The water sprite is rarely seen, but rather his beautiful daughters.
There are many Sorbian legends about the water sprite, both Upper and Lower Sorbian. Poles and Czechs also know him. One could probably compile an entire book. He has found his way into a Sorbian opera, "Wodźan," as well as into dances by the Sorbian National Ensemble, into the animated film and book by Jan Hempel (also Sorbian) "When there were still water sprites," and into poems, pop music, and puppet shows.
The water sprite is a mythological figure who appears in several legends in the Spreewald because of the omnipresence of water. However, the water sprite's powers are always tied to water. He is often said to sit under the water on the shore to scare children away from the water and keep them away. He tries to pull curious people who reach for his water lilies down into his realm.
The bodies of the drowned quickly become covered in mud in the slow-flowing Spreewald rivers, so they are often never found again. It is also said that the Water Sprite swallows them and keeps their souls imprisoned in clay pots.
The Water Sprite, along with his wife and beautiful daughters, is at home in almost all of the Spreewald rivers. He himself enjoys trading incognito, often helps fishermen ensure they have a good catch, and ensures that water remains the source of life in the Spreewald.
His daughters are said to often dance at folk festivals and have lured many an unsuspecting, love-struck young man into the realm of the mermaids—never to be seen again.
With his long whip, he can strike the water's surface in such a way that it shifts to both sides, allowing him and his daughters to reach their home on dry feet.