Social boundaries: The lexicographic evolution of Spanish household spirits in discourse

Abstract

This paper constructs a diachronic analysis of the lexicography of the term denoting the Spanish household spirit, the duende, focusing on the period between approx. 1490 and 1791. I aim to analyse the linguistic path of the household deity in discourse, in order to see how its depiction has changed. The evolution of the being reflects upon the social perception of the spirit, but also upon societal changes. Cultural associations readily available to the authors of the dictionaries under analysis reveal themselves in the alternation between “low-brow”, folkloric beliefs, and the “high-brow”, learned representations of these beliefs. The many facets of the lexicographic entry help create the discourse surrounding the duende, which is essential for the making of a folkloric being. Particularly, the duende is a “small god,” as coined by Michael Ostling, denoting pagan deities that survived the transition towards Christianity through novel interpretations, mostly demonic or classical.