Is there any difference between a Goblin and a Hobgoblin?
Hobgoblin is a term typically applied in folktales to a friendly or amusing goblin. The word seems to derive from ‘Robin Goblin’, abbreviated to ‘hobgoblin’, ‘hob’, or ‘lob’. The name originally referred to that of a specific folkloric character Robin Goodfellow but has grown to be defined as a different species of goblin or fairy. The name is often interchangeable with “bugbear”, “boogeyman”, “bugaboo” or “bogie”, and the term “hobgoblin” has grown to mean a superficial object that is a source of fear or trouble. Goblins are described in folklore as grotesque fairies ranging in height from that of a dwarf to that of a human. They are attributed with various (sometimes conflicting) abilities, temperaments and appearances.
Yes. A GOBLIN is an evil or mischievous creature of folklore, often described as a grotesquely disfigured, elf-like phantom. According to some traditions, their name comes from Gob or Ghob, the king of the gnomes, whose inferiors were obviously called Ghob-lings. However, according to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English the name probably derives from the Anglo-French *gobelin (medieval Latin gobelinus), which is probably a diminutive of Gobel, a name related to the word Kobold. A HOBGOBLIN is a term typically applied in folktales to a friendly or amusing goblin. The name originally referred to that of folklore character Robin Goodfellow but has grown to be defined as a different species of goblin or fairy. The name is often interchangeable with “bugbear”, “bogeyman”, “bugaboo” or “bogie”, and the term “hobgoblin” has grown to mean a superficial object that is a source of fear or trouble. The term originated in the 1530s, from hob, meaning elf, from Hobbe, a variant of Rob
