Nixe, the Water Woman with the Wet Hem
By Ralf Ittermann · last reviewed on
Nixe is a spirit of the Germanic/Nordic tradition.
She dances with humans and pulls bathers into the depths.
The water spirit Nixe dwells in rivers, lakes and mill ponds, the female counterpart of the Nix: she dances, warns of storms, but also draws bathers into the depths.
Recognisable by her wet skirt hem; at a fixed hour she must return to the water.
Type: female water spirit of the waters
Origin: common Germanic nykr word family
Texts: Old High German glosses, Grimm’s tales
Period: 10th to 19th century
Appearance: beautiful woman, wet hem of her garment
Textual history
Period of the Texts
The earliest evidence dates to the late 10th century; the Nixe took on her established form in the 19th-century collections of legends.
Area of Diffusion
Widespread in the German-speaking region, with related figures in Scandinavia and England.
Sources
Good sources: the Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens and the collections of the Brothers Grimm.
Name and variants
Language: Old High German nihhus meant a water monster, related to Old English nicor and Old Norse nykr; from these comes the feminine form Nixe.
Appearance
Appearance
Young, beautiful, greenish shimmering hair, hem always wet. The legendary Nixe did not yet have a fish tail.
Effect
She warns of storms, but also draws bathers under; the water sometimes demands a sacrifice.
Profile: Nixe
The key aspects of the water woman at a glance.
German legendary tradition, related to Näcken and other Nordic water beings.
Bathers, fishermen, millers and dancing parties by rivers and lakes.
Beautiful woman, wet hem, cool hand, originally without a fish tail.
Warner and dancer, but also mortal danger by the water.
Avoidance rules, the sign of the cross, bell ringing and respect for warnings.
Glosses and the Grimm Tale
Old High German nihhus meant a water monster, related to Old English nicor and Old Norse nykr.
The Nixe took on her form in Grimm’s collections of legends, for instance in the Nixe in the pond: wet hem, obligation to return. The Nix, by contrast, plays music and takes those who drown.
From Belief to Artistic Image
Fouqué’s Undine and Heine’s Loreley poem shaped the Romantic image of the water woman.
The Nixe belongs among the local spirits of the waters; behind her likely lies pre-Christian veneration of springs, later demoted to that of a demoness.
Avoidance Rules
Avoidance rules have been handed down: not to bathe at midday or at night, and to avoid the water when, according to legend, it demands its sacrifice. In addition, the sign of the cross and holy water before bathing, an amulet and salt at the threshold.
Related Water Women
Frequently Asked Questions about the Nixe
What is the difference between the Nixe and the Nix?
The Nixe is female, the Nix male: she dances and warns, he plays music and takes those who drown.
How can you recognise a Nixe?
By her wet skirt hem and her haste as her hour of return approaches.
Literature (selection)
Further standard works in the bibliography.
Known as the Nixe water spirit, the legend of the Nixe with her wet skirt hem lives on to this day, a tale of attraction and danger alike.
