WBrendan of Clonfert Brénainn moccu Alti or Brénainn maccu Alti, also referred to as "Brendán moccu Altae", called "the Navigator", "the Voyager", "the Anchorite", and "the Bold", is one of the early Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is primarily renowned for his legendary quest to the "Isle of the Blessed", also denominated "Saint Brendan's Island". The Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis can be described as an immram, i. e., Irish navigational narrative.
WThe Chronici Zelandiae is a book by Dutch writer Jacob van den Eynde, better known as Jacob Eyndius. The book was published for the first time in 1634, twenty years after the author's death.
WDokter Faust van Waardenburg is a protagonist from a folk tale that is famous in the Netherlands. It is a Dutch version of the German Faust tale.
WPier Gerlofs Donia was a Frisian rebel leader and pirate. He is best known by his West Frisian nickname Grutte Pier, or by the Dutch translation Grote Pier which referred to his legendary size and strength.
WDulle Griet, also known as Mad Meg, is a figure of Flemish folklore who is the subject of a 1563 oil-on-panel by Flemish renaissance artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder. The painting depicts a virago, Dulle Griet, who leads an army of women to pillage Hell, and is currently held and exhibited at the Museum Mayer van den Bergh in Antwerp.
WElegast is the hero and noble robber in the poem Karel ende Elegast, an early Middle Dutch epic poem that has been translated into English as Charlemagne and Elbegast. In the poem, he possibly represents the King of the Elves. He appears as a knight on a black horse, an outcast vassal of Charlemagne living in the forest. The original Dutch poem uses the name Elegast, while translated versions of the poem commonly use the name Elbegast in German and English, or Alegast in the Scandinavian ballad.
WEllert and Brammert are legendary giants who supposedly robbed travellers in Drenthe, Netherlands.
WThe Flying Dutchman is a legendary ghost ship which was said to never be able to make port, doomed to sail the oceans forever. The myth is likely to have originated from the 17th-century Golden Age of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and Dutch maritime power. The oldest extant version of the legend has been dated to the late 18th century. According to the legend, if hailed by another ship, the crew of the Flying Dutchman was said to try to send messages to land, or to people long dead. Purported sightings in the 19th and 20th centuries claimed that the ship glowed with a ghostly light. In ocean lore, the sight of this phantom ship is a portent of doom.
WFolklore of the Low Countries, often just referred to as Dutch folklore, includes the epics, legends, fairy tales and oral traditions of the people of Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg. Traditionally this folklore is written or spoken in Dutch.
WGenevieve of Brabant is a heroine of medieval legend. The story is told in the "Golden Legend and concerns a virtuous wife falsely accused of infidelity.
WHeer Halewijn is a Dutch folk tale which survives in folk ballad. Although the first printed version of the song only appears in an anthology published in 1848, the ballad itself is first written down in the 13th century but dates back to pre-Christian times and is one of the oldest Dutch folk songs with ancient subject matter to be recorded. The story of lord Halewijn itself is even older and contains elements going back to Carolingian times. Many of its mythemes range back to Germanic pre-Christian legends.
WKobus van der Schlossen was a late-seventeenth century Dutch thief who features prominently in folktales from the North Brabant region. After serving as a soldier in the many wars which left the Netherlands in turmoil, he joined a gang of ex-soldiers called 'de zwartmakers'. With his robber band 'De Zwarte Bende' he made his home in the vast and impenetrable Slabroek forests near Uden. Eventually he was captured in Uden and imprisoned in Ravenstein Castle. He was hanged in 1695 at the gallows of the Lordship of Ravenstein in Velp. Allegedly, 20,000 spectators came to witness the execution.
WArnol Kox was a Dutch street preacher.
WThe Lady of Stavoren is a folk tale from the Netherlands which originated in the 16th century.
WMartin of Tours was the third bishop of Tours. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints in France, heralded as the patron saint of the Third Republic, and is patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe. A native of Pannonia, he converted to Christianity at a young age. He served in the Roman cavalry in Gaul, but left military service at some point prior to 361, when he became a disciple of Hilary of Poitiers, establishing the monastery at Ligugé. He was consecrated as Bishop of Caesarodunum (Tours) in 371. As bishop, he was active in the suppression of the remnants of Gallo-Roman religion, but he opposed the violent persecution of the Priscillianist sect of ascetics.
WThe Church of Saints Michael and Magnus is a Roman Catholic church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel and the Bishop Saint Magnus of Anagni. It lies on the northern slope of the Palazzolo hill, in Rione Borgo, near the Vatican, and is the national church dedicated to the Netherlands. It is also known as the "Church of the Frisians". In 1989, the church was granted to the Dutch community in Rome. A 19th century source calls the church Santi Michele e Magno in Sassia, due to a location on a Vico dei Sassoni.
WReynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre is very popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, and in chapbook form throughout the Early Modern period.
WTheodorus "Dorus" Rijkers was a famous Dutch lifeboat captain and folk hero, most famous for his sea rescues of 487 shipwrecked victims over a total of 38 rescue operations, and at least 25 before joining the lifeboat-service.
WSinterklaas or Sint-Nicolaas is a legendary figure based on Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children. Other Dutch names for the figure include De Sint, De Goede Sint, and De Goedheiligman. Many descendants and cognates of "Sinterklaas" or "Saint Nicholas" in other languages are also used in the Low Countries, nearby regions and former Dutch colonies.
WZwarte Piet is the companion of Saint Nicholas in the folklore of the Low Countries. The earliest known illustration of the character comes from an 1850 book by Amsterdam schoolteacher Jan Schenkman in which he was depicted as a black Moor from Spain. According to folklore, the skin of Zwarte Piet is colored by soot from going down chimneys to bringing presents into people's houses. Those portraying Zwarte Piet usually put on blackface and colourful Renaissance attire in addition to curly wigs and bright red lipstick. In recent years, the character has become the subject of controversy.