9. Common mistakes about this deity. Hoo-boy. There are only a couple that I can think of, but they’re both doozies.
#1: He is not a dwarf. Yes, there are many dwarven smiths in Norse and Germanic mythologies, Wayland is not one of them. Lore states that he is an Elf/Alf, or (PCPG) possibly one of the Vanir. Rydberg hypothesizes that if Wayland is in fact the same as Thjazi, then he might be part Jotun. Dwarves, however, never enter into the family picture, unless it’s as adversaries.
#2: He is not a “nice” god. Wayland is not a jolly old smith archetype. He committed murder and rape in the name of vengeance. Yes, he can be a great ally and teacher, but ignore his darker aspects at your own peril.
The Druid's Well 
I approve of your choice of picture to illustrate the difference between dwarves and elves. *cough* >.>
Yeah, Wayland The Dwarf is one of those annoying bits of fakelore that needs to stop circulating. IME the Vanir are elves, which bridges the thing with him being called an Alf/Elf and having Vanic relations. I do think that Wayland dates from the time before (SPG) the Vanir and Jotnar split into two separate groups, also. But whatever his lineage, it’s definitely not dwarven.
LikeLike