Fantasy Elf Coloring Pages
Elves started out small and a bit sneaky. In English folklore they got the blame for tangled knots in your hair, which people called elf-locks. The tall, graceful elf with pointed ears that most of us picture now is a much newer idea, built mostly by fantasy books. We've got both kinds here, plus archers, scholars, a few elves who'd rather ride a dragon and a woodland elf wearing antlers and a flower crown.
Jump to: Campfire Elves | Unicorn Elves | Elves in Games and Stories | Elves in Folklore
Elves Around the Campfire
Elves are known for their songs, so of course some of them ended up around a campfire.
Elves in Games and Stories
The Elves of Middle Earth (Lord of the Rings)
In Tolkien's Middle-earth, elves never grow old, which sounds wonderful until you think about watching everyone you love grow old instead. One elf princess gave up her endless life to share a short human one with the person she loved...
Lord of the Rings elf coloring pages
Legend of Zelda
The long pointed ears on Link and Princess Zelda mark them as Hylians, the people of Hyrule. In Ocarina of Time, Link plays magical songs on an ocarina to change the time of day, call up storms and open hidden paths, and one tune can do more than a sword...
Legend of Zelda coloring pages
World of Warcraft Night Elves
Night elves in World of Warcraft have silvery-blue to purple skin and glowing violet eyes. Their capital city, Darnassus, sits up in the branches of a giant World Tree called Teldrassil, and they follow Elune, the moon goddess. Their story starts with a magical pool called the Well of Eternity, and some folks got a little too curious about its power...
World of Warcraft Night Elf coloring pages
Fantasy Seafarers
In Tolkien's stories the elves eventually grow tired of Middle-earth and sail west into the sunset to a land called Valinor, where nobody ever grows old. Artists have loved the idea ever since, and now elves, fairies, trolls and even a dragon have taken the wheel...
Fantasy Seafarer coloring pages
Christmas Elves
Christmas elves spend the whole year at the North Pole making toys, so by December the workshop is busy in the best way. They're easy to spot with their pointy ears and green and red outfits, and they're the reason Santa never has to build a single toy himself...
Elves in Folklore
Sidhe (Aos Sí)
In Ireland the Sidhe are said to live inside round green hills, behind a door you can't see. The old stories describe them as tall, graceful and beautiful, with no butterfly wings in sight, and plenty of farmers have always left fairy forts and lone hawthorn trees alone, just in case somebody was home...
Danish Elverfolk
In Danish folklore the elf maidens dance in the moonlight, and their music is so lovely that anyone who joins in can't stop. One young farmer danced with them for what felt like a few days, then walked home to find that many years had gone by...
Elven Girls with Unicorn Horns
Where Elves Come From
The word comes from the Old English ælf, and Norse stories sorted elves into two kinds. Light elves lived in Alfheim and were said to be fairer than the sun. Dark elves lived underground, and the old tales sometimes blur them together with dwarves.
Santa's helpers are a newer branch of the family. Elves moved into the North Pole workshop in the 1800s, which is why Christmas elves are small and cheerful while fantasy elves are tall and serious.