What is the change?

Changeling is a child of a supernatural being that is switched for a human child. Changeling appears in the folklore of many European countries and references to change can be found in a modern popular culture from time to time. According to legend, fairies, trolls and other creatures want human children to either raise their own or to use as servants, and secretly stole children and replace them with their own offspring or a confused inanimate object. Human parents are said to be able to recognize a change in his ugliness or special or evil behavior.

In the medieval legend, the stories of changes are common. Some children were considered particularly vulnerable: those that have not yet been baptized, and those that were particularly beautiful-time blond and blue-round. It was also said that male children are also more common.

There are a number of legendary preventive measures against changes. The Scandinavian tradition suggests placedocele object above the cradleThey radiate such practices such as turning clothes in or using amulet. In many cultures, the changing is considered much wiser than a human child, so he can leave him by surprising him and blowing his coverage. Methods for doing this include cooking food in shell or brewing beer in the acorn.

There are also a number of more worrying methods to get rid of the change that involves child abuse in different ways. Beating, drowning and burning in the stove or fireplace were all recommended as ways to deal with change. The Swedish folktale tells of a woman who refuses to treat change and eventually meets his own child; The human child is healthy and the woman learns that the mother of the troll, who was able to pay attention to the child's abuse and that kindness broke the magic.

Folklorists have two main theories about the possible origin of myth inverters. One option isthat stories for change are supernatural reinterpretations of real occurrence; The populations forced to hide the attackers could exchange their own children for healthier attackers.

The second theory claims that infants with congenital defects were originally for a change in tradition. This is in line with the legend that male children have been more likely to be replaced by changes because men have a higher incidence of congenital defects. Infant in some stories for change have characteristics similar to those that result from congenital defects such as autism, progie or many physical deformities. Some of the supposed cases could also be cases where it does not apply, a condition in which the child does not grow or gain weight as expected and requires special care.