A wight is a being or thing. This general meaning is shared by cognate terms in Germanic languages, however the usage of the term varies greatly over time and between regions. In Old English, it could refer to anything in existence, with more specific usages arising in Middle English, perhaps due to the term of similar meaning in Anglo-Norman, creature. The term is widely used in modern fantasy, often to mean specifically a being which is undead.
Modern English "wight" is descended from English, Middle (1100-1500);: wight or English, Middle (1100-1500);: wiȝt, from English, Old (ca.450-1100);: wiht, from Proto-West Germanic '*wihti' from Germanic languages: *wihtiz from Proto-Indo-European: '*wekti' ("cause, sake, thing"), from Proto-Indo-European "*wekʷ-" ("to say, tell"). "Wight" is further cognate with Scots: wicht, German: Wicht, Dutch; Flemish: Wicht, Gothic: and Norse, Old: vættr, the ancestor of Swedish: vätte, Danish: vætte and Icelandic: vættur. A dialect form in Swedish is Swedish: vätter, which, similar to the other form, is descended from Old Swedish: vætter.[1]
In Old English, English, Old (ca.450-1100);: wiht has been variously translated as "wight", "creature" and "being". The term is found in the compound words English, Old (ca.450-1100);: eall-wihta ("all beings") and English, Old (ca.450-1100);: á-wiht ("aught", "anything"). English, Old (ca.450-1100);: Wiht is often used as the subject of riddles, such as riddle 86 from the Exeter Book, in which it has been interpreted as referring to a person selling vegetables, likely garlics. The term is also used to refer to beings such as the dwarf which is the focus of the XCIIIB charm, and the eoten Grendel and the dragon in Beowulf.
The word began to acquire the sense of supernatural or unearthly beings, included in the 8th century Lindisfarne Gospels.[2]
When creature was borrowed from Anglo-Norman around 1300 CE, it was possibly wholly synonymous with English, Middle (1100-1500);: wight, however over time the words became differentiated by speakers. The exact usage of the term varies between works but it broadly is used in one of five loose categories that blur between themselves:
The term is used to refer to a range of positive beings with supernatural aspects such as saints, Jesus, and his mother, Mary. It has been argued that the term could be used for anything other than the God the Father, as he himself was not created in Christian theology. It has been noted, however, that it is stated in the Man of Law that Daniel in the lion's den was saved by "No wight but God", showing it was possible to use the term to refer to a class of beings that includes both man and the Christian god. It is to be noted though are no extant texts in Middle English that refer to God the Father directly as a English, Middle (1100-1500);: wight.
The most common use of the term, however, is to refer to everyday corporeal beings as these are much more represented in normal conversation. English, Middle (1100-1500);: Wight is commonly found with adjectives, such as English, Middle (1100-1500);: curside, English, Middle (1100-1500);: wikkede, or English, Middle (1100-1500);: worldly. The phrase "English, Middle (1100-1500);: sweet wight" is notable, occurring frequently and often in gendered and romantic contexts.
The Reeve's Tale, (1387–1400), line 4236:
"For [Aleyn] had swonken al the longe nyght,
And seyde, 'Fare weel, Malyne, sweete wight!'"
The Monk's Tale, (1387–1400), line 380:
"She kept her maidenhood from every wight
To no man deigned she for to be bond."
The Book of the Duchess, (1387–1400), line 579:
"Worste of alle wightes."
Prologue of The Knight, (1387–1400), line 72–73:
"Ne neuere yet no vileynye he sayde
In al his lyf vnto no manere wight.
He was a verray parfit gentil knyght."
The House of Fame, (1379–1380), line 1830–1831:
"We ben shrewes, every wight,
And han delyt in wikkednes."
As with "wight", Norse, Old: vættr means a being, especially a supernatural being. It occurs in compound nouns such as Norse, Old: mein-vættr ("evil wight"), Norse, Old: land-vættr ("guardian spirit of a country"), Norse, Old: vitta vettr ("witch wight" or "sorceress") and Norse, Old: bjargvættr ("helping sprite").
Wights feature in J. R. R. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth, especially in The Lord of the Rings, and in George R. R. Martin's novel series A Song of Ice and Fire and HBO television series Game of Thrones. Since its 1974 inclusion in the RPG Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), it has become a recurring form of undead in other fantasy games and mods, such as .[3] and .
"That every wight to shrowd it did constrain,
And this fair couple eke to shroud themselues were fain."
"O base Hungarian wight! wilt thou the spigot wield?
"She was a wight, if ever such wight were"
"Oh say me true if thou wert mortal wight..."
"froward thou kythst unto the froward wight..."
Whole Summer-fields are thine by right;
And Autumn, melancholy wight!
Doth in thy crimson head delight
When rains are on thee.
Ah what can ail thee, wretched wight,
Alone and palely loitering;
"In this by-place of nature there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane, who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow, for the purpose of instructing the children of the vicinity."
Ah, me! in sooth he was a shamles wight ...".
From weedy little wights whose cigarettes
Recall a badly-disinfected drain
"Now when a wight sits up all night, ill natured jokes devising,
and all his wiles are met with smiles, it's hard, there's no disguising!"
A similar change of meaning can be seen in the German cognate Wicht, meaning a living human being, generally rather small, poor or miserable man (not woman). The word is somewhat old-fashioned in today's language, but it is still used and readily recognized in everyday speech.
The diminutive Wichtel refers to beings in folklore and fantasy, generally small, and often helpful, dwelling in or near human settlements, secretly doing work and helping the humans, somewhat similar to the more specific Heinzelmännchen. Wichtel in this sense is recorded since the Middle Ages. Today, Wichtel is more often used than Wicht.
The word wicht can be used to refer, to any woman, often with negative connotations. It is not used to refer to men.
Booswicht (literally evil-being) matching 'villain', can be used to describe both men and women.
In Danish, the term Danish: vætte typically refers to supernatural beings from folklore or a lesser god, such as nisser and dwarfs. They often live either underground or near human homes.[4] Usage of the Norwegian cognate Norwegian: vette is similar.[5] In Swedish, Swedish: vätte similarly typically refers to supernatural beings, often those that are small and resembling humans.[6]