What is a Bugbear?

Have you ever wondered what a Bugbear is?

Perhaps you’re familiar with the term. We sometimes use the word to describe an intense fear, a sense of anxiety, or an irritation.

But, aren’t you curious to know where the word comes from? Also, what exactly is it?

Is the Bugbear a real life creature?

The Welsh word “bwg” translates to evil spirit or goblin, and it’s the origin of our word “bug” which we use for describing creepy insects. So, that’s the bug part of the supernatural critter.

The adjective “bear” originally meant brown, serving as an intriguing euphemism for a real-world animal shown above (and, likely, this is the oldest euphemism in human history.)

The ancients believed that if they were to explicitly label or identify the real-world animal by name (for example, if they adopted the words arkto, ursa, or urs), then this frightening and dangerous creature might mysteriously & suddenly manifest... to gobble them up! This fear, somewhat irrational by modern-day standards, provided the real-world animal with a supernatural otherworldly quality.

So, Bugbear means: an evil spirited brown beast!

Bugbears are often featured as minor antagonists in modern fantasy literature, but have a long history in European folklore. For example, the goblin in the dark is frequently depicted as a creature who feasts on misbehaving children that refuse to go to bed despite warnings, making it a prime example of a bugbear: a malevolent brown creature.

Due to its entirely imagined magical materialization and link with entirely concocted fear or conjured anxiety — and across literature, games, and everyday conversations— the monster remains a representation of unseen menace & illusionary uncertainty.

Neil Mach is highly regarded in the field of fantasy studies and authored So You Want to Write Fantasy? His book is an enlightening easy-to-read manual that delves into fantasy perspectives.