Clurichaun

In this story, the clurichaun is able to pass through keyholes to invade homes and wine cellars and can transform bog rushes into horses to be used as mounts.

[8] Thomas Keightley in his Fairy Mythology (1828) presents the story of a clurichaun named Little Wildbean who was more helpful than others of his kind, but also quick to anger and violence when slighted.

He haunted the wine cellar of a Quaker gentleman named Harris, and if one of the servants was negligent enough to leave the beer barrel running then Little Wildbean would wedge himself inside to stop the flow until someone came to turn it off.

At midnight Wildbean dragged the cook out of her bed and all the way down the hard cellar stairs, leaving her battered and bruised so that she was bedridden for three weeks.

[9] The folklorist Nicholas O'Kearney described the clurichaun in 1855 as follows: The Clobhair-ceann was another being of the same class: he was a jolly, red-faced, drunken little fellow, and was ever found in the cellars of the debauchee, Bacchus-like, astride of the wine-butt with a brimful tankard in hand, drinking and singing away merrily.

[10]Katharine Briggs stated that he was "a kind of buttery spirit, feasting himself in the cellars of drunkards or scaring dishonest servants who steal the wine.

Despite his often troublesome nature, the clurichaun takes special care of the family to whom he has attached himself, endeavoring to protect their property and lives, provided he is not interfered with.

Cluracan continues the tradition of constant drunkenness but is portrayed as a tall, elegant blond fairy, although this is likely due to use of magic "glamour," such as that used by his sister, Nuala, and his true appearance would then be left unknown.

The clurichaun Naggeneen ("a little drink") magically associates himself with "Mary's Place", the successor to Callahan's Bar in Spider Robinson's stories.

"The caller, about half Arlo's height and with comic-strip "bubbles" in front of his scowling face to denote drunkenness, answers: "Actually, I'm a clurichaun."

In Dorothy Dunnett's novel Queens' Play, Lymond "erroneously" uses the name "O'Cluricaun" to intentionally insult Cormac O'Connor (see page 361).