Tam Lin, also known as Tamas-Lin, Tamlane, Tamlene, Tamlin, Tambling, Tomlin, Tam-Lien, Tam-a-Line, Tam-Lyn or Tam-Lane, is a character in the

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

ary

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

originating from the

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by West Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian, and East Lothian to the north, the North Sea to the east, Dumfries and Galloway to the south-west, South Lanarkshire to the we ...

History

The story of Tam Lin revolves around the rescue of Tam Lin by his true love from the Queen of the Fairies. The motif of winning a person (or subduing an enemy) by holding him through all forms of

transformation Transformation may refer to: Science and mathematics In biology and medicine * Metamorphosis, the biological process of changing physical form after birth or hatching * Malignant transformation, the process of cells becoming cancerous * Trans ...

is found throughout Europe in

folktale Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used va ...

s. The story has been adapted into numerous stories, songs, and films. It is also associated with a

reel A reel is a tool used to store elongated and flexible objects (e.g. yarns/ cords, ribbons, cables, hoses, etc.) by wrapping the material around a cylindrical core known as a '' spool''. Many reels also have flanges (known as the ''rims'') arou ...

of the same name, which is also known as the ''Glasgow Reel''. Tam Lin is listed as the 39th

Child Ballad The Child Ballads are List of the Child Ballads, 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies ...

and number 35 in the

Roud Folk Song Index The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of around 250,000 references to nearly 25,000 songs collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world. It is compiled by Steve Roud. Roud's Index is a combination of the Broadsid ...

Synopsis

Most variants begin with the warning that Tam Lin collects either a possession or the

virginity Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereo ...

of any maiden who passes through the forest of

Carterhaugh Carterhaugh is a wood and farm near the confluence of the Yarrow Water and the Ettrick Water near Selkirk in the Scottish Borders. This real location shares its name with the fictional setting for the meeting between Tam Lin and Janet (someti ...

. When a young woman, usually called Janet or Margaret, goes to Carterhaugh and plucks a double rose, Tam appears and asks her why she has come without his leave and taken what is his. She states that she owns Carterhaugh because her father has given it to her. In most variants, Janet then goes home and discovers that she is pregnant; some variants pick up the story at this point. When asked about her condition, she declares that her baby's father is an

elf An elf (: elves) is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic peoples, Germanic folklore. Elves appear especially in Norse mythology, North Germanic mythology, being mentioned in the Icelandic ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda'' ...

whom she will not forsake. In some versions, she is informed of a herb that will induce abortion; in all the variants, when she returns to Carterhaugh and picks a plant, either the same roses as on her earlier visit or the herb, Tam reappears and challenges her action. She asks him whether he was ever human, either after that reappearance or, in some versions, immediately after their first meeting resulted in her pregnancy. Tam Lin reveals that, though he was once a mortal man, he was imprisoned in Carterhaugh by the Queen of Faeries after she kidnapped him by catching him when he fell from his horse. He goes on to tell Janet that the fairies give one of their people as a

teind In Scotland a teind () was a tithe derived from the produce of the land for the maintenance of the clergy. It is also an old lowland term for a tribute due to be paid by the fairies to the devil every seven years. Found in the story of Tam Lin as ...

(

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...

) to

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...

at midnight on every seventh

Hallowe'en Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows' Day. It is at the begi ...

. He asks Janet for her help in freeing him, and receives her agreement; he then instructs her to come to the forest at the time of the tithe, during which he'll be in the company of numerous faerie knights -- he tells her that she'll recognize him by his white horse. Janet must pull him down from his horse, thus making her the one to "catch" him this time, and hold him tightly: he warns her that the fairies will attempt to make her drop him by turning him into all manner of beasts (see

Proteus In Greek mythology, Proteus ( ; ) is an early prophetic sea god or god of rivers and oceanic bodies of water, one of several deities whom Homer calls the "Old Man of the Sea" (''hálios gérôn''). Some who ascribe a specific domain to Prote ...

), but states that none of these forms will actually cause her harm. Tam Lin will eventually take the shape of burning coal; when this occurs, Janet is to throw him into a well, whereupon he will reappear as a naked mortal man whom Janet must hide. She does as she is asked and wins her knight; though her success angers the Queen of Faeries, the latter accepts her defeat. In different variations, Tam Lin is reportedly the grandson of the Laird of

Roxburgh Roxburgh () is a civil parish and formerly a royal burgh, in the historic county of Roxburghshire in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was an important trading burgh in High Medieval to early modern Scotland. In the Middle Ages it had at lea ...

, the Laird of

Foulis Foulis Castle is situated two miles south-west of Evanton in the parish of Kiltearn, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland. It is a white washed mansion that incorporates an old tower house with gun loops. The castle was held by the Clan Munro from t ...

, the

Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

, or the Earl of Murray. His name also varies between versions (Tam Lin being the most common) as Tom Line, Tomlin, Young Tambling, Tam-a-line and Tamlane. Tam Lin opening verses

Early versions

The ballad dates to at least as early as 1549 (the publication date of ''

The Complaynt of Scotland ''The Complaynt of Scotland'' is a Scottish book printed in 1549 as propaganda during the war of the Rough Wooing against the Kingdom of England, and is an important work of the Scots language. Context and authorship The book was part of the w ...

'' that mentions "The Tayl of the Ȝong Tamlene" ('The Tale of the Young Tamelene') among a long list of medieval romances).

Michael Drayton Michael Drayton ( – ) was an English poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era, continuing to write through the reign of James I and into the reign of Charles I. Many of his works consisted of historical poetry. He was also the fir ...

's narrative poem ''Nimphidia'' (1627) includes a character called Tomalin who is a vassal and kinsman of

Oberon Oberon () is a king of the fairy, fairies in Middle Ages, medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', in which he is King of the Fairies and spouse of Titania ...

, King of the Fairies.

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...

wrote a version of Tam Lin based on older versions of the ballad, which was printed in James Johnson's ''

Scots Musical Museum The ''Scots Musical Museum'' was an influential collection of traditional folk music of Scotland published from 1787 to 1803. While it was not the first collection of Scottish folk songs and music, the six volumes with 100 songs in each collected ...

'' (1796). The story featured in several nineteenth century books of fairy tales under different titles : * "Elphin Irving, the Fairies' Cupbearer" in ''Traditional Tales of the English and Scottish Peasantry'' by Allan Cunningham (1822) * "Wild Robin" in ''Little Prudy's Fairy Book'' by Sophie May (1866). * "Tamlane" in ''More English Fairy Tales'' by

Joseph Jacobs Joseph Jacobs (29 August 1854 – 30 January 1916) was an Australian-born folklorist, literary critic and historian who became a notable collector and publisher of English folklore. Born in Sydney to a Jewish family, his work went on to popula ...

(1893).

Francis James Child Francis James Child (February 1, 1825 – September 11, 1896) was an American scholar, educator, and folklorist, best known today for his collection of English and Scottish ballads now known as the Child Ballads. Child was Boylston professor ...

collected fourteen traditional variants in ''The English and Scottish Popular Ballads'' in the nineteenth century. (Another Child ballad, ''

Burd Ellen and Young Tamlane Burd Ellen and Young Tamlane (Roud 3962, Child 28) is a traditional English-language folk song. Despite similarity in names, it appears to have no connection with ''Tam Lin'', nor with the tale of Childe Rowland, though they both have characters na ...

'', has no connection with this ballad except for the similarity of the heroes' names.)

Motifs

Child took the threat to take out Tam Lin's eyes as a common

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

precaution against mortals who could see fairies, in the tales of fairy ointment.

interpreted it as rather a reversal of the usual practice; the Queen of Faeries would have kept him from seeing the human woman who rescued him. In some variants, "

Hind Etin "Hind Etin" ( Roudbr>33 Child 41) is a folk ballad existing in several variants. Synopsis Lady Margaret goes to the woods, and her breaking a branch is questioned by Hind Etin, who takes her with him into the forest. She bears him seven sons, bu ...

" has verses identical to this for the first meeting between the hero and the heroine.

Influences

Field recordings

The ballad has been recorded several times from Scottish and Northern Irish people who learned it in the oral tradition.

Eddie Butcher Eddie Butcher (8 May 1900 – 8 September 1980) was an Irish traditional singer, folk-song collector and songwriter from Magilligan, County Londonderry. He had an extensive repertoire of songs that he performed in a sturdy, earthy style. I ...

Magilligan Magilligan is a peninsula at the mouth of Lough Foyle in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is an extensive coastal site, part military firing range and part nature reserve, and is home to HM Prison Magilligan. The tip of the peninsula, w ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

knew a fragment of the ballad which can be heard via the

Irish Traditional Music Archive The Irish Traditional Music Archive (or ITMA; ), operating as a charity, is a "national reference archive and resource centre for the traditional song, instrumental music and dance of Ireland". Focusing on Irish traditional music, Irish dance and t ...

, and

Paddy Tunney Paddy Tunney (28 January 1921 – 7 December 2002) was an Irish traditional singer, poet, writer, raconteur, lilter and songwriter. He was affectionately known as the ''Man of Songs''. From Glasgow to Garvery Tunney was born in Glasgow to I ...

of Mollybreen,

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of and had a population of 63,585 as of 2021. Enniskillen is the ...

sang a version to

Hugh Shields Dr Hugh Shields (8 September 1929 – 16 July 2008) was an authority on Irish traditional music and a founder member of the Folk Music Society of Ireland and the Irish Traditional Music Archive. He was also a senior lecturer in French at Trini ...

in 1968. In Scotland,

Duncan Williamson Duncan James Williamson (11 April 1928, Loch Fyneside, near Furnace, Argyll - 8 November 2007) was a Scottish storyteller and singer, and a member of the Scottish Traveller community. The Scottish poet and scholar Hamish Henderson once ref ...

Auchtermuchty Auchtermuchty ( ; , 'upland of the pigs/boar') is a town in Fife, Scotland. It is beside Pitlour Hill and north of Glenrothes. History Until 1975 Auchtermuchty was a royal burgh, established under charter of James V of Scotland, King Jame ...

Fifeshire Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council area and lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the south, Perth and Kinross to the west and Clackmannanshire t ...

, William Whyte of

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

and Betsy Johnston of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

all had traditional versions recorded, the latter two by

Hamish Henderson (James) Hamish Scott Henderson (11 November 1919 – 9 March 2002) was a Scotland, Scottish poet, songwriter, communist, intellectual and soldier. Henderson was a catalyst for the folk revival in Scotland. He was also an accomplished folk s ...

Popular recordings of the ballad

Following are some of the notable recordings of the ballad, including their artists, titles, albums, and years:

Benjamin Zephaniah Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah (15 April 1958 – 7 December 2023) was a British writer, dub poet, actor, musician and professor of poetry and creative writing. Over his lifetime, he was awarded 20 honorary doctorates in recognition of his c ...

was awarded Best Original Song in the Hancocks 2008, Talkawhile Awards for Folk Music (as voted by members of Talkawhile.co.uk) for '' Tam Lyn Retold''. He collected the award at The Cambridge Folk Festival on 2 August 2008.

Popular instrumental recordings

Following are some of the notable instrumental recordings, including their artists, titles, albums, and years:

Adaptations

Prose

John Myers Myers John Myers Myers (January 11, 1906 – October 30, 1988) was an American writer. He is known best for the fantasy novel ''Silverlock'' (1949), in which a man with a Master of Business Administration travels through a fantasy land, meeting dozens ...

tells a variant in ''

Silverlock ''Silverlock'' is a novel by John Myers Myers published in 1949. The novel's settings and characters, aside from the protagonist, are all drawn from history, mythology, and other works of literature. In 1981, ''The Moon's Fire-Eating Daughte ...

'' (1949) *''

The Armourer's House ''The Armourer's House'' is a children's historical novel by Rosemary Sutcliff and first published in 1951. It is set primarily in London during the reign of King Henry VIII. It is Sutcliff's third book, and is acknowledged by her as being 'a l ...

'', by

Rosemary Sutcliff Rosemary Sutcliff (14 December 1920 – 23 July 1992) was an English novelist best known for children's books, especially historical fiction and retellings of myths and legends. Although she was primarily a children's author, some of her novel ...

(1951) -- includes a telling of the Tam Lin tale, which parallels the novel's theme of a girl struggling to obtain her dreams. * ''Scottish Folk-Tales and Legends'', by

Barbara Ker Wilson Barbara Ker Wilson (24 September 1929 – 10 September 2020) was an English-born Australian novelist. She is credited as the person who "discovered" Paddington Bear. She wrote over twenty books and collated collections of stories. She gained aw ...

(1954) * ''Thursday'', by Catherine Storr (1971) * ''

Red Shift In physics, a redshift is an increase in the wavelength, and corresponding decrease in the frequency and photon energy, of electromagnetic radiation (such as light). The opposite change, a decrease in wavelength and increase in frequency and e ...

'', by

Alan Garner Alan Garner (born 17 October 1934) is an English novelist best known for his children's fantasy novels and his retellings of traditional British folk tales. Much of his work is rooted in the landscape, history and folklore of his native count ...

(1973) * ''The Queen of Spells'', by

Dahlov Ipcar Dahlov Ipcar (née Zorach; November 12, 1917 – February 10, 2017) was an American painter, illustrator and author. She was best known for her colorful, kaleidoscopic-styled paintings featuring animals – primarily in either farm or wild setti ...

(1973) * '' The Perilous Gard'', by Elizabeth Marie Pope (1974) * '' Fire and Hemlock'', by

Diana Wynne Jones Diana Wynne Jones (16 August 1934 – 26 March 2011) was a British novelist, poet, academic, literary critic, and short story writer. She principally wrote fantasy and speculative fiction novels for children and young adults. Although usually d ...

(1985) * ''Tam Lin'' by Joan D. Vinge, in ''Imaginary Lands'' edited by

Robin McKinley Robin McKinley (born November 16, 1952) is an American author best known for her fantasy novels and fairy tale retellings. Her 1984 novel '' The Hero and the Crown'' won the Newbery Medal as the year's best new American children's book. In 20 ...

(1986) * ''Nattens demon'' (translated from Norwegian as ''Demon of the Night''), by

Margit Sandemo Margit Sandemo (née Underdal, 23 April 1924 – 1 September 2018) was a Norwegian-Swedish historical fantasy author. She had been the best-selling author in the Nordic countries since the 1980s, when her novel series of 47 books, '' The Legend ...

(1987) * ''Tam Lin: An Old Ballad'', by

Jane Yolen Jane Hyatt Yolen (born February 11, 1939) is an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, and children's books. She is the author or editor of more than 400 books, of which the best known is '' The Devil's Arithmetic'', a Holocaust novella. H ...

, illustrated by Charles Mikolaycak (1990) * ''Hold Me Fast, Don't Let Me Pass'', by

Alice Munro Alice Ann Munro ( ; ; 10 July 1931 – 13 May 2024) was a Canadian short story writer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013. Her work tends to move forward and backward in time, with integrated short story cycles. Munro's ...

, in ''

Friend of My Youth ''Friend of My Youth'' is a book of short stories by Alice Munro, published by McClelland and Stewart in 1990. It won the 1990 Trillium Book Award. Stories * "Friend of My Youth" * "Five Points" * "Meneseteung" * "Hold Me Fast, Don't Let Me Pass" ...

'' (1990) * ''Tam Lin'' by

Susan Cooper Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is an English author of children's books. She is best known for '' The Dark Is Rising'', a contemporary fantasy series set in England and Wales, which incorporates British mythology such as the Arthurian ...

, illustrated by Warwick Hutton (1991) * ''

Tam Lin Tam Lin, also known as Tamas-Lin, Tamlane, Tamlene, Tamlin, Tambling, Tomlin, Tam-Lien, Tam-a-Line, Tam-Lyn or Tam-Lane, is a character in the legendary ballad originating from the Scottish Borders. History The story of Tam Lin revolves around ...

'', by

Pamela Dean Pamela Collins Dean Dyer-Bennet (born 1953), better known as Pamela Dean, is an American fantasy author whose best-known book is ''Tam Lin (novel), Tam Lin'', based on the Child Ballads, Child Ballad of the Tam Lin, same name, in which the Scott ...

(1991) * ''Tam Lin'', in the graphic novel series ''Ballads and Sagas'' edited by

Charles Vess Charles Vess (born June 10, 1951) is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau p ...

(1995) * '' Winter Rose'', by

Patricia McKillip Patricia Anne McKillip (February 29, 1948 – May 6, 2022) was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. She wrote predominantly standalone fantasy novels and has been called "one of the most accomplished prose stylists in the fantasy ge ...

(1996) * ''Never Let Go'', by

Geraldine McCaughrean Geraldine McCaughrean ( ; born 6 June 1951) is a British children's literature, children's novelist. She has written more than 170 books, including ''Peter Pan in Scarlet'' (2004), the official sequel to ''Peter and Wendy, Peter Pan'' commissi ...

, illustrated by Jason Cockcroft (1999) * ''Burd Janet'', by

, in ''Not One Damsel in Distress'' (2000) * ''Tam Lin'' (a version in Scots), by Ian MacFadyen, in ''The Eildon Tree'', Special Double Issue 4-5: Winter 2001, edited by Tom Bryan * "Cotillion", by

Delia Sherman Cordelia Caroline Sherman (born 1951, Tokyo, Japan), known professionally as Delia Sherman, is an American fantasy writer and editor. Her novel ''The Porcelain Dove'' won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Background Sherman attended The Chapin Sch ...

, in ''

Firebirds Firebird and fire bird may refer to: Mythical birds * Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures ** Fenghuang, sometimes called Chinese phoenix * Vermilion bird, one of the four symbols of the Chinese constella ...

'', edited by

Sharyn November Sharyn November is an American writer and an editor of books for children and teenagers. Until March 2016 she was Senior Editor for Viking Children's Books and Editorial Director of Firebird Books, which is a mainly paperback (reprint) imprint ...

(2003) * ''

The Dogs of Babel ''The Dogs of Babel'' (also known as ''Lorelei's Secret'' in the UK) is the debut novel of Carolyn Parkhurst. It was one of ''The New York Times'' Notable Fiction & Poetry books of 2003. The novel became a best-seller. ''The Dogs of Babel'' wa ...

'' (UK edition: ''Lorelei's Secret''), by Carolyn Parkhurst (2003) * '' Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale'' by

Holly Black Holly Black (; born November 10, 1971) is an American writer and editor best known for her children's and young adult fiction. Her most recent work is the ''New York Times'' bestselling young adult ''Folk of the Air'' series. She is also well kn ...

(2004) * "He Said, Sidhe Said" by

Tanya Huff Tanya Sue Huff (born 1957) is a Canadian fantasy author. Her stories have been published since the late 1980s, including five fantasy series and one science fiction series. One of these, her ''Tanya Huff bibliography#Blood series, Blood Books'' ...

, in ''Faerie Tales'' ed. Russell Davis and Martin H. Greenberg (2004) * ''An Earthly Knight'', by Janet McNaughton (2005) * ''Blood and Iron'', by

Elizabeth Bear Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky (born September 22, 1971) is an American author who works primarily in speculative fiction genres, writing under the name Elizabeth Bear. She won the 2005 Astounding Award for Best New Writer, John W. Campbell Awar ...

(2006) * ''Summer's Lease'', by Eluki bes Shahar (

Rosemary Edghill Rosemary Edghill (born 1956) is an American writer and editor. Some of her work has appeared under her original name, eluki bes shahar (lower case intentional). Her primary genres are science fiction and fantasy, but she began by writing Regency ...

) * "The Lady and the Fox," by

Kelly Link Kelly Link (born July 19, 1969) is an American editor and writer. Mainly known as an author of short stories, she published her first novel, ''The Book of Love'' in 2024. While some of her fiction falls more clearly within genre categories, many ...

, in ''My True Love Gave to Me'', ed. Stephanie Perkins (2014) * ''

A Court of Thorns and Roses ''A Court of Thorns and Roses'' is a fantasy romance series by American author Sarah J. Maas, which follows the journey of 19-year-old Feyre Archeron after she is brought into the faerie lands of Prythian. The first book of the series, ''A Court ...

'', by Sarah J. Maas (2015) * ''Roses and Rot'', by

Kat Howard Kat Howard is an American author and editor. Her stories have been published in the anthologies ''Stories'' (edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio), and ''Oz Reimagined'' (based on L. Frank Baum's characters). She is also a contributor to magaz ...

(2016)

Theatre

*''The Thyme of the Season'' by

Duncan Pflaster Duncan Pflaster (born 1973) is an American off-off-Broadway playwright, composer and actor. His first play ''Wilder and Wilder'' (a transvestite adaptation of Alice in Wonderland), was produced in 1995 at Florida Playwrights' Theatre in Hollyw ...

(incorporates elements and allusions to the story) *''Tamlane'' by Edwin Stiven

Film

*'' Tam-Lin'' (1970 movie) directed by

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 3 October 1998) was a British-American actor whose career spanned over 270 screen and stage roles across over 60 years. Born in London, he began his acting career as a child in his n ...

, and starring

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

. *'' An Old Ballad'' (1988 animated film) directed by Valentyna Kostyleva, Kyїvnaukfilm.

Novels

* In Carolyn Parkhurst's novel ''

'' (also known as ''Lorelei's Secret'' in the UK), a section of Tam Lin plays a pivotal role in the story. In it the narrator, Paul Iverson, discovers that his recently deceased wife left an encrypted message to him in their bookshelf, quoting Tam Lin. * The multi-faceted novel ''

'' by

can be read as a subtle reworking of the ballad. * In the fantasy novel '' The Battle of Evernight'' by Cecilia Dart-Thornton, the story of Tam Lin is told as the story of Tamlain Conmor. * Tamlin appears in the fantasy novel ''Rumors of Spring'' by Richard Grant. * In

Jim Butcher Jim Butcher (born October 26, 1971) is an American author., He has written the contemporary Fantasy literature, fantasy ''The Dresden Files'', ''Codex Alera'', and ''Cinder Spires'' book series. Personal life Butcher was born in Independence, M ...

's novel

Cold Days ''Cold Days'' is a 2012 bestselling novel by Jim Butcher and the 14th book in the ongoing ''The Dresden Files'' series. The book was first published on November 27, 2012 through Roc Hardcover and continues the adventures of wizard detective H ...

Tam Lin is referenced as a former Knight of the Winter Court * ''

'' by Sarah J. Maas (2015) has a fairy character named Tamlin whom the protagonist saves from an evil fairy queen, though the novel's plot resembles ''

Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...

.''

Comic books

* ''Tam-Lin'', a

closet drama A closet drama is a play (theatre), play that is not intended to be performed onstage, but read by a solitary reader. The earliest use of the term recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary is in 1813. The literary historian Henry Augustin Beers, H ...

written by

Elaine Lee Elaine Lee is an American actress, playwright, producer, and writer, who specializes in Comic book, graphic novels. She has also received recognition and awards for her work as a creator and producer of audio books and dramas. Her comics have b ...

and illustrated by

, appears in ''The Book of Ballads and Sagas'', Vess's collection of adaptations of traditional songs, mostly into comics form. * In the

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...

comic book, ''

Fables Fable is a literary genre defined as a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse (poetry), verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphized, and that ...

'', Tam Lin died in the defence of the last stronghold of the Fables against the forces of the Adversary. He is claimed to be the knight loved by the queen of the faeries, who had a reputation of a scoundrel, but gave up his chance of freedom to his page. * In the Vertigo comic book series, '' The Sandman'' by

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (; born Neil Richard Gaiman; 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, audio theatre, and screenplays. His works include the comic series ''The Sandman (comic book), The Sandma ...

, the notion that Faerie pays a sacrificial tithe to Hell is mentioned in the storyline "Season of Mists". * In the Vertigo comic book series ''

The Books of Magic ''The Books of Magic'' is the title of a four-issue English-language comic book Limited series (comics), miniseries written by Neil Gaiman, published by DC Comics, and later an ongoing series under the imprint Vertigo Comics, Vertigo. Since its or ...

'', ''The Names of Magic'', and ''The Books of Faerie'', Tamlin is the father of the protagonist Timothy Hunter, potentially the greatest sorcerer in the world. In ''The Books of Faerie: The Widow's Tale'', the story of Tamlin's romance with Queen Titania of Faerie is revealed.

Other

* In the mobile game

Fate/Grand Order is a free-to-play Japanese gacha game, gacha mobile game, developed by Lasengle (formerly Delightworks) using Unity (game engine), Unity, and published by Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The game is based on Type-Moon' ...

, Tam Lin are used to refer to Fairy Knights in the English Translation of the game. * In the ''

Shin Megami Tensei ''Megami Tensei'', marketed internationally as ''Shin Megami Tensei'' (formerly ''Revelations''), is a Japanese media franchise created by Aya Nishitani, Kouji Okada, Kouji "Cozy" Okada, Ginichiro Suzuki, and Kazunari Suzuki. Primarily developed ...

'' series of video games, Tam Lin is a recurring demon that can often be recruited relatively early and is one of the very few demons whose design share an exact model with another demon – its brother model being another northern European mythological hero, Cu Chulainn. * This ballad was one of 25 traditional works included in ''Ballads Weird and Wonderful'' (1912) and illustrated by

Vernon Hill Vernon W. Hill II (born August 18, 1945) is an American businessman, the founder and former chairman of Metro Bank, a UK retail bank with 77 stores, and assets of £7.4b ($10.6b). He was also the founder, former chairman, president and CEO of ...

. * ''The Rose'', ''The Knight'', and ''The Faery Host'' are paintings by

Stephanie Pui-Mun Law Stephanie Pui-Mun Law (born 1976) is an American painter and illustrator who works predominantly in watercolor and whose art is inspired by, and depicts scenes of fantasy, the Other World, and the surreal. She has also been influenced by the art ...

depicting various parts of the Tam Lin legend. * The

Choose Your Own Adventure ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actio ...

book ''Enchanted Kingdom'' has an ending in which the reader/player's character is rescued from the fairies by a girl whom the character has befriended, who has to hold onto the character through three transformations. * In

Seanan McGuire Seanan McGuire (pronounced SHAWN-in; born January 5, 1978) is an American author and filker. McGuire is known for her urban fantasy novels. She uses the pseudonym Mira Grant to write science fiction/ horror and the pseudonym A. Deborah Baker to w ...

's October Daye series, the poem is both spoken and referenced over the course of the series, and Janet is a character in some of the later books. The events of the poem occurred in universe. *

Alastair White Alastair White (born 1988) is a Scottish-New Zealand composer and writer. His work is characterised by a lyrical complexity which draws influence from technology, science, politics and materialist philosophy. Operas The fashion-opera cycle w ...

's fashion-opera ''WOAD'' adapts the ballad to explore the implications of multiverse theory.

History

Synopsis

Early versions

Motifs

Influences

Field recordings

Popular recordings of the ballad

Popular instrumental recordings

Adaptations

Prose

Theatre

Film

Novels

Comic books

Other

See also

Notes and references

Notes

References

Further reading