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Biography

My name is Melissa LaRose. I am currently working toward my PhD in Ethnology at the Elphinstone Institute.

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• Graduated from Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) in Manchester, New Hampshire, USA, with undergraduate degree in Anthropology, with concentrations in cultural and social anthropology. Summa Cum Laude, September 2022
• Graduated from the University of Leeds, in Leeds, England with a master’s degree in Art Gallery and Museum Studies, 2:1 Merit, July 2024
• Volunteer at the 2025 SIEF Conference
• Student Ambassador, 2025-Present
• Student Support Specialist, 2024-present
• Presenter at the International House of Burnett Educational Series (Fairies and Second Sight)
• President and Founder of the AUSA Non-Traditional Student Forum 2025-present
• Dissertation research is Fairies and the Lore in Modern Society

External Memberships

• Member of the ISFNR (2026)
  • Delegate at Nature in Narratives Conference (June 2026 (Iceland))
  • Connecting the Human World to the Landscape of the Fairy Otherworld: Sharing the Spiritual Tales with Fairies from a Fairy Shaman on the Isle of Skye, Scotland and Fairy Artist in Dartmoor, England

• Member of the UK Folklore Society (2026)
  • Delegate at Folklore on the Move Conference (June 2026- 51cg)
  • Movement of Fairy Lore and Rituals through Generations and Migration

Research Overview

My dissertation is a study of how contemporary society relates to fairy lore, fairy traditions and rituals and the ways in which it has evolved and changed over the years. The research has given me the opportunity to meet interesting people and will allow me the chance to attend some fascinating events such as fairy festivals, fairy balls, and fairy markets for the autoethnographic portion of my work. These events take place primarily in Glastonbury, England and are run by the 3 Wishes Fairy Events and the UK’s leading ‘Fairy and Mermaid Whisperer’ Karen Kay.

At these events, I will join the people attending and become a fairy for the weekend. Dressing as a fairy complete with wings and pointy ears to immerse myself into the culture for a firsthand experience and inside research.

The subject of fairy belief has a slight stigma and taboo attached to it. As with any subject that is considered out-of-the-ordinary or unscientifically proven, there will be both positive and negative reactions to my research. However, this research is being conducted to bring to light that despite the uprising of modern technology and science, the cultural connections to Celtic families still resides hidden beneath modern society. The belief in the unknown still holds people to their ancestral traditions that have been a part of their familial landscape for generations. Some have chosen to bring it out into their day-to-day lives, while many choose to hide beneath the layers of complex humanity in a world that can be cruel and harsh to anything that cannot be proven, too afraid of ridicule to allow themselves to show their true belief.

I want my research to help show that there is an entire community around the world of people who share in these same beliefs in what cannot be seen. I want my research to help create the beginning of a cultural thread that might allow people to come out of hiding and find a bond to their fellow fae believers. The world, while ever-evolving and advancing, still holds negativity to such a belief. However, the world also holds a natural brilliance that many people have opted to continue to keep in their lives. The traditions and rituals maintain an importance that has held together generations for hundreds of years and I wish to prove that this belief, though some younger folks are, in fact, sceptical to their ancestral rituals, they have maintained the traditions to the land despite their scepticism that fairies exist. Ancestral and familial traditions continue to be as important as ever in European communities.

Current Research