes Theresa Bane in the Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology, “the face of the pukwudgies have facial features similar to those of the Wampanoag people, however their ears, fingers, and noses are greatly enlarged and their skin is gray and smooth.”

The description found in The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures is very different indeed. “They possess all the grace and beauty of nature, which is their soul,” Pierre Dubois writes. “Their bodies are supple and well proportioned, their skin golden. Their faces, while keeping their pure oval shape, somehow resemble each and every animal. When they plunge into an empty space, two wings sprout from their backs. They have pointy ears. Their females are still tinier and prettier.”

One thing that virtually every account of pukwudgies agrees upon: they are quite small. “Pukwudgies are usually described as being knee-high or even smaller,” according to Native-Languages.org. The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures posits that they are smaller still, setting their height at only around 12 inches tall.

What do pukwudgies do?

Like virtually everything else about these elusive creatures, it depends on who you ask. Ask a member of the Abenaki people of the northeast, and you may be told that a pukwudgie is only dangerous to those who treat it with disrespect. Citing Wampanoag folklore, however, the Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology lays out an altogether more sinister picture of pukwudgie behavior. “These malicious nature spirits were known to lure people to cliffs and then push them off. They would also use balls of light to lure victims into the woods where they are then killed or kidnapped.”

Once again, the Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures takes an almost entirely opposite stance on just what a pukwudgie might like to do with its free time. “They protect the harvests, the fauna, and the flora,” it says. Further, “They appear to those who live in harmony with nature and who maintain and protect it. They also appear to those who, on their deathbeds, have made peace with themselves and with the world.”

What almost everyone agrees on is that they are spirits of the natural world. “Their name literally means ‘person of the wilderness,’” according to Native-Languages.org, “and they are usually considered to be spirits of the forest. In some traditions, they have a sweet smell and are associated with flowers.”

Of course, one can’t spend all of one’s time simply safeguarding the natural world, especially when humanity seems so intent on wrecking it. “Puckwudgies gather together once a year, when their grand council meets. They discuss the future of the universe,” according to the Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures. “If they ever become disappointed with humanity and no longer meet, this will be the end of time.”

Where can you see a pukwudgie?

Well, you probably can’t … not unless they want you to. Whatever else various traditions may say about them, the pukwudgies are almost always described as being very much at home in the natural world, and ascribed with various powers that make them difficult to spot, including shapeshifting, turning invisible, or simply disappearing at will. So, odds are, if you see a pukwudgie, it’s because a pukwudgie wants you to.

Whether or not that’s a good thing depends on whether you believe the stories of the pukwudgies that come from farther north or those of the Wampanoag peoples from southern New England. Either way, though, the natural range of the pukwudgie seems to be throughout the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada, and your best bet to spot one, if it’s going to be spotted, is probably somewhere around the Great Lakes.

Better still, check out some books that feature pukwudgies, such as The Good Giants and the Bad Pukwudgies by Jean Fritz, Giants of the Dawnland collected by Alice Mead and Arnold Neptune, Algonquin Spirit edited by Brian swann, or The Deetkatoo, a collection of stories “little people” drawn from various Native American tribes. While you’re unlikely to see a pukwudgie in real life, you’re bound to see one in some of those stories, and maybe learn a little more about these elusive creatures while you’re at it…