Dobbies are a type of house-jinn, similar to brownies, in the folklore from England. Playful and prone to pranks they are very kind to children and servants. They are described as looking shaggy and thin. Although they watched over the family and their valuables, especially in times of trouble, the dobby usually stayed in the stable where it could keep better watch over the animals. Unnatched dobbies are said to be particularly injurious and malicious living in or near isolated and derelict ruins or water sources. It has been suggested the word dobby is a nickname for the name Robin, and the supernatural dobby may be a reference to Robin Good Fellow.
Regional beliefs of the dobby vary greatly; in Northumberland they were said to be gullible, lazy, and unintelligent; in Lancashire any sort of outside ghost is called a dobby, and in Morecambe Bay they live along the shoreline. In some regions dobbies are a type of nature spirit known to attack travelers and has control over deer. In Durham County the Shonton dobby appears at the birth and death of prominent people in the form of a cow, dog, donkey, goose, or horse.