Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Undine
References
Britannica AI Icon

Undine

work by Fouqué
Written by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last updated

Quick Summary

Undine is a popular fairy tale written by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué in 1811. The story is about a water sprite named Undine who marries a knight, Huldbrand, to gain a soul and become human. However, their love is ultimately destroyed by treachery.

The concept of undines originates from European mythology, first mentioned by Paracelsus, who described them as water spirits. The word "undine" itself comes from the Latin word unda, meaning "wave" or "water." Fouqué's adaptation of this myth has inspired various other works, including operas and plays.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
2 Britannica Sources
  1. Friedrich Heinrich Karl de la Motte, Baron Fouqué
  2. undine

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.