The Nuggle is a legendary water horse from the folklore of Shetland, Although he belongs to the same wider family of Scottish water horses, the Nuggle is often described as less murderous than his cousins. While he is usually content to frighten rather than kill, some darker legends suggest he is a genuine threat to children. These tales carry a strong warning about the dangers that lurk around dark lochs, swift rivers and old watermills.
Name pronunciation:
Nuggle – “NUG-ul”
Shoepultie / Shoopiltee – roughly “SHOO-pull-tee”
General Information:
The Nuggle is a male water spirit which haunts the rivers, streams and small lochs of the Shetland Islands. In some areas he is known as the shoepultie or shoopiltee, especially in the northern isles. Occasionally, he appears in a handful of Orkney traditions, around places like Hoy and Rousay, but he is first and foremost a Shetland creature. Unlike the bloodthirsty each-uisge of the Highlands or the demonic Nuckelavee of Orkney, the Nuggle is often described as a gentler spirit. He is still dangerous, yet many stories stress his love of mischief, eerie tricks and sudden frights rather than outright slaughter.
Appearance:
The Nuggle most often appears as a handsome pony or small horse, roughly the build of a well-fed Shetland pony. His coat is sleek and shining, with colours that mirror the water itself. Some witnesses describe him as a deep bluish-grey, like the dark depths of a loch. Others see him as a much paler grey, almost white, like breaking waves or river foam. What truly marks him out is his tail. Rather than the normal sweep of a horse’s tail, the Nuggle has a distinctive wheel-like tail. This strange, circular tail is his trademark feature and the surest way to tell him apart from an ordinary pony.
Habitat:
The Nuggle keeps close to water and never strays far from it. He is strongly linked to Shetland’s burns, streams and small inland lochs, and to the pools and watercourses that run through the islands. In a few older accounts, he is also said to lurk beside watermills, using the noise of the machinery and the rush of water as cover for his tricks. Although similar tales are told on the Orkney island of Hoy and at Muckle Water on Rousay, the Nuggle is native to Shetland. Interestingly, there are no traditional Nuggle stories recorded on the Shetland islands of Yell and Fetlar.
Behaviour:
Nuggles are strictly nocturnal. They emerge at dusk or night, when it is easier to hide their odd tails and lure travellers off guard. The creature is always male, and never takes the form of a mare. He prefers to play practical jokes and cause low-level chaos. He might startle a passer-by, tempt them too near to the water or create a sudden fright on a lonely road. Folklorist Jessie M. Saxby even calls him “a more feeble sort”, emphasising that, while he is deceitful, he is not truly spiteful. However, some stories do warn that, if a Nuggle manages to trick a human into mounting him, he will gallop straight for the deepest water nearby.
Shape-shifting Ability:
The Nuggle is a shape-shifter, yet he strongly prefers his water horse form. Some sources suggest that he can take on other disguises or subtle variations, but he never turns into a human. This marks him out from some other Scottish water beings, who may appear as men or women to lure victims. Even when he tries to hide his nature, that wheel-like tail betrays him. He is said to tuck it between his hind legs, hoping that a careless traveller will not notice. Those who know the lore are always told to look twice at any strange pony loitering near a dark pool.
Variant:
Across Scotland and the wider North Atlantic, there are several related equine spirits. The Nuggle sits within this wider family:
- The each-uisge, a vicious water horse of Highland Gaelic tradition.
- Tangies, coastal spirits that haunt shorelines and sea margins and are tied to the depths of the ocean.
- The Norwegian nøkk, a water spirit from Scandinavian folklore.
- The Nuckelavee of Orkney, a demonic water being is considered to be a dark relative of the Nuggle.
Location in Scotland:
The Nuggle belongs above all to Shetland. He haunts the islands’ rivers, streams and lochs, as well as the sites of old watermills. Some Orkney traditions mention similar creatures near the Water o’ Hoy, the Little Loch at Rackwick and the Pegal Burn, often in more menacing roles. These Orkney versions may represent cross-over tales, where the Nuggle stories have blended with darker local water horse myths. Yet the classic Nuggle, mischievous rather than murderous, is firmly rooted in Shetland’s lore and Shetland’s Norse-Scottish cultural blend.
Stories/ Sightings or Experiences:
The Blacksmith and the Iron Shoes
In one famous Shetland legend, a particularly spiteful Nuggle had carried off so many children that the local blacksmith’s daughter was one of the few left. The creature eventually confronted the blacksmith, demanding the girl or threatening to kill them both. The blacksmith refused to give up his only child and devised a clever plan. He forged four heavy iron horseshoes, then waited for the monster to return. When the Nuggle reared up to attack, the blacksmith lunged forward and pushed the beast onto its back, wedging it between his workbench and anvil.
While his daughter sat on the creature’s head to keep it still, the blacksmith nailed the heavy iron shoes to its hooves. Because iron is a powerful protection against evil, the Nuggle lost all its supernatural power. It became a pathetic, timid creature that could no longer return to its loch or harm anyone. This story is often cited as the reason why horseshoes are considered lucky today.
The Wheel-Tailed Horse of Shetland Burns
In many Shetland stories, the Nuggle appears as an inviting pony waiting by a track that runs close to water. A tired traveller or a curious child might be tempted to climb on his back, reassured by his calm manner and gentle eyes. As soon as the rider settles, the Nuggle bolts towards the nearest deep pool, his wheel-like tail flicking out as he runs. In older versions of the tale, the victim is dragged beneath the surface and never seen again. These harsher accounts sit uneasily beside later Shetland traditions, which generally insist that the Nuggle is not truly murderous.
The Hoy and Pegal Burn Encounters
Orkney tradition preserves a few darker stories which are sometimes linked to the Nuggle. Around the Water o’ Hoy, the Little Loch at Rackwick and the Pegal Burn, the creature is described as lying in wait near a bridge or crossing place. At the Pegal Burn, it is said that the Nuggle lurked on Rysa Little, watching for anyone who tried to cross. When a victim approached, the water horse would either trick or attack them, dragging them down into the burn. These Orkney tales show a far more dangerous side to the creature and may represent a local blend of Nuggle myths with more violent water demons.
Purpose of the myth or Legend:
The Nuggle legend serves several purposes in Shetland folklore. On a practical level, it is a clear safety tale. It teaches children not to play too near deep water, not to trust strange animals loitering by rivers and not to wander into hazardous watermills. The mix of fear and fascination helps the warning to stick. On a cultural level, the Nuggle reflects Shetland’s Norse and Scottish roots. His name and nature link to Old Norse nykr, and wider North European water horse traditions. Finally, some scholars suggest that, like many supernatural beings, he was sometimes thought of as a fallen angel.
