‖ pooka, phooka Irish.
(ˈpuːkə, ˈphuka)
[Ir. p{uacu}ca (gen. and dat. with article an ph{uacu}ca), = OE. p{uacu}ca, ON. p{uacu}ki, ME. pouke (see puck), Welsh pwca goblin.]
In Irish folk-lore, A hobgoblin, a malignant sprite.
| 1825 T. C. Croker Fairy Leg. I. 316 Irish superstition makes the Phooka palpable to the touch. To its agency the peasantry usually ascribe accidental falls. 1847 Le Fanu T. O'Brien 74 The Cavalier had heard of Phookas and other malignant sprites who..scare..the benighted traveller. 1888 W. B. Yeats Fairy & Folk T. 94 The Pooka..seems essentially an animal spirit;..[a] wild, staring phantom. 1894 Q. Rev. Oct. 331 The pranks of the Phooka..and the vision of the long-haired, long-robed Geilt. |