Kobold

# Kobold

## Abstract

A kobold (kobolt, kobolde, kobolde, cobold) is a general or generic name for the household spirit in German folklore. A hausgeist.

It may invisibly make noises (i.e., be a poltergeist), or helpfully perform kitchen chores or stable work. But it can be a prankster as well. It may expect a bribe or offering of milk, etc. for its efforts or good behaviour. When mistreated, its reprisal can be utterly cruel.

A hütchen (Low German: hodeken) meaning "little hat" is one subtype; this and other kobold sprites are known for its pointy red cap, such as the niss (cognate of nisse of Norway) or puk (cognate of puck fairy) which are attested in Northern Germany, alongside drak, a dragon-type name, as the sprite is sometimes said to appear as a shaft of fire, with what looks like a head. There is also the combined form Nis Puk ].

A house sprite Hinzelmann is a shape-shifter assuming many forms, such as a feather or animals. The name supposedly refers to it appearing in cat-form, Hinz being an archetypical cat name. The similarly named Heinzelmänchen of Cologne is distinguished from Hinzelmann, this kobold folklore "restored" c. 1820s.

The Schrat is cross-categorized as a wood sprite and a house sprite, and some regional examples correspond to kobold, e.g., Upper Franconia in northern Bavaria. The kobold is sometimes conflated with the mine demon/earth spirit gnome, known since earlier as kobel or Bergmännlein / Bergmännchen. It is generally noted that there can be made no clear demarcation between a kobold and nature spirits.

The Klabautermann aboard ships are sometimes classed as a kobold.

## Overview

A kobold is known by various names (discussed under § Subtypes). As a household spirit, it may perform chores such as tidying the kitchen, but can be prankish, and when mistreated can resort to retribution, sometimes of the utmost cruelty.

The legend of the house sprite's retribution is quite old. The tale of the hütchen (or hodekin in Low German, meaning "little hat"; tale retold as Grimms Deutsche Sagen No. 74) is set in the historical background after c. 1130, and attested in a work c. 1500. This sprite that haunted the castle of the Bishop of Hildesheim, retaliated against a kitchen boy who splashed filthy water on it (Cf. Fig. right) by leaving the lad's dismembered body cooking in a pot. Likewise the resident Chimmeken of Mecklenburg Castle, in 1327, allegedly chopped up a kitchen boy into pieces after he took and drank the milk offered to the sprite, according to an anecdote recorded by historian Thomas Kantzow (d. 1542).

The story of the "multi-formed" Hinzelmann (Grimms DS No. 75) features a typical house sprite, tidying the kitchen, repaying insolence, etc. Though normally invisible, it is a shapeshifter as its byname suggests. When the lord of Hudemühlen Castle flees to Hanover, the sprite transforms into a feather to follow the horse carriage. It also appears as a marten and serpent after attempts at expelling it. The name has been analyzed by Grimm to refer to the spirit appearing in the guise of a cat, the name Hinz being an archetypical name for cats. Although Hinze is also a diminutive pet name of Heinrich, so that Heinzelmann might be a variant, the Heinzelmänchen of Cologne is considered a different house sprite altogether The house sprite names Chim or Chimken, Chimmeken, etc. are diminutive informal names of Joachim.

But its true form is often said to be that of a small child, sometimes only felt to be as such by the touch of the hand, but sometimes a female servant eager to see it is shown a dead body of a child (cf. Hinzelmann).The folklore was current in some regions, e.g. Vogtland that the kobold was the soul of a child who died unbaptized.

It has been stated by Jacob Grimm that the kobold has the general tendency to wear red pointy hats, while acknowledging this to be a widely disseminated mark of European household spirits under other names such as the Norwegian nisse; the North or Northeastern German kobolds named Niss or Puk (cog. puck), or are also prone to wearing such caps. The combined form Nis Puk is also known. In the north the house sprite may be known by the dragon-like name drak, said to appear in a form like a fire shaft.

Sometimes household sprites manifests as a noisemaker (poltergeist). It may first be such a rattler, then an invisible speaker, then a sprite doing chores, etc. and gradually making its presence and personality more clear (see Hintzelmann tale). In some regions, the kobold is held to be the soul of a prematurely killed child (§ True identity as child's ghost).

They may be hard to eradicate, but it is often said that a gift of an article of clothing will cause them to leave.

The klopfer is a "noisemaker" type of kobold name, while the poppele and butz (which Grimm thought may be noise inspired) have been re-classed as name referring to a doll or figurine.

The name kobold itself is classed in this "doll" type group, as the earliest instances of use of the word kobold in 13th century Middle High German refers jokingly to figurines made of wood or wax, though the word assumptively also meant "household spirit" in MHG, and certainly something of a "household deity" in the post-medieval period (gloss dated 1517).

The etymology of kobold that Grimm supported derived the word from Latin cobalus (Greek κόβαλος, kobalos), but this was also Georg Agricola 's Latin/Greek cypher for kobel, syn. Bergmännlein denoting mine spirits, i.e. gnome. This has been superseded by the one explaining the word as the compound kob/kof 'house, chamber' + walt 'power, authority' (cf. cobalt#etymology).

The gütel has a variant heugütel, a hayloft or stable kobold, which tampers with horses.

## Nomenclature and origins

The "kobold" is defined as the well-known household spirit, descended from household gods and hearth deities, according to the Grimms' dictionary.

However, Middle High German " kóbolt, kobólt " is defined as "wooden or waxen figures of a fairyish (neckische) house spirit", in jest.

### Kobold as generic term

The term "kobold" was being used general or generic term for "house spirit" known by other names even before Grimm, e.g., Erasmus Francisci (1690) who discusses the hütchen tale under the section on "Kobold".

### Glossed sources

It is a relatively late vocabularius where kobelte is glossed as (i.e., analogized as) Roman house and hearth deities " Lares " and Penates, as in Trochus (1517), or "kobold" with "lang|la|Spiritus familiaris}}" as in Steier (1705).

While the term "kobold" is attested in Middle High German glossaries, they may not corroborate a "house spirit" meaning. The terms kobult together with bancstichil, alp, more to gloss procubus in Diefenbach 's source (Breslauer's Vocabularius, 1340) may (?) suggest "kobold" being regarded more like an alp and mare which are dream demons.

But indications are that these Germanic household deities were current in the older periods, attested by Anglo-Saxon cofgodu (glossed "penates") and Old High German (Old Frankish) Old High German: hûsing, herdgota for house or hearth deities also glossed as penates.

There is an attestation to a kobold -like name for a house or location spirit, given as stetewalden by Frater Rudolfus of the 13th century, meaning "ruler of the site" (genius loci).

#### Ur-origins

Otto Schrader also observed that "cult of the hearth-fire" developed into "tutlelary house deities, localized in the home", and the German kobold and the Greek agathós daímōn both fit this evolutionary path.

### Etymology

The kobalt etymology as consisting of kob "chamber" + walt "ruler, power, authority", with the meaning of " household spirit " has been advanced by various authors, as early as Christian W. M. Grein (1861–1864) who postulated a form * kobwalt, and quoted in Grimms' dictionary. Other writers such as Müller-Fraureuth (1906) also weighed in on the question of its etymology.

Other linguists such as Otto Schrader (1908) suggested ancestral (Old High German) * kuba-walda "the one who rules the house". Dowden (2002) offers the hypothetical precursor * kofewalt.

The kob/kub/kuf- root is possibly related to Old Norse /Icelandic: kofe "chamber", or Old High German: chubisi "house". and the English word "cove" in the sense of 'shelter'.

This is now accepted as the standard etymology. Even though Grimm was aware of it, Jacob Grimm seemingly endorsed a different etymology (§ Grimm's alternate etymology), though this eventually got displaced.

#### Kobold as doll

There are no attested uses of the word "kobold" (Middle High German: kobolt) prior to the 13th century. Grimm makes opines that earlier uses may have existed, but remains undiscovered or lost.

The earliest known uses of the word kobold in 13th century Middle High German refer jokingly to figurines made of wood or wax. The exemplum in Konrad von Würzburg 's poem (<1250) refers to a man as worthless as a kobold-doll made from boxwood.

This use does not directly support the notion of the kobold being regarded as a spirit or deity. The scenario conjectured by Grimm (seconded by Karl Simrock in 1855) was that home sprites used to be carved from wood or wax and set up in the house, as objects of earnest veneration, but as the age progressed, they degraded into humorous or entertaining pieces of décor.

The kobolt and Tatrmann were also boxwood puppets manipulated by wires, which performed in puppet theater in the medieval period, as evident from example usage. The traveling juggler (German: Gaukler) of yore used to make a kobold doll appear out of their coats, and make faces with it to entertain the crowd.

Thomas Keightley comments that legends and folklore about kobolds can be explained as "ventriloquism and the contrivances of servants and others".

The 17th century expression to laugh like a kobold may refer to these dolls with their mouths wide open, and it may mean "to laugh loud and heartily".

There are other medieval literary examples using kobold or tatrmann as a metaphor for mute or dumb human beings.

Note that some of the kobold synonyms are specifically classified as Kretinnamen, under the slander for stupidity category in the HdA, as aforementioned.

### Grimm's alternate etymology

Joseph Grimm in Teutonic Mythology gave the etymology of kobold/kobolt as derived from Latin cobalus (pl. cobali) or rather its antecedent Greek koba'los (pl. kobaloi; Ancient Greek: Κόβαλος, plural: Κόβαλοι) meaning "joker, trickster". The final -olt he explained as typical German language suffix for monsters and supernaturals.

The derivation of kobold from Greek obalos is not original to Grimm, and he credits Ludwig Wachler (1737).

Thus the generic "goblin" is a cognate of "kobold" according to Grimm's etymology, and perhaps even a descendant word deriving from "kobold". The Dutch, kabout, kabot, kabouter, kaboutermanneken, etc., were also regarded as deriving from cabolus by Grimm, citing Dutch linguist Cornelis Kiliaan.

### Conflation with mine spirit

The Grimms' dictionary considered the names of the mine spirit kobel and the house spirit kobold to be a cognate or variants of the same word. It states under "kobold" that kobel must be a diminutive cognate Nebenform). And under "kobalt" it considers the name of cobalt ore derived from the supposed mischief caused by the kobold or Bergmännchen (mountain manikin, mountain spirit) in these mines.

Jacob Grimm certainly knew that kobel and Bergmännlein (= Bergmännchen; -lein, -chen are the commonest German diminutives) were the terms Agricola used for "mine spirits",

But whether Grimm also noticed that Agricola claimed "cobalos" was the same word used by Germans and Greeks (i.e.,"kobel" by Germans and "kobalos" by Greeks for the mine spirit), his assertion coinicided with the notion kobel derived from the same Greek word.

The conflation between kobold "house spirit" and kobel "mine spirit", German linguist Paul Kretschmer (1928) recapped the later "standard" etymology of kobold derived from koben "chamber' + walt "ruler, power, authority", and observed that this original sense of "house spirit" (Hausgeist) underwent a meaning-shift or conflation with "mine spirits".

#### Visitors from mines

Spiritualist Emma Hardinge Britten (1884) recorded a story about a "kobolds" in the mines who communicating with local German residents (of Harz Mountains ?) and promising to visit their homes. Extracted as real-life experience from a Mrs. Kalodzky, while visiting peasants named Dorothea and Michael Engelbrecht. As promised, these kobolds appeared in the house in shadow as small human-like figures "more like a little image carved out of black shining wood". The informant claims she and her husband have both seen the beings since, and described them as "diminutive black dwarfs about two or three feet in height, and at that part which in the human being is occupied by the heart, they carry the round luminous circle", and the sighting of the circle is more common than the dwarfish beings.

## Subtypes

A. Güttel, Poppele. B. Schretzelein C. a) Hüdeken b) Hinzelmann, Kazten-veit D. Klopfer E. Chimmeken Woltken, Chimken Niß-Puk G. Puk H. Heinzelmänchen I. Drak. Alrun

= "mine spirit".

The term kobold has slipped into becoming a generic term, translatable as goblin, so that all manners of household spirits (hausgeister) became classifiable as "types" of kobold. Such alternate names for the kobold house sprite are classified by type of naming (A. As doll, B. As pejoratives for stupidity, C. Appearance-based, D. Characteristics-based, E. Diminutive pet name based), etc., in the Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens (HdA).

A geographical map of Germany labeled with the different regional appellations has appeared in a 2020 publication.

Grimm, after stating that the list of kobold (or household spirit) in German lore can be long, also adds the names Hütchen and Heinzelmann.

### Doll or puppet names

The term kobold in its earliest usage suggest it to be a wooden doll (Cf. §Origins under § Doll or idol below). A synonym for kobold in that sense includes Tatrmann, which is also attested in the medieval period.

What is clear is that these kobold dolls were puppets used in plays and by travelling showmen, based on 13th century writings. They were also known as tatrmann and described as manipulated by wires. Either way, the idol or puppet was invoked rhetorically in writing by the minstrels, etc. to mock clergymen or other people.

The household spirit names poppele and butz were thought by Grimm to derive from noise-making, but the HdA considers them to be doll names. The poppele is close to German Puppe for doll. The term Butz meanwhile could refer to a "tree trunk", and by extension either "overgrown" or "little", or "stupid" thus is cross-categorized as an example of "cretin names" (category B). While the MHG dictionary defines Butze as a "knocking kobold" or poltergeist, frightening form, Grimm thinks that all MHG usage treats butze as a type of bogey or scarecrow (Popanz und Vogelscheuch). So in some sense, Butz is simply a generic bogeyman (German: de:Butzemann). And butz, while nominally a kobold (house spirit), is almost a generic term for all kinds of spectres in the Alps region.

The East Central German name gütel or güttel (diminutive of "god", i.e. "little god", var. heugütel) has been suggested as a kobold synonym of the fetish figurine type. Grimm knew the term but placed the discussion of it under the " Wild man of the woods " section conjecturing the use of güttel as synonymous to götze (i.e., sense of 'idol') in medieval heroic legend. The term gütel answers to Agricola's naming the guteli (in Latin) as akin to his mine spirit.

#### Mandrake root dolls

The HdA categorizes Alrun as a dragon name. However, since the term generally means "mandrake", an explanation of such human-looking root or root-carven doll as a charm will be explained below.

The mandrake-doll is regarded as falling under the general class of Glückmännchen, the generic term for dolls fashioned from roots. In the north (Saterland, Lower Saxony) there is an instance of the kobold being called Alrun (alrûne), and the name also occurs in Friesland.

### Cretin names

The aforementioned butz, may allude to a wooden object, or a "dolt" by extension. The Schrat (Schratte) is also formally categorized as a "cretin name" type of kobold nomenclature in the HdA. However, the term has remained current in the sense of "house spirit" only in certain parts, "southeast Germany", but more specifically northern Bavaria including the Upper Palatinate, Fichtel Mountains, and Vogtland (into Thuringia) according to the sources the HdA cites.

The tale "Schrätel und wasserbär" (kobold and polar bear) had been recorded in Middle High German, and is recognized as a "genuine" kobold tale. The tale is set in Denmark, whose king received the gift of a polar bear and lodges at a peasant's house infested by a "schretel". But the it is driven away by the ferocious bear, which the spirit thinks is a "big cat". Obviously Scandinavian origin is suspected, with Norwegian version featuring the polar bear, lacking in other Central European variants. Old Norse /Icelandic skratti meaning "sorcerer, giant" has been listed as cognate forms.

There exists a version of this water-bear tale, set in Bad Berneck im Fichtelgebirge, Upper Franconia, where a holzfräulein has been substituted for the schrätel, and the haunting occurring at a miller's, and the "big cat" dispatching the spirit. Still, the forms schrezala and schretselein seemed to be current around Fichtelgebirge, or at least in Upper Franconia region as a sprit haunting a house or stable. The schrezala form is recognized in Vogtland also.

Thus schretzelein is marked in Upper Franconia (around Hof, Bavaria) in the location map above based on additional sources. A schretzchen reputedly haunted a household at Kremnitzmühle near Teuschnitz, Upper Franconia, and tended to cattle, washed the dishes, and put out the fire. But when the mistress of the house well-intendedly gave the gift of clothing to the spirit who looked like a six-year old ragamuffin, it exclaimed it had been now been given payment and must now leave. However, the forms schrägele, schragerln are marked in Upper Franconia and schretzelein in Lower Franconia on Schäfer et al.'s map.

Forms of schrat as kobold also occurs in Poland as skrzat, glossed in a c. 1500 dictionary as a household spirit (duchy rodowe), also known by variant skrot. The Czech forms (standardized as škrat, škrátek, škrítek) could mean a kobold, but could also denote a "mine spirit" (duchu-górniku), etc. However, Brückner gives Czech skrátek, szkrzítek as "hag, baba" (jędzy) or "mine spirit" (duchu-górniku). and the extrapolation of latter by Ranke to "gold-bringing devil" (Gold bringender Teufel) would appear to require additional sources. The standardized forms škrat, škrátek, škrítek are not in the given sources, and occurs, e.g., in Josef Jungmann 's Czech-German dictionaries that also identifies Czech-Latin glosses. </ref>

### Pet names

There is a roster of names of kobolts or little folk derived from shortened affectionate forms of human names, including Chimken (Joachim),Wolterken (Walter), Niss (Nils).

Although the Heinzelmännchen (diminutive of Heinrich), particularly associated with Cologne, could easily be added to this roster, it is actually separated out as a "Category H Literary name" in the HdA, apparently regarded as a late literary invention or reconstruction. The Heinzelmännchen is also clearly distinguished from the Hinzelmann in current scholarship, according to modern linguist Elmar Seebold, though they may have beeninterchangeably discussed in the past. Accordingly, a mix of heinzelman, hinzelman" were given as "pet name (shortened human name)" type of kobold names by Grimm, (cf. § Heinzelmännchen below and the daugher article Heinzelmännchen).

Chimke (var. Chimken, Chimmeken), diminutive of Joachim is a Niederdeutsch for a poltergeist; the story of "Chimmeken" dates to c. 1327 and recorded in Thomas Kantzow 's Pomeranian chronicle (cf. § Offerings and retributions). Chimgen (Kurd Chimgen), and Chim are other forms.

Wolterken, also Low German, is diminutive for Walther, and another piece of household spirit of the pet name type, Wolterken glossed as "lares" and attested together with " chimken " and " hußnißken " in Samuel Meiger (1587) Panurgia lamiarum.

Nis (Niß) is also explained to be a northern pet name for Nils.

### Apparel names

Under the classification of household spirit names based on appearance, a subcategory collects names based on apparel, especially the hat (classification C. a), under which are listed Hütchen, Timpehut, Langhut, etc. and even Hellekeplein (from the term for cloak of invisibility). To this group probably belongs the Lower Saxon house spirit hôdekin (Low German: Hödekin) from Hildesheim, sporting a felt hat (Latin: pileus). Grimm also adds the names Hopfenhütel, Eisenhütel.

### Cat-shape

The kobold type Hinzelmann or Hintzelmann is completely distinguishable from Heinzelmann, Heinzelmännchen according to modern scholarship, (cf. § Heinzelmann) and is classified as a name alluding to the kobold's cat-like shape or transformation, according to the HdA. The analysis is expounded upon by Jacob Grimm, who notes that Hinze was the name of the cat in the Reineke (German version of Reynard the Fox) so it was the common pet name for cats. Thus hinzelman, hinzemännchen are recognized as cat-based names, as well as katermann (from kater " tom cat ") which may be precursor to tatermann.

The katzen-veit named after a cat is categorized by Grimm as a "wood sprite", but also discussed under kobold, and classed as a "cat appearance" type kobold name (category C b) in HdA. Grimm localized the katzen-veit at Fichtelberg in the Erzgebirge (Ore Mountains), and Prateorius also recognized this as the lore of the Vogtland region, though Praetorius's work published (1692) under the pseudonym Lustigero Wortlibio claims katzen-veit to be a famous "cabbage spirit" in the Hartzewalde (in Elbingerode, now part of Oberharz am Brocken in the Harz mountains, cf. map).

The Hitzelmann that haunted Hudemühlen Castle in Lower Saxony was described at length by Pastor Feldmann Der vielförmige Hintzelmann (1704). As the title suggests, this Hinzelmann was a many and varied shapeshifter, transforming into a white feather, or a marten, or a serpent. (cf. § Animal form).

The kobold appears in the guise of a cat to eat the panada bribe, in Saintine's version.

### Poltergeists

The HdA ’s category D consists of kobold names from their behavioural characteristics, and other than some non-German sprites discussed, these are mainly the poltergeists, or noise-making spirits and names after their favourite dish. The poltergeists include the klopfer ("knocker"), hämmerlein, etc.

Some poltergeists have been assumed to be named after their noise-making nature in the past, but which HdA categorizes otherwise as puppet names. So rather than taking poppele to be a form of Puppe "doll", Grimm opined that poppele was a name referred to its noisemaking, with the meaning of "muffled", Likewise, though Grimm thought butz was reference to noise, while butz seems to refer to a "tree trunk" and thus classed as A for doll-name by HdA.

### Milk-lovers

In category D, there are names deriving from their favorite food being the bowl of milk, namely napfhans ("Potjack") and the Swiss beckli meaning "milk vat" (cf. § Offerings and retributions.

### Heinzelmännchen

The Heinzelmännchen of Cologne resemble short, naked men. Like typical house sprites, they were said to perform household chores such as baking bread, laundry, etc. But they remained beyond sight of humans. Bakers in the city in the early 19th century never needed hired help because, each night, the kobolds known made as much bread as a baker could need. However, the people of the various shops could not suppress their curiosity at seeing them, and the schemes to see them. A tailor's wife strewed peas on the stairs to trip them so she could see them. Such endeavors caused the sprites to disappear at all the shops in Cologne, before around the year 1780.

This house sprite is included as kobold, but is considered a literary retelling. A balladic version about them was composed around this time by August Kopisch (d. 1853).

### Miscellaneous

King Goldemar, king of dwarfs, is also re-discussed under the household spirit commentary by Grimm, presumably because he became a guest to the human king Neveling von Hardenberg at his Castle Hardenstein for three years, making a dwarf sort of a household spirit on a limited-term basis.

For cognate beings of kobolds or house spirits in non-German cultures, see § Parallels.

## Characteristics

The kobold is linked to a specific household. Some legends claim that every house has a resident kobold, regardless of its owners' desires or needs. The means by which a kobold enters a new home vary from tale to tale.

Should someone take pity on a kobold in the form of a cold, wet creature and take it inside to warm it, the spirit takes up residence there. A tradition from Perleberg in northern Germany says that a homeowner must follow specific instructions to lure a kobold to their house. They must go on St John's Day between noon and one o'clock, into the forest. When they find an anthill with a bird on it, they must say a certain phrase, which causes the bird to transform into a small human. The figure then leaps into a bag carried by the homeowner, and they can then transfer the kobold to their home. Even if servants come and go, the kobold stays.

House kobolds usually live in the hearth area of a house, although some tales place them in less frequented parts of the home, in the woodhouse, in barns and stables, or in the beer cellar of an inn. At night, such kobolds do chores that the human occupants neglected to finish before bedtime: They chase away pests, clean the stables, feed and groom the cattle and horses, scrub the dishes and pots, and sweep the kitchen. Other kobolds help tradespeople and shopkeepers.

Kobolds are spirits and, as such, part of a spiritual realm. However, as with other European spirits, they often dwell among the living. The spirit's doings, and how humans interact will be discussed further below (§ Activities and interactions)

Kobolds can take on the appearance of children, be dressed a certain way, or manifest as non-human animals, fire, humans, and objects. This is further discussed below (§ Physical description)

## Physical description

There seems to be contradictory opinion on whether a kobold should be generally regarded as boyish looking, or more elderly and bearded. An earlier edition of the Brockhaus Enzyklopädie gives the childlike description, however, a later edition amends to the view of an elderly looking kobold, with a beard.

The cherubic, winged child illustration occurs in the 1704 printed book narrative of the kobold, Hintzelmann (cf. right). The bearded look is the kobold ascribed red hair and beard in Jacob Grimm 's Deutsche Mythlogie, without specifying any archetypes. Simrock summarizes that "they" (apparently applying broadly to dwarfs, house spirits, wood sprites, and subterranean folk tend to have red hair and red beard, as well as red clothing. The example of Petermännchen of Schwerin is a story that mentions its beard.

On the kobold assuming the guise of small children, there is a piece of lore that the kobolds are the spirits of dead children and often appear with a knife that represents the means by which they were put to death. Cf. § True identity as child's ghost

Other tales describe kobolds appearing as herdsmen looking for work and little, wrinkled old men in pointed hoods.

### Red cap

Kobolds supposedly also tend to wear a pointy red hat, though Grimm acknowledges that the "red peaky cap" is also the mark of the Norwegian nisse. Grimm mentions the spirit known as hütchen (meaning "little hat" of felt, cf. § Apparel names) immediately after, perhaps as an example of such a cap-wearer.

The kobold wearing a red cap and protective pair of boots is reiterated by, e.g., Wolfgang Golther. Grimm describes household spirits owning fairy shoes or fairy boots, which permits rapid travel over difficult terrain, and compares it to the league boots of fairytale.

There is lore concerning the infant-sized niss-puk (Niß Puk, Nisspuk var. Neß Puk, where Puk is cognate to English puck) wearing (pointed) red caps localized in various part of the province of Schleswig-Holstein, in northernmost Germany adjoining Denmark.

Karl Müllenhoff provided the "kobold" lore of the Schwertmann of Schleswig-Holstein, in his collection of Schleswig-Holstein legends, this tale localized at Rethwisch, Steinburg (Krempermarsch). The Schwertmann was said to dwell in a Donnerloch or granite-hole, and perpetrated mischief on villagers, but could also (try to) be helpful. It could appear in the guise of fire, and appreciated the gift of shoes, though his burning feet quickly turns them into tatters. According to supposed eyewitness accounts by people in Stapelholm the Niß Puk was no larger than a 1 or 1 1/2 year old infant (some say 3-year old) and had a "large head and long arms, and small but bright cunning eyes", and wore "red stockings and a long grey or green tick coat.. red, peaked cap".

The lore of the house kobold puk was also current farther east in Pomerania, including now Polish Farther Pomerania. The kobold- niss - puk was regarded as wearing a "red jacket and cap" in western Uckermark. The tale of pûks told in Swinemünde (now Świnoujście) held that a man's luck ran out when he rebuilt his house and the blessing passed on to his neighbor who reused the old beams. The pûks was witnessed wearing a cocked hat (aufgekrämpten Hut), red jacket with shiny buttons.

### Invisibility and true form

The normal invisibility of the Chimgen (or Chim) kobold is explained in legend which tells of a female servant taking a fancy to her house's kobold and asking to see him. The kobold refuses, claiming that to look upon him would be terrifying. Undeterred, the maid insists, and the kobold tells her to meet him later—and to bring along a pail of cold water. The kobold waits for the maid, nude and with a butcher knife in his back. The maid faints at the sight, and the kobold wakes her with the cold water. And she never wished to see the Chimgen ever again.

In one variant, the maid urges her favourite kobold named Heinzchen to see him in his natural state, and is then led to the cellar, where she is shown a dead baby floating in a cask full of blood; years before, the woman had borne a bastard child, killed it, and hidden it in such a cask.

#### True identity as child's ghost

Saintine follows the story above with a piece of lore that kobolds are regarded as (ghosts of) infants, and the tail ("caudal appendage") that they have represent the knife used to kill them. What Praetorius (1666) stated was that the goblin haunting a house often appeared in the guise of children with knives stuck in their backs, revealing them to be ghosts of children murdered in that manner.

The lore that the kobold's true identity is the soul of a child who died unbaptized was current in the Vogland (including such belief held for the gutel of Erzgebirge). Like the soul, the kobold can assume any shape, even "sheer fire"

Cf. Grimm, the lore that unbaptized children become pilweisse (bilwis) Also, the de:Irrlicht (≈ will-o'-the-wisp), called Dickepôten locally in the southern Altmark, were said to be the souls of unbaptized children.

### Goldemar's traces

Although King Goldemar (or Goldmar), a famous kobold from Castle Hardenstein, had hands "thin like those of a frog, cold and soft to the feel", he never showed himself. King Goldemar was said to sleep in the same bed with Neveling von Hardenberg. He demanded a place at the table and a stall for his horses. The master of Hudemühlen Castle, where Heinzelmann lived, convinced the kobold to let him touch him one night.

When a man threw ashes and tares about to try to see King Goldemar's footprints, the kobold cut him to pieces, put him on a spit, roasted him, boiled his legs and head, and ate him.

### Fire phenomena

The kobold is said to appear as an oscillating fire-pillar ("stripe") with a part resembling a head, but appears in the guise of a black cat when it lands and is no longer airborne (Altmark, Saxony). Benjamin Thorpe likens this to similar lore about the dråk ("drake") in Swinemünde (now Świnoujście), Pomerania.

A legend from the same period taken from Pechüle, near Luckenwald, says that a drak (apparently corrupted from Drache meaning "drake" or "dragon") or kobold flies through the air as a blue stripe and carries grain. "If a knife or a fire-steel be cast at him, he will burst, and must let fall what which he is carrying". Some legends say the fiery kobold enters and exits a house through the chimney. Legends dating to 1852 from western Uckermark ascribe both human and fiery features to the kobold; he wears a red jacket and cap and moves about the air as a fiery stripe. Such fire associations, along with the name drake, may point to a connection between kobold and dragon myths.

### Animal form

Other kobolds appear as non-human animals. Folklorist D. L. Ashliman has reported kobolds appearing as wet cats and hens. In Pomerania there are several tales specimens that a kobold or puk hatches from a yolk-less chicken egg (Spâei, Sparei), and in other tales, a kobold (aka "redjacket") appears in a cat's guise or a puk appears as a hen. The comparison is readily made to the legend of the hen-hatched basilisk.

Thorpe has recorded that the people of Altmark believed that kobolds appeared as black cats while walking the earth. The kobold Hinzelmann could appear as a black marten (German: schwartzen Marder) and a large snake.

One lexicon glosses the French term for werewolf, loup-garou, as kobold. This is somewhat underscored by the remark that werewolf transformation was considered an ability of sorcerers with unibrow, which was a physical mark shared with the Schratel spirit (as wood sprite).

These do not comprise an exhaustive list of what forms the kobold can take on. The hinzelmann besides the cat appears as a "dog, hen, red or black bird, buck goat, dragon, and a fiery or bluish form", according to an old encyclopedic entry. Ranke (1910) gave a similar list for kobold transformations which includes bumblebee (Hummel).

## Activities and interactions

### Offerings and retributions

A kobold expects to be fed in the same place at the same time each day.

Legends tell of slighted kobolds becoming quite malevolent and vengeful, afflicting errant hosts with supernatural diseases, disfigurements, and injuries. Their pranks range from beating the servants to murdering those who insult them.

In the story of the Chimmeken of the Mecklenburg Castle, (supra, dated 1327 given by Kantzow) the milk customarily put for the sprite by the kitchen was stolen by a kitchen-boy (Küchenbube), and the spirit consequently left the boy's dismembered body in a kettle of hot water. In comparison, a more amicable pück anecdotally served monks at Mecklenburg monastery, bargaining for multicolored tunic with lots of bells in return for his services.

A similar story of the vengeful Hüdeken (var. Hütgin) occurs in a chronicle of Hildesheim, c. 1500. A preceding tale where Hüdeken serves as messenger following an assasination of c. 1132 explains the historical background, whereby the Bishop of Hildesheim assumes control of Winzenburg Castle. The Hüdeken (also Hödekin) exacted veneance on the kitchen boy of the castle who splashed filthy water by strangling the lad in his sleep and leaving the severed body parts cooking in a pot over the fire. When the head cook complained about the prank, the Hüdeken squeezed venomous toad blood onto the meat being prepared for the bishop. Later he led the cook to an illusory bridge plunging him into the moat. Some versions add that the Bishop in the end used the power of his spells (Beschwörung) to get rid of the Hödeken.

According to Max Lüthi, the household spirits' being ascribed such abilities reflect the fear of the people who believe in them.

The bribe left to the household spirit, other than milk may be panada (bread soup) in a supposed Alsatian version. The offering was to be milk and Semmel (bread roll according to a lexicon for Altmark

Novelist Heinrich Heine noted in connection with the present (Hildesheim) tale that the favourite food was the gruel for the Scandinavian nisse.

As a sort of the reverse of the offering, one tradition claims that the kobold will strew wood chips about the house and putting dirt or cow manure in the milk cans. And if the master of the house leaves the wood chips and drinks the soiled milk, the kobold is pleased and takes up residence at the household

### Good-evil duality

Archibald Maclaren has attributed kobold behaviour to the virtue of the homeowners; a virtuous house has a productive and helpful kobold; a vice-filled one has a malicious and mischievous pest. If the hosts give up those things to which the kobold objects, the spirit ceases its annoying behaviour. Hinzelmann punished vices; for example, when the secretary of Hudemühlen was sleeping with the chamber maid, the kobold interrupted a sexual encounter and hit the secretary with a broom handle. King Goldemar revealed the secret transgressions of clergymen, much to their chagrin.

Even friendly kobolds are rarely completely good, and house kobolds may do mischief for no particular reason. They hide things, push people over when they bend to pick something up, and make noise at night to keep people awake. The kobold Hödekin of Hildesheim roamed the walls of the castle at night, forcing the watch to be constantly vigilant. A kobold in a fishermen's house in Köpenick on the Wendish Spree reportedly moved sleeping fishermen so that their heads and toes lined up. King Goldemar enjoyed strumming the harp and playing dice.

### Good fortune

A kobold can bring wealth to his household in the form of grain and gold. In this function it often is called Drak. A legend from Saterland and East Friesland tells of a kobold called the Alrûn (which is the German term for mandrake). In the tale from Nordmohr (in or near Detern, E. Friesland, now Low Saxony) despite standing only about a foot tall, the creature could carry a load of rye in his mouth for the people with whom he lived and did so daily as long as he received a meal of biscuits (Zwieback) and milk.

Kobolds bring good luck and help their hosts as long as the hosts take care of them. The kobold Hödekin, who lived with the bishop of Hildesheim in the 12th century, once warned the bishop of a murder. When the bishop acted on the information, he was able to take over the murderer's lands and add them to his bishopric.

The house-spirit ins some areas were called Alrûn ("mandrake"), though this was also the name of a trinket sold in bottles, which instead of being genuine mandrake could be any doll shaped from some plant root. And the saying to have an Alrûn in one's pocket means "to have luck at play". However, kobold gifts may be stolen from the neighbours; accordingly, some legends say that gifts from a kobold are demonic or evil. Nevertheless, peasants often welcome this trickery and feed their kobold in the hopes that it continue bringing its gifts. A family coming into unexplained wealth was often attributed to a new kobold moving into the house.

### Eradication

Folktales tell of people trying to rid themselves of mischievous kobolds. In one tale, a man with a kobold-haunted barn puts all the straw onto a cart, burns the barn down, and sets off to start anew. As he rides away, he looks back and sees the kobold sitting behind him. "It was high time that we got out!" it says. A similar tale from Köpenick tells of a man trying to move out of a kobold-infested house. He sees the kobold preparing to move too and realises that he cannot rid himself of the creature.

Exorcism by a Christian priest works in some tales; in certain versions of the Hödekin in the kitchen of the castle enfeoffed to the Bishop of Hildesheim, the bishop managed to exorcise Hödekin using church-spells. The attempts to expel the Hintzelmann from the Castle Hudemühlen by a nobleman and later by an exorcist trying to use a book of holy spells were foiled, it later left of its own will.

Insulting a kobold may drive it away, but not without a curse; when someone tried to see his true form, Goldemar left the home and vowed that the house would now be as unlucky as it had been fortunate under his care.

## Other specialized kobolds

Other than the mine spirit kobold above, there are others "house spirits" that haunt shops, ships, shops, etc. places of various professions.

The Klabautermann (cf. § Water spirits below) is a kobold from the beliefs of fishermen and sailors of the Baltic Sea. Adalbert Kuhn recognized in northern Germany the form Klabåtersmanneken (syn. Pûkse) which haunted mills and ships, subsisted on the milk put out for them, and return performed chores such as milking cows, grooming horse, helping the kitchen, or scrubbing the ship.

The biersal, sometimes called a type of kobold live in breweries and the beer cellars of inns or pubs, bring beer into the house, clean the tables, and wash the bottles, glasses and casks. The family must leave a portion of their supper (or beer, for the biersal. —see Hödfellow) to the spirit and must treat the kobold with respect, never mocking or laughing at the creature.

One such legend, first appearing late in the 19th century, concerns a house spirit named Hödfellow that resided at the Fremlin's Brewery in Maidstone, Kent, England who was wont to either assist the company's workers or hinder their efforts depending on whether he was being paid his share of the beer. This association between kobolds and work gave rise to a saying current in 19th-century Germany that a woman who worked quickly "had the kobold".

## Parallels

Kobold beliefs mirror legends of similar creatures in other regions of Europe, and scholars have argued that the names of creatures such as goblins and kabouters derive from the same roots as kobold. This may indicate a common origin for these creatures, or it may represent cultural borrowings and influences of European peoples upon one another. Similarly, subterranean kobolds may share their origins with creatures such as gnomes and dwarves.

Sources equate the domestic kobold with creatures such as the English boggart, hobgoblin and pixie, the Scottish brownie, and the Scandinavian nisse or tomte; while they align the subterranean variety with the Norse dwarf and the Cornish knocker. Irish writer Thomas Keightley argued that the German kobold and the Scandinavian nis predate the Irish fairy and the Scottish brownie and influenced the beliefs in those entities, but modern folklorist Richard Mercer Dorson noted Keightley's bias as a strong adherent of Grimm, embracing the thesis of regarding ancient Teutonic mythology as underlying all sorts of folklore.

British antiquarian Charles Hardwick ventured a theory that the spirits like the kobold in other cultures, such as the Scottish bogie, French goblin, and English Puck were also etymologically related. In keeping with Grimm's definition, the kobaloi were spirits invoked (i.e., used as invective ?) by such tongue-wagging rogues.

The kobold as mining spirits are compared to the English bluecap and Cornish knocker, as well as the Welsh coblynau.

## Klabautermann

The Klabautermann (also spelt Klaboterman and Klabotermann) is a creature from the beliefs of fishermen and sailors of Germany's north coast, the Netherlands, and the Baltic Sea, and may represent a third type of kobold or possibly a different spirit that has merged with kobold traditions. Belief in the Klabautermann dates to at least the 1770s.

According to these traditions, Klabautermanns live on ships and are generally beneficial to the crew. For example, a Klabautermann will pump water from the hold, arrange cargo, and hammer at holes until they can be repaired. The creatures are thought to be especially useful in times of danger, preventing the ship from sinking. The Klabautermann is associated with the wood of the ship on which it lives. It enters the ship via the wood used to build it, and it may appear as a ship's carpenter. The Klabautermann typically appears as a small, pipe-smoking humanlike figure wearing a yellow nightcap-style sailor's hat and a red or grey jacket.

The Klabautermann's benevolent behaviour lasts as long as the crew and captain treat the creature respectfully. A Klabautermann will not leave its ship until it is on the verge of sinking. To this end, superstitious sailors in the 19th century demanded that others pay the Klabautermann respect. Ellett has recorded one rumour that a crew even threw its captain overboard for denying the existence of the ship's Klabautermann. Heinrich Heine has reported that one captain created a place for his ship's Klabautermann in his cabin and that the captain offered the spirit the best food and drink he had to offer. Klabautermanns are easily angered. Their ire manifests in pranks such as tangling ropes and laughing at sailors who shirk their chores.

The sight of a Klabautermann is an ill omen, and in the 19th century, it was the most feared sight among sailors. According to one tradition, they only appear to those about to die. Another story recorded by Ellett claims that the Klabautermann only shows itself if the ship is doomed to sink.

German writer Heinrich Smidt believed that the sea kobolds, or Klabautermann, entered German folklore via German sailors who had learned about them in England. However, historians David Kirby and Merja-Liisa Hinkkanen dispute this, claiming no evidence of such a belief in Britain. An alternate view connects the Klabautermann myths with the story of Saint Phocas of Sinope. As that story spread from the Black Sea to the Baltic Sea. Scholar Reinhard Buss instead sees the Klabautermann as an amalgamation of early and pre-Christian beliefs mixed with new creatures.

## In culture

### Literary references

German writers have long borrowed from German folklore and fairy lore for both poetry and prose. Narrative versions of folktales and fairy tales are common, and kobolds are the subject of several such tales. The kobold is invoked by Martin Luther in his Bible, translates the Hebrew lilith in Isaiah 34:14 as kobold.

In Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 's Faust, the kobold represents the Greek element of earth. This merely goes to show that Goethe saw fit to substitute "kobold" for the gnome of the earth, one of Paraceslsus's four spirits. In Faust Part II, v. 5848, Goethe uses Gütchen (syn. Güttel above) as synonym for his gnome.

### Theatrical and musical works

A kobold is musically depicted in Edvard Grieg 's lyric piece, opus 71, number 3.

Der Kobold, Op. 3, is also Opera in Three Acts with text and music by Siegfried Wagner; his third opera and it was completed in 1903.

The kobold characters Pittiplatsch occurs in modern East German puppet theatre.. Pumuckl the kobold originated as a children's radio play series (1961).

### Games and D&D literature

Kobolds also appear in many modern fantasy-themed games like Clash of Clans and Hearthstone, usually as a low-power or low-level enemy. They exist as a playable race in the Dark Age of Camelot video game. They also exist as a non-playable rat-like race in the World of Warcraft video game series, and also feature in tabletop games such as Magic: The Gathering. In Dungeons & Dragons, the kobold appears as an occasionally playable race of lizard-like beings. In Might and Magic games (notably Heroes VII), they are depicted as being mouse-dwarf hybrids.

### Fantasy novels and anime

The fantasy novel Record of Lodoss War adapted into anime depicts kobolds as dog-like, based on earlier versions of Dungeons & Dragons, resulting in many Japanese media depictions doing the same.

In the novel American Gods, by Neil Gaiman, Hinzelmann is portrayed as an ancient kobold who helps the city of Lakeside in exchange for killing one teenager once a year.

In the novel The Spirit Ring by Lois McMaster Bujold, mining kobolds help the protagonists and display a fondness for milk. In an author's note, Bujold attributes her conception of kobolds to the Herbert Hoover and Lou Henry Hoover translation of De re metallica.


2018 in Guinea

# 2018 in Guinea

## Abstract

Events in the year 2018 in Guinea.

## Incumbents

- President: Alpha Condé

- Prime Minister: Mamady Youla (until 24 May); Ibrahima Kassory Fofana (from 24 May)

## Events

- 24 May – Ibrahima Kassory Fofana takes over as Prime Minister of Guinea

- September – scheduled date for the Guinean legislative election, 2018

## Deaths

- 4 January – Papa Camara, footballer (b. 1951).


Zee Marathi Utsav Natyancha Awards

# Zee Marathi Utsav Natyancha Awards

## Abstract

Zee Marathi Utsav Natyancha Award (transl. Zee Marathi Festival of Relations Award) is an awards ceremony held yearly, sponsored by Waman Hari Pethe Jewellers and presented by Zee Marathi. This event is held in the month of October for each year and awards are given to the best entertainers for variety programs aired on its channel. The first awards ceremony held in 2004 which was formerly known as Aapla Alpha Award.

## Ceremony

## Current Categories

## Former Categories

## Special Categories


Multiple sub-Nyquist sampling encoding

# Multiple sub-Nyquist sampling encoding

## Abstract

MUSE (Multiple sub-Nyquist Sampling Encoding), commercially known as Hi-Vision (a contraction of HI gh-definition tele VISION) was a Japanese analog high-definition television system, with design efforts going back to 1979.

It used dot-interlacing and digital video compression to deliver 1125 line, 60 field-per-second (1125i60) signals to the home. The system was standardized as ITU -R recommendation BO.786 and specified by SMPTE 260M, using a colorimetry matrix specified by SMPTE 240M. As with other analog systems, not all lines carry visible information. On MUSE there are 1035 active interlaced lines, therefore this system is sometimes also mentioned as 1035i. It employed 2-dimensional filtering, dot-interlacing, motion-vector compensation and line-sequential color encoding with time compression to "fold" an original 20 MHz bandwidth source signal into just 8.1 MHz.

Japan began broadcasting wideband analog HDTV signals in December 1988, initially with an aspect ratio of 2:1. The Sony HDVS high-definition video system was used to create content for the MUSE system, but didn't record MUSE signals. By the time of its commercial launch in 1991, digital HDTV was already under development in the United States. Hi-Vision was mainly broadcast by NHK through their BShi satellite TV channel, although other channels such as WOWOW, TV Asahi, Fuji Television, TBS Television, Nippon Television, and TV Tokyo also broadcast in MUSE.

On May 20, 1994, Panasonic released the first MUSE LaserDisc player. There were also a number of players available from other brands like Pioneer and Sony.

Hi-Vision continued broadcasting in analog until 2007.

## History

MUSE was developed by NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories in the 1980s as a compression system for Hi-Vision HDTV signals.

- Japanese broadcast engineers immediately rejected conventional vestigial sideband broadcasting.

- It was decided early on that MUSE would be a satellite broadcast format as Japan economically supports satellite broadcasting. MUSE was transmitted at a frequency of 21 GHz or 12 GHz.

- Japanese broadcast engineers had been studying the various HDTV broadcast types for some time. It was initially thought that SHF, EHF or optic fiber would have to be used to transmit HDTV due to the high bandwidth of the signal, and HLO-PAL would be used for terrestrial broadcast. HLO-PAL is a conventionally constructed composite signal (based on Y {\displaystyle Y} for luminance and C {\displaystyle C} for chroma like NTSC and PAL) and uses a phase alternating by line with half-line offset carrier encoding of the wideband/narrowband chroma components. Only the very lowest part of the wideband chroma component overlapped the high-frequency chroma. The narrowband chroma was completely separated from luminance. PAF, or phase alternating by field (like the first NTSC color system trial) was also experimented with, and it gave much better decoding results, but NHK abandoned all composite encoding systems. Because of the use of satellite transmission, Frequency modulation (FM) should be used with power-limitation problem. FM incurs triangular noise, so if a sub-carrierred composite signal is used with FM, demodulated chroma signal has more noise than luminance. Because of this, they looked at other options, and decided to use Y / C {\displaystyle Y/C} component emission for satellite. At one point, it seemed that FCFE (Frame Conversion Fineness Enhanced), I/P conversion compression system, would be chosen, but MUSE was ultimately picked.

- Separate transmission of Y {\displaystyle Y} and C {\displaystyle C} components was explored. The MUSE format which is transmitted today, uses separated component signalling. The improvement in picture quality was so great, that the original test systems were recalled.

- One more power saving tweak was made: lack of visual response to low frequency noise allows significant reduction in transponder power if the higher video frequencies are emphasised prior to modulation at the transmitter and de-emphasized at the receiver.

## Technical specifications

MUSE's "1125 lines" are an analog measurement, which includes non-video scan lines taking place while a CRT 's electron beam returns to the top of the screen to begin scanning the next field. Only 1035 lines have picture information. Digital signals count only the lines (rows of pixels) that have actual detail, so NTSC's 525 lines become 486i (rounded to 480 to be MPEG compatible), PAL's 625 lines become 576i, and MUSE would be 1035i. To convert the bandwidth of Hi-Vision MUSE into "conventional" lines-of-horizontal resolution (as is used in the NTSC world), multiply 29.9 lines per MHz of bandwidth. (NTSC and PAL/SECAM are 79.9 lines per MHz) - this calculation of 29.9 lines works for all current HD systems including Blu-ray and HD-DVD. So, for MUSE, during a still picture, the lines of resolution would be: 598-lines of luminance resolution per-picture-height. The chroma resolution is: 209-lines. The horizontal luminance measurement approximately matches the vertical resolution of a 1080 interlaced image when the Kell factor and interlace factor are taken into account. 1125 lines was selected as a compromise between the resolution in lines of NTSC and PAL and then doubling this number.

MUSE employs time-compression integration (TCI) which is another term for time-division multiplexing, which is used to carry luminance, chrominance, PCM audio and sync signals on one carrier signal/in one carrier frequency. However, TCI achieves multiplexing by compression of the contents in the time dimension, in other words transmitting frames of video that are divided into regions with chrominance compressed into the left of the frame and luminance compressed into the right of the frame, which must then be expanded and layered to create a visible image. This makes it different from NTSC which carries luminance, audio and chrominance simultaneously in several carrier frequencies. Hi-Vision signals are component video signals with 3 channels: they were RGB initially, and later YP P.

Key features of the MUSE system:

- Scanlines (total/active): 1,125/1,035

- Pixels per line (fully interpolated): 1122 (still image)/748 (moving)

- Reference clock periods: 1920 per active line

- Interlaced ratio: 2:1

- Aspect ratio 16:9

- Refresh rate: 59.94 or 60 frames per second

- Sampling frequency for broadcast: 16.2 MHz

- Vector motion compensation: horizontal ± 16 samples (32.4 MHz clock) / frame, a vertical line ± 3 / Field

- Audio: "DANCE" discrete 2- or 4-channel digital audio system: 48 kHz/16 bit (2 channel stereo: 2 front channels)/32 kHz/12 bit (4 channel surround: 3 front channels + 1 back channel)

- DPCM Audio compression format: DPCM quasi-instantaneous companding

- Required bandwidth: 27 MHz

### Colorimetry

The MUSE luminance signal Y {\displaystyle Y} encodes Y M {\displaystyle YM}, specified as the following mix of the original RGB color channels:

The chrominance C {\displaystyle C} signal encodes B − Y M {\displaystyle B-YM} and R − Y M {\displaystyle R-YM} difference signals. By using these three signals (Y M {\displaystyle YM}, B − Y M {\displaystyle B-YM} and R − Y M {\displaystyle R-YM}), a MUSE receiver can retrieve the original RGB color components using the following matrix:

The system used a colorimetry matrix specified by SMPTE 240M (with coefficients corresponding to the SMPTE RP 145 primaries, also known as SMPTE-C, in use at the time the standard was created). The chromaticity of the primary colors and white point are:

The luma (E Y {\displaystyle EY}) function is specified as:

The blue color difference (E P B {\displaystyle EPB}) is amplitude-scaled (E B − E Y {\displaystyle EB-EY}), according to:

The red color difference (E P R {\displaystyle EPR}) is amplitude-scaled (E R − E Y {\displaystyle ER-EY}), according to:

### Signal and Transmission

MUSE is a 1125 line system (1035 visible), and is not pulse and sync compatible with the digital 1080 line system used by modern HDTV. Originally, it was a 1125 line, interlaced, 60 Hz, system with a 5:3 (1.66:1) aspect ratio and an optimal viewing distance of roughly 3.3H. In 1989 this was changed to a 16:9 aspect ratio.

For terrestrial MUSE transmission a bandwidth limited FM system was devised. A satellite transmission system uses uncompressed FM.

The pre-compression bandwidth for Y {\displaystyle Y} is 20 MHz, and the pre-compression bandwidth for chrominance is a 7.425 MHz carrier.

The Japanese initially explored the idea of frequency modulation of a conventionally constructed composite signal. This would create a signal similar in structure to the Y / C {\displaystyle Y/C} composite video NTSC signal - with the Y {\displaystyle Y} (luminance) at the lower frequencies and the C {\displaystyle C} (chrominance) above. Approximately 3 kW of power would be required, in order to get 40 dB of signal to noise ratio for a composite FM signal in the 22 GHz band. This was incompatible with satellite broadcast techniques and bandwidth.

To overcome this limitation, it was decided to use a separate transmission of Y {\displaystyle Y} and C {\displaystyle C}. This reduces the effective frequency range and lowers the required power. Approximately 570 W (360 for Y {\displaystyle Y} and 210 for C {\displaystyle C}) would be needed in order to get a 40 dB of signal to noise ratio for a separate Y / C {\displaystyle Y/C} FM signal in the 22 GHz satellite band. This was feasible.

There is one more power saving that appears from the character of the human eye. The lack of visual response to low frequency noise allows significant reduction in transponder power if the higher video frequencies are emphasized prior to modulation at the transmitter and then de-emphasized at the receiver. This method was adopted, with crossover frequencies for the emphasis/de-emphasis at 5.2 MHz for Y {\displaystyle Y} and 1.6 MHz for C {\displaystyle C}. With this in place, the power requirements drop to 260 W of power (190 for Y {\displaystyle Y} and 69 for C {\displaystyle C}).

## Sampling systems and ratios

The subsampling in a video system is usually expressed as a three part ratio. The three terms of the ratio are: the number of brightness (luma) Y {\displaystyle Y} samples, followed by the number of samples of the two color (chroma) components C b {\displaystyle Cb} and C r {\displaystyle Cr}, for each complete sample area. Traditionally the value for brightness is always 4, with the rest of the values scaled accordingly.

A sampling of 4:4:4 indicates that all three components are fully sampled. A sampling of 4:2:0, for example, indicated that the two chroma components are sampled at half the horizontal sample rate of luma - the horizontal chroma resolution is halved. This reduces the bandwidth of an uncompressed video signal by one-third.

MUSE implements a similar system as a means of reducing bandwidth, but instead of static sampling, the actual ratio varies according to the amount of motion on the screen. In practice, MUSE sampling will vary from approximately 4:2:1 to 4:0.5:0.25, depending on the amount of movement. Thus the red-green chroma component C r {\displaystyle Cr} has between one-half and one-eighth the sampling resolution of the luma component Y {\displaystyle Y}, and the blue-yellow chroma C b {\displaystyle Cb} has half the resolution of red-green.

## Audio subsystem

MUSE had a discrete 2- or 4-channel digital audio system called " DANCE ", which stood for Digital Audio Near-instantaneous Compression and Expansion.

It used differential audio transmission (differential pulse-code modulation) that was not psychoacoustics-based like MPEG-1 Layer II. It used a fixed transmission rate of 1350 kbp/s. Like the PAL NICAM stereo system, it used near-instantaneous companding (as opposed to Syllabic-companding like the dbx system uses) and non-linear 13-bit digital encoding at a 32 kHz sample rate.

It could also operate in a 48 kHz 16-bit mode. The DANCE system was well documented in numerous NHK technical papers and in a NHK-published book issued in the USA called Hi-Vision Technology.

The DANCE audio codec was superseded by Dolby AC-3 (a.k.a. Dolby Digital), DTS Coherent Acoustics (a.k.a. DTS Zeta 6x20 or ARTEC), MPEG-1 Layer III (a.k.a. MP3), MPEG-2 Layer I, MPEG-4 AAC and many other audio coders. The methods of this codec are described in the IEEE paper:

## Real world performance issues

MUSE had a four-field dot-interlacing cycle, meaning it took four fields to complete a single MUSE frame. Thus, only stationary images were transmitted at full resolution. However, as MUSE lowers the horizontal and vertical resolution of material that varies greatly from frame to frame, moving images were blurred. Because MUSE used motion-compensation, whole camera pans maintained full resolution, but individual moving elements could be reduced to only a quarter of the full frame resolution. Because the mix between motion and non-motion was encoded on a pixel-by-pixel basis, it wasn't as visible as most would think. Later, NHK came up with backwards compatible methods of MUSE encoding/decoding that greatly increased resolution in moving areas of the image as well as increasing the chroma resolution during motion. This so-called MUSE-III system was used for broadcasts starting in 1995 and a very few of the last Hi-Vision MUSE LaserDiscs used it (A River Runs Through It is one Hi-Vision LD that used it). During early demonstrations of the MUSE system, complaints were common about the decoder's large size, which led to the creation of a miniaturized decoder.

Shadows and multipath still plague this analog frequency modulated transmission mode.

Japan has since switched to a digital HDTV system based on ISDB, but the original MUSE-based BS Satellite channel 9 (NHK BS Hi-vision) was broadcast until September 30, 2007.

## Cultural and geopolitical impacts

- (1940s): The NTSC standard (as a 525 line monochrome system) was imposed by the US occupation forces.

- (1950s-1960s): Unlike Canada (that could have switched to PAL), Japan was stuck with the US TV transmission standard regardless of circumstances.

- (1960s-1970s): By the late 1960s many parts of the modern Japanese electronics industry had gotten their start by fixing the transmission and storage problems inherent with NTSC's design.

- (1970s-1980s): By the 1980s there was spare engineering talent available in Japan that could design a better television system.

MUSE, as the US public came to know it, was initially covered in the magazine Popular Science in the mid-1980s. The US television networks did not provide much coverage of MUSE until the late 1980s, as there were few public demonstrations of the system outside Japan.

Because Japan had its own domestic frequency allocation tables (that were more open to the deployment of MUSE) it became possible for this television system to be transmitted by Ku Band satellite technology by the end of the 1980s.

The US FCC in the late 1980s began to issue directives that would allow MUSE to be tested in the US, providing it could be fit into a 6 MHz System-M channel.

The Europeans (in the form of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)) were impressed with MUSE, but could never adopt it because it is a 60 Hz TV system, not a 50 Hz system that is standard in Europe and the rest of the world (outside the Americas and Japan).

The EBU development and deployment of B-MAC, D-MAC and much later on HD-MAC were made possible by Hi-Vision's technical success. In many ways MAC transmission systems are better than MUSE because of the total separation of colour from brightness in the time domain within the MAC signal structure.

Like Hi-Vision, HD-MAC could not be transmitted in 8 MHz channels without substantial modification – and a severe loss of quality and frame rate. A 6 MHz version Hi-Vision was experimented with in the US, but it too had severe quality problems so the FCC never fully sanctioned its use as a domestic terrestrial television transmission standard.

The US ATSC working group that had led to the creation of NTSC in the 1950s was reactivated in the early 1990s because of Hi-Vision's success. Many aspects of the DVB standard are based on work done by the ATSC working group, however most of the impact is in support for 60 Hz (as well as 24 Hz for film transmission) and uniform sampling rates and interoperable screen sizes.

## Device support for Hi-Vision

### Hi-Vision LaserDiscs

On May 20, 1994, Panasonic released the first MUSE LaserDisc player. There were a number of MUSE LaserDisc players available in Japan: Pioneer HLD-XØ, HLD-X9, HLD-1000, HLD-V500, HLD-V700; Sony HIL-1000, HIL-C1 and HIL-C2EX; the last two of which have OEM versions made by Panasonic, LX-HD10 and LX-HD20. Players also supported standard NTSC LaserDiscs. Hi-Vision LaserDiscs are extremely rare and expensive.

The HDL-5800 Video Disc Recorder recorded both high definition still images and continuous video onto an optical disc and was part of the early analog wideband Sony HDVS high-definition video system which supported the MUSE system. Capable of recording HD still images and video onto either the WHD-3AL0 or the WHD-33A0 optical disc; WHD-3Al0 for CLV mode (up to 10 minute video or 18,000 still frames per side); WHD-33A0 for CAV mode (up to 3 minute video or 5400 still frames per side). These video discs were used for short video content such as advertisements and product demonstrations.

The HDL-2000 was a full band high definition video disc player.

### Reel to reel VTRs

For recording Hi-Vision signals, Three reel to reel analog VTRs were released, among them are the Sony HDV-1000, the NEC TT 8-1000 and the Toshiba TVR-1000. These analog VTRs had a head drum angular speed of 3600 RPM and are similar to Type C VTRs. They have a bandwidth of 30 Mhz for luma and 7 Mhz for both chroma channels each, with a signal to noise ratio of 41 dB. They accept luma and chroma signals with bandwidths of up to 30 Mhz for both. Signals are recorded onto the tape using FM modulation. Linear tape speed is 483.1 mm/s and writing speed at the heads is 25.9 m/s. The head drum is 134.5 mm wide and has 4 video record heads, 4 video playback heads and 1 erasing head. It could record for 45 minutes on 10.5 inch reels. The video heads are made of Mn-Zn ferrite material, those used for recording have a gap of 0.7 microns and a width of 80 microns and those for playback have a gap of 0.35 microns and a width of 70 microns. It records audio on 3 linear tracks, and control signals on a linear track. Unlike conventional type C videotape recorders, Vertical Blanking Intervals are not recorded on the tape. Helical tracks have groups of 4 signals length-wise with red chrominance, blue chrominance, and two green chrominance signals with luminance information. Two tracks for green chrominance plus luminance are used to increase the bandwidth of these signals that can be recorded on the tape.

In 1987, technical standards for digital recording of Hi-Vision signals were released by NHK, and Sony and Hitachi developed the HDD-1000 and the HV-1200 digital reel to reel VTRs respectively. Audio is recorded digitally similarly to a DASH (Digital Audio Stationary Head) digital audio recorder, but several changes were made to synchronize the audio to the video. These digital VTRs can record 8 channels of digital audio on linear tracks (horizontally along the entire length of the tape). According to the standards, these VTRs operate with a head drum speed of 7200 RPM, have a bit rate of 148.5 Mb/s per video head, a linear tape speed of 805.2 mm/s and a writing speed at the heads of 51.5 m/s, are similar to Type C VTRs, have a head drum 135mm wide, 8 playback, 8 recording and 2 erase heads, with 37 micron wide helical tracks. Bandwidth is 30 Mhz for luma (Y) and 15 Mhz for chroma (P, P). Audio is recorded with a sampling rate of 48 kHz stored at 16 bits per sample in linear tape tracks, sampling rate for luma is 74.25 Mhz and 37.125 Mhz for chroma stored at 8 bits per sample. Signal to noise ratio is 56 dB for chroma and luma. Video fields are divided into 16 helical tracks on the tape. Total video bandwidth is 1.188 gigabits/s. Cue signals are recorded into 3 linear tape tracks. Video is recorded in groups of 4 tracks length-wise within each helical track, to allow for parallelization: high total data rates with relatively low data rates per head, and reduce the linear tape speed. Digital video signals are recorded line by line (1 row of pixels in every frame of video or 1 line of video at a time) with ECC (Error Correcting Code) at the end of each line and in between a number of vertical lines. Reed-Solomon code is used for ECC and each line also has an ID number for trick play such as slow motion and picture search/shuttle.

### Displays

Hi-Vision and MUSE require a display capable of handling 30 Mhz of video bandwidth simultaneously for each of the component video channels: Y, P and P. It was displayed on direct view color CRTs and CRT projectors, and plasma displays and Talaria projectors were explored to determine their ability to display MUSE and Hi-Vision images.

### Cameras

Cameras based on Saticon tubes, Plumbicon tubes, Harpicon tubes and CCD image sensors were used to capture footage using the Hi-Vision format. A prototype based on Vidicon tubes was also created.

### MUSE decoders

A MUSE decoder is required for receiving MUSE broadcasts from satellites, and for viewing content in the MUSE format. The decoder converts MUSE format signals into Hi-Vision component video signals.

### Video cassettes

W-VHS allowed home recording of Hi-Vision programmes.

For recording Hi-Vision video, NHK and 10 Japanese companies ("NEC, Matsushita Electric Industrial, Toshiba, Sharp, Sony, Hitachi, Sanyo Electric, JVC, Mitsubishi Electric, Canon") in 1989 released UniHi, a professional videocassette format. Recorders for the format were manufactured by Panasonic, Sony, NEC, and Toshiba. These machines were less expensive than their Type C counterparts. Both studio and portable versions were made. The head drum spins at 5400 RPM and uses tape that is 12.65 mm wide. It has a luminance (Y) bandwidth of 20 MHz and a chrominance (P, P) bandwidth of 7 MHz. The head drum is 76mm wide. It uses two video heads with azimuth recording and records each frame of video into 12 helical tracks; only 6 tracks are necessary for each video field if recording interlaced video. Audio is recorded digitally as a PCM signal, as a section on the helical tracks. Writing speed at the heads is 21.4 m/s. The tape also has 3 linear tracks, one for audio, control and time code each. Signal to noise ratio for luminance is 41 dB and for chrominance it is 47 dB. The tape is wrapped 180° around the head drum. Development began in 1987. It uses metal particle tape. It could record video for 1 hour (63 minutes). Linear tape speed is 120 mm/s. The cassette measures 205mm (width) x 121mm (depth) x 25mm (height). Signals are recorded using time-compression integration, in groups of two signals length-wise on each helical track. Grouping is used to increase the bandwidth that can be recorded on the tape. The cassette is intented to be air-tight with two flaps in the cassette's opening to protect the tape.

This videocassette format was developed in order to reduce the size of HD recording equipment. The Sony version of the UniHi VTR, the HDV-10, had a price of over 90,000 US dollars.


Christ's Church, Qingdao

# Christ's Church, Qingdao

## Abstract

Christ's Church, Qingdao (German: Evangelische Kirche für Tsingtau; Chinese: 青岛市基督教堂), locally known as Christ's Church, Jiangsu Road (江苏路基督教堂), is a Protestant church located in Shinan District, Qingdao, Shandong, China.

## History

In 1898, during the late Qing dynasty (1644 – 1911), Qingdao became a German concession. The Germans demolished the original Chinese villages and rebuilt a new European style city. The Gouvernements-Hügel (now Guanhaishan 观海山) was chosen for building a Protestant church and a Roman Catholic church. On 1 June 1907, the Protestant church solicited a competition scheme from architects in East Asia. Finally, the design scheme of German architect Curt Rothkegel was selected. However, because the bell tower's style is too modern, Paul Richter and Hachmeister read the draft and gave notes for improvement. Construction started on 19 April 1908 and was completed on 23 October 1910, under the financial support of the German Governor's Office in Qingdao. The church was officially named "Evangelische Kirche für Tsingtau" (德国礼拜堂).

In 1914, the World War I broke out. On November 7, the Imperial Japanese Army captured Qingdao. Four years later, after the end of World War I, German missionaries were repatriated, and the church was taken over by the Lutheranism in Qingdao. After the outbreak of the Pacific War in December 1941, all British and American in the north China were detained in the Weixian Internment Camp, the church was presided over by Su Baozhi (苏保志), a German priest of Qingdao Tongshan Society (青岛同善会). From 1945 to 1949, German believers and American believers gathered here in the morning and evening respectively until the withdrawal of the United States Army. On 2 June 1949, Qingdao was controlled by the People's Liberation Army.

In December 1949, the church was confiscated by Qingdao Military Control Commission. The houses was used as the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao Medical College. The church was closed during the ten-year Cultural Revolution. After 30 years of closure, on 2 November 1980, the church was officially reopened to the public. It was declared a provincial cultural relic preservation organ by the Shandong government in 1992. In June 2006, it was listed among the sixth batch of " Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shandong " by the State Council of China as a part of the Qingdao German Architectural Complex.

## Architecture

The building area of the church is 1,297.51-square-metre (13,966.3 sq ft), which can accommodate about 1,400 people.


Annick Wilmotte

# Annick Wilmotte

## Abstract

Annick Wilmotte is a Belgian Antarctic researcher best known for her research on the diversity and ecology of Antarctic cyanobacterial microflora. A genus of Antarctic cyanobacteria called Wilmottia was named after her in recognition of her work in this field.

## Early life and education

Wilmotte completed her MSc in Botanical Sciences) at the University of Liège in 1982. Her thesis investigated the use of epiphytic marine cyanobacteria as indicators of pollution of Calvi Bay, Corsica, France. She subsequently completed her PhD in Botanical Sciences at the University of Liège. The title of her thesis was "Contribution to the taxonomic and ecological characterisation of marine epiphytic Oscillatoriaceae (Cyanophyceae) of the experimental cultivation and nucleic acid studies".

## Career and impact

Wilmotte, currently Research Associate at the FRS-FNRS, working at the University of Liège, has recognized research experience in the isolation, cultivation, and characterisation of cyanobacteria by phenotypic and genotypic methods, has contributed to the molecular taxonomy of cyanobacteria and has highlighted the importance of Antarctic microbial diversity. Her polar work concerns the microscopic and genotypic diversity of cyanobacteria in Antarctic microbial mats (MICROMAT, LAQUAN, AMBIO) and the use of fossil DNA for cyanobacterial paleodiversity reconstruction (HOLANT).

Willmotte is coordinating the BELSPO project CCAMBIO, using high-throughput methodologies to investigate the microbial biodiversity and biogeography in lacustrine benthic mats at the scale of the Antarctic continent. She also was involved in the study of the diversity of picoplanktonic cyanobacteria in the Southern Ocean and Arctic Sea.

Since 2011, she has been the promoter and curator of the BCCM/ULC public collection of cyanobacteria, a dedicated public collection, currently containing one of the largest collections of documented subpolar cyanobacteria worldwide. The collection accepts deposits of polar cyanobacteria and allows their distribution to scientists and industries, for further research.

Wilmotte has been the Belgian delegate to the Committee for Environmental Protection at the Consultative Meeting of the Antarctic Treaty since 2008. She is also Secretary of the Belgian National Committee on Antarctic Research of the Royal Academy of Belgium and a Belgian delegate to the Standing Scientific Group- Life Sciences of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research since 2012.

## Scientific outreach

Wilmotte is recognised for her work in scientific outreach on the Antarctic Treaty and also on the importance of Antarctic microorganisms.

## Awards and honours

A new cyanobacterial genus (Wilmottia) originally described from Antarctica was dedicated to her by colleagues. She was awarded the l'Adjudant Lefévre of the Sciences of the Royal Academy of Belgium in 1999.