Changeling
In European folklore, a being left in place of a stolen child, and a belief that led to real neglect and, at times, killing.
Also: wechselbalg, fairy child, changeling belief
A changeling is a creature the fairies are said to leave in a cradle after taking a baby. The belief appears across Ireland, Britain, Scandinavia and Germany, with the German form Wechselbalg. A child who failed to thrive, was ill, had a disability or behaved strangely could be named one. Families sometimes sought a cunning man to test the child, and some treated the child cruelly, hoping the real one would be returned. In 1895 in Clonmel, County Tipperary, Bridget Cleary, a young married woman, was burned by her husband and relatives who believed she had been replaced; he was convicted of manslaughter. Historians read changeling stories as a response to illness and disability, as well as fear of fairies.