page_title: Leprechaun
section_title: Early attestations
hierarchical_section_title: Leprechaun / Early attestations
context_page_description: A leprechaun is a diminutive supernatural being in Irish folklore, classed by some as a type of solitary fairy. They are usually depicted as little bearded men, wearing a coat and hat, who partake in mischief. In later times, they have been depicted as shoe-makers who have a hidden pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
  Leprechaun-like creatures rarely appear in Irish mythology and only became prominent in later folklore.
context_section_description: The earliest known reference to the leprechaun appears in the medieval tale known as the Echtra Fergus mac Léti (Adventure of Fergus son of Léti). The text contains an episode in which Fergus mac Léti, King of Ulster, falls asleep on the beach and wakes to find himself being dragged into the sea by three lúchorpáin. He captures his abductors, who grant him three wishes in exchange for release.
caption: A leprechaun counts his gold in this engraving c. 1900
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