Folklore: Der Kobold

In German tales, there was a Kobold (house spirit) in some families. Kobold was naughty spirit who loved to play jokes on its owner. Sometimes when the house owner fell asleep, Kobold would turn into a feather and landed onto the owner’s nose to make him sneeze. During the day, Kobold idled in the house. When the night fell, it would fly out of the chimney. Every night Kobold stole a bit of money for his owner. That was why families with a Kobold were usually rich.

Kobolds were considered house guards. To show their appreciation, some families would place a bowl of milk at a corner of the house as an offering to Kobold every night.