A-C D-F G-J K-N O-S T-Z
Gaki (Japan)
The ghost of a wicked man which appears huge and bloated with a tiny mouth. Cursed with an undending hungerfor filthy unclean things such as the bodies of the dead. They freeze when exposed to the sun and burn with heat when the moonlight shines on them.
Galley Begger (Somerset)
Another headless spirit which haunts the countryside
Gally-Trot (England)
A Giant White Dog who chases anyone who runs from it.
Gama (Japan)
A giant toad which hides under houses in order train their life with its long tought.
Gancanagh
Fairies that wonder the countryside and try to woo milk-maidens.
Ganiklis (Lithuanian)
A forest being which ruled over predatory animals. He was also pastoral deity similar to the satyr, to which people would offer the testicles of livestock while burning them on a stone and asking Ganiklis to keep his wolves and other predators at bay.
Gants Mod (Mongolia)
A powerful tree spirit which is known because it stands alone.
Gårdstomte (Nordic)
A spirit of the farm and home who helped farmers gain good fortune. He was often believed to be the spirit of the first man to grow up on the farm. He was typically an older man with a white beard, gray clothes and a hat. Although they were helpful they were also peevish, having a serious temper and would retaliate if the animals were neglected or if people failed to treat him with respect. Above all else he felt it was his duty to watch over the farm animals, helping keep the people and animals on them safe and helping them to thrive. As payment for his work he expected porridge with a bit of butter. When given new clothes he would consider himself too fine to work and so would stop.
Gaueko (Basque)
The spirit of the night who doesn't let people do certain things outside at night. His presence is felt in a gust of wind, though sometimes he appears as a cow or a monster.
Gazriin Ezen (Mongolia)
Spirits of a place including mountains, water, rocks, villages, buildings, nations, trees, etc. Many of them were once the souls of humans who went to reside in nature on the persons death. For many of these it has been so long since they were human they don't remember having ever been so. Piles of rocks and sticks called oboo or ovoo are set up, those traveling through the Gazriin Ezen's territory would pay their respects by adding another rock to this pile. At times they would even make an offering of milk products, alcohol, or other items.
Gazriin Ezen Mountain (Mongolia)
Powerful spirits to whom special ceremonies are often held. The mountain spirit may send wolves to get horses or other herd animals or may take the form of wolves as people say that the mountain spirit has taken an animal when a wolf gets it.
Genghis Khan (Mongolia)
An ancestral spirit for Mongolia who protects the nation and marriage.
Genko (Japan) (Kami)
A priest who meditated for nearly his whole life and than became a dragon which lives in a pond and grants requests for those who bring him offerings of rice.
Gentle Annie
A hag somewhat akin to Black Annis only controls the winds and causes storms
The Gentry (Irish)
A name for the fairies which is used to avoid offending them.
German (Russian)
Water spirits which bring rain
Ghillie Dhu (Scotland)
A guardian of trees (especially birch trees) he is a wild and often shy fairy who is kind to and aids children. Said to be dark haired, he is described as clothed in leaves and moss. In lore, this solitary spirit is said to reside primarily near Gairloch and Loch a Druing
Glaistig (Scotland)
Appearing to be a beautiful woman she hides goat legs under long flowing dresses and seeks to drain the blood from males in some legends. In others she is a guardian spirit, so she is likely very internally duelistic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glaistig
Glashtyn (Manx)
In some reports a brownie creature in others a water fairy.
Gnefro (Italy)
A small fairy which appears like a child, but only shows themselves at night. They like to play pranks on solitary wonderers though they rarely do anything serious. On occasion they will live in a human house which they will protect and aid.
Goblins
Typically evil and sometimes phantom like fairies http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goblin
Gohodoji (Japan)
Spirits which take the form of young boys and protect priests and hermits who have achieved a more enlightened state. In one story (lots of stories)
In medieval Japan it was said that until the age of seven one did not fully belong to the world
it was not until boys reached fiften and girls reached thirteen that they became adults, up until than they were close to kami and the spirit world so spirits often took the form of children.
Golomt Eej (Mongolia)
The spirit of the fire who was believed to be the daughter of the Father of Heaven.
Gooseberry Wife (Scotland)
The Gooseberry-wife in the guise of a large furry caterpillar, takes charge of the green gooseberries, e.g. If ye goos out in the gearden, the gooseberry-wife'll be sure to ketch ye.
Grant (England)
A death portent which appears as a young horse running on its hind legs.
Grig
A word for a small sprite like creature.
Grindylow (Yorkshire)
An evil nymph or water demon which lives pools of water or the trees.
Greenies (Lancashire)
Small fairies so exquisitely beautiful that men can fall instantly in love with them.
Gruagach (Scotland)
Is often a female brownie type spirit such as one which lived in Skipness Castle where it did odd jobs for the maids. There are also males, and a number of other tales about them.
Gruvrået (Nordic)
A creature of the mines and mountains who can appear as a hag, an old man, or an animal in order to scare people away from deposits of ore. Though she could also appear as an elegant lady dressed in light gray. Sometimes she actually helped miners as well warning them of accidents that were about to happen.
Gulbių dievas (Lithuanian)
Sort of like a guardian angel which hovered around people keeping them safe. Each person would offer their Gulbių dievas occasional sacrifices with woman often offering chickens.
Guajona (Spanish)
An old thin witch covered in a black cloak. Her hands and feet are gnarled bird legs and her face is yellow, rough, and covered in hairy warts. Her small eyes however glow like stars. She has a sharp nose and a single large black tooth which extends below her chin and which she can use to suck peoples blood. She only comes out and night, and even than she remains in the shadows. She is a silent hunter able to sneak into homes where she drains children, leaving them nearly dead. It often attacks the old or even adults as well.
Gunna (Scotland)
A fox skin wearing fairy boy who was banished from fairyland.
Guytrash
is an evil cow whose appearance was formerly believed in as a sign of death
Gwrach y Rhibyn (Welsh Fairy)
Haglike fairies which act as death portents
Gwyllion (Welsh Fairy)
Frightful haglike fairies which haunt lonely mountain roads.
Gyre-Carling
The Queen of Fairies.... , in Fife superstitious females are anxious to spin off all the flax that is on their rocks, on the last night of the year ; being persuaded that if they left any unspun, the Gyrc-Carlin, or as they also pronounce the word the Gy-carlin, would carry it off before morning. In some ways this makes her similar to Holda.
Habetrot (Scottish)
A fairy which spins magical garments.
Haltija (Finland)
A fairy spirit or guardian of a place such as a glen of trees, water, the grave yard, villages, and homesteads. There are also Haltija’s which guards humans, following them around to keep them safe.
Haltia (Finland)
The spirit of the builder of a house who remains to guard the home he built. They could however be transferred from one home to a new one by carrying the fire from one place to another. The Haltia oversaw peoples activities in the building, making certain they remained moral – punishing over drinking, etc.
They can also be the spirits of mountains and other places as attested to by the treasure hunters song in which states “a treasure-seeker exclaims: 'Kinsmen of Hiisi, now arise! awake, thou mountain haltia!” or that of an individual person. “A hunter sadly complains that with other men luck does the work, their haltia fetches them coin, but his luck, his haltia, lies confused under a stone with gloves on his hands,”
Hantu Air (Malaysia)
Spirits which live in large rivers or lakes which most often appear as a floating log. They tend to be dangerous as they could drown people and cause floods. To avoid this people give them offerings and honor them at a ceremony. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hantu_Air
Hantu Bidai (Malaysian)
A spirit which lives in water and will change its form in order to drown its victims.
Hantu Bukit (Malaysia)
Spirits which roam the ills and tease the faint of heart.
Hauntu Bungkus (Malaysia)
Ghosts of the dead which are still wrapped in the burial shroud. They come up to feed on the blood of babies. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocong
Hantu Galah (Malasyia)
A very tall spirit, so tall that at times it the clouds. They live deep in the forest where only its legs are visible. They only come out at night at which point they often snatch people up.
Hantu Keramat (Malaysia)
The spirit of a place which is usually associated with large rocks, large trees, or the crossroads. They give good luck to those who provide them with offerings such as eggs.
Hantu Kopek (Malaysia)
A large breasted old spirit which will kidnap and hide children under her breasts if they are out at dusk or late evening.
Hantu Kubur (Malaysia)
A spirit which roams the grave yards and spreads disease among the living.
Hantu Raya (Malaysia)
The supreme spirit for the shaman. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hantu_Raya
Hairy Jack (English)
A mischievous dog spirit
Harahus (Germanic)
Word for a Sacred Grove of Trees
Hardmandle (Switzerland)
Dwarf like beings which scamper over moss and fell and are not exhausted by climbing steep precipices
Harimau Jadian (Malaysia)
People who are able to turn into tigers through the assistance of spirits. Often this is is done for self defense.
Harionago (Japan)
Beautiful female spirits who make fun of passing young men by laughing at them. She is not entirely playful, however, for if the young man should dare to return her laugh she will attack him with her hair which becomes long writhing tentacles tipped in barbs.
Haule Mannerchen (German)
Elvish followers of Holda who are unique in that they are males who act as fates, endowing people with magical gifts, a job normally reserved for woman.
Havsmannen (Sweden)
A water sprite which aids sailors and keeps water ways safe. They also have children with human women from time to time.
Hedley Kow (English)
A shape shifting fairy which likes to play tricks on people.
Helhond (Netherlands)
Black hound with pointed ears, those who encountered them knew that someone they knew was about to dye. Their bark also warned people of coming death.
Heinenkleed (Saxon)
Departed spirits, who appear in the furious host in the retinue of former gods, and continue to lead a life of their own.
Heinze (also known as Heinezlmann, Polterkater and Katermann) (German)
Also known as the boot cat, they were a domestic fairy which lived in cellars or in trees next to someones house. They bring good luck to a household, so care must be taken of the tree in which they reside or else luck will leave with them. They can't abide chopping or spinning on Thursday evenings. In addition to being lucky they help to keep stables and kitchens safe, and aide in the choirs in those areas.
Henkies (Orkney)
So called because they were supposed to henk or limp when they danced, Henkie knolls are the knolls round which these trolls or fairies used to gambol at night ; also called the Hill Folk
High Mountain (Tuvan)
Source of water asked to help heal people, protect villages, and more.
Hi Hi (Japan) (Kami / Yokai)
A silvered haired monkey whose hide was so tough that even guns can't penetrate it. Although some Hi Hi live in the wild others act as cruel kami, being worshiped by a people but demanding sacrifices of girls whom they devour. In one such tale a hunter falls in love with a girl selected to be that years sacrifice and so climbs into the box she is to be delivered to the Hi Hi in with his dogs. When the Hi Hi opens the box he has his dogs hold the giant beast while he choped at its neck until he begins to sever it. Meanwhile the Hi Hi possessed the priests outside the temple and has them come iin and beg the hunter for the Hi Hi's life. At last the hunter consents to spare the Hi Hi but only if the creature promises never to hurt another human again.
In a similar tale the Hi Hi is actually killed and it's body enshrined on Kannon Mountain.
However if someone could manage to drink his blodd they would be able to see invisible spirits. One man did this by getting the Hi Hi drunk and than killing it.
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%8B%92%E3%80%85 (In Japanese)
Hiisi (Finland)
Meaning something similar to hill and or mountain which is similar in many ways to a holy place. The hiisi are the Tutelary spirits are the spirits of awe inspiring natural features which most often involve rough terrain such as hills, giant boulders, deep crevasses, etc. As with many forest divinities the hissi is asked to chae animals to the hunters.
The hiisi’s horse was said to be the sound that the trees of the forest made as the wind rushed through them.
Christianity reduced Hissi to being much like small ugly twisted trolls which traveled in noisy processions, stole from humans, caused illness and did all the other bad things which happened which required an opposing dualistic force. Of course this is not to say the Hiisi didn’t do some these things originally, its hard to say how dualistic he was as many creatures in Uralic mythology seem to be both creative and distructive.
In one song to the Hiisi at least they are invoked to keep away evil. “O Hiisi, come from Hiitola, thou humpback! from the home of gods to cast out that which needs must be cast out and cause the monster's death..”
Hinky Punk (Scottish)
A one legged creature which carries a lantern in order to lure travelers astray.
Hitodama (Japan)
Spirits of the dead which appear as glowing balls and may at times lead people astray in the wilderness.
Hitotsumekoze (Japan)
A mischievous spirit which loves to play pranks on people and to jump out and frighten them or to use childish insults on them. As one would expect he appears as a ten year old monk though he only has one eye, a fact which he is very self conscious about for if he encounters a bamboo basket he will run away in shame, thinking that the gaps in these baskets are multiple eyes which mock his single one. Unfortunately in addition to causing mischief he also brings illness to those places he goes so such protections are important.
Hob (English)
Typically a kind house fairy which can cure illness
Hobbledy-Lantern (England)
A name for the Will o the Wisp
Hobyah (England)
Dangerous fairies which are chased of by a barking dog. (English Folk Tale)
Hoko (Japan)
The spirit of an ancient tree which appears as a black dog with the face of a man.
Holda (Germanic)
A deity of Christmas, Water, Snow and household concerns.
Holzeibel (Germany)
A German name for wood wives.
Hookeys (Lincolnshire)
An aberration supposed to have reference to fairies
Hoopers (Cornish)
Shy fairies which hid in the mist, but would warn fishermen of coming storms.
Horse - Sacred (Tuvan)
The spirit of a horse which could make people ill. In order to pacify it the shaman would decorate a horse in red ribbons, burn juniper incense, and wash it with arzhaan (holy water) They would ask the horse to no longer be angry with his master and to guard the family. Horses are powerful spirits which can cause cause their owner to grow ill by biting their bridle.
Still despite their ability to cause illness horse spirits are typically good, their spirits transport shamans through the various spirit worlds, allowing them to cure the sick.
Hososhin (Japan)
A spirit which spread small pox by appearing in peoples dreams as an old man in a straw boat. People tried to stop him from doing this by placing his image at the edge of the village.
Housoubaba (Japan)
A giant ten foot tall red faced hag who causes small pox in order to eat the bodies of those who've died of the illness by digging up their corpses. It is difficult to stop her, however, because she can fly so fast that her flight causes a gust of wind capable of knocking even strong men prone
Howlaa (Manx)
A mountain fairy which appears as an old man, his voice could be heard in the winter lamenting the coming tempests which gave people warning of such storms.
Huijuta and Siilikki (Finland)
(name means hedgehog) Matron of the wasps, and possibly some forested areas, mentioned in a song.
Hukataku (Japan)
A being which knows about every type of spirit, kami, yokai, or other supernatural being. Likely an ancient deity from China the Hukataku's very image can protect people and places from evil influences and illness. They appear as a bull with six horns on it's head and a human face on each side and each flank and each of these faces has three or two horns.
Hulder (Norway)
A supernatural female being which live underground in the forests. They are young beautiful woman who act as sort of wood or forest nymphs. She can at times have lynx ears, or be hollow in the back like an old tree stump.
Huldra (Scandinavia)
Beautiful female forest fairy type beings.
Hyakume (Japan)
The spirit which appears as a many eyed bird with no mouth. The hyakume protects shrines from theifs by sending out their eyes to embed themselves into the thief, marking them as such forever after.
Hyang (Indonesia)
Spirits which dwell in the land, especially in mountains, but which can also dwell within stones, trees and other places. Such spirits are either divine or ancestral, however they are not like deities of western belief. In the Sundanese , Javanese , and Balinese ancient, invisible forces of nature and ancestral spirits is identified as "hyang". This ancestral spirits inhabit high places, such as mountains and hills. These places are sanctified and glorified as the soul of ancestors dwell.
"The bridge between the two worlds—between humans and jinn—is being broken," Mr. Yulianto said. "I can help the spirits accept what is happening."
Quote from a Shaman in the Wall Street Journal
Jordmorsegna (Norway)
A midwife in Norway who helps a fairy woman give birth to a child and is asked to put ointment in the new born fairies eyes. When she does so she accidentally gets some in her eyes. When this is discovered he eye is poked out.
Den ville jeger (Norway)
Known as the Wild Hunter, In one of his tales some loggers sitting by a fire in the woods see a barefoot girl with flowing hair running for their lives just past them. A moment later large black dogs go chasing past. After a while they heard a shot and then there was silence. Later, they see a great big man with coal-black beard in the light of the fire. He has two dogs and a big musket on his shoulder. On his back hangs the girl like another shot hare with his legs bound together and threaded into the stock pipe.
The girl in this tale is a wood wife, a hulder, or some other forest spirit as the Wild Huntsmen were often said to hunt these fairies.
Hyter Sprites
A kind fairy which would find lost children in the fens and help them find their way home again. Very protective the hyter sprites would also scold those who mistreated children.
Ibd irailduk (Even)
Evil spirit of the lower world which causes illness and misfortune, such as an unsuccessful hunt
To defeat spirits of illness the shaman would often split them into two parts and place them inside carvings of birds which would fly them up to heaven so they couldn't return.
Ichchi (Yakut)
The spirit of living beings including rivers, rocks, lakes, trees, natural forces, and even objects created by humans.
Idises
Another name of the norn.
Ignis Fatuus
Another word for Will o the wisp
Ilargi (Basque)
The moon, also the daughter of the earth.
Ileana Cosânzeana (Romania)
A beautiful nature fairy, considered to be the most beautiful among fairies she works to defeat evil forces.
Iele (Romania)
Beautiful seductive fairies who live in the skies, forests, mountains, caves but will often decend to bath near the crossroads. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iele
Inken (Even)
The spirit of thunder and lightning which was asked by the shaman to take argi from a person (Argi are disease causing spirits).
Inoshishi (Japan) (Kami)
A kami which is the spirit of a female bear which people pray to in order to drive away snakes.
Inugami (Japan) (Kami)
A dog familiar created by a form a witch, the inugami is created by putting food just outside a starving dogs reach. When the dog despretly tries to reach the food its head is cut off, making a predatory spirit which is used to attack people and protect oneself against attack.
The owner of an inugami can command the spirit to possess people, but such power comes with a price for the inugami is often difficult to control and may seek vengeance on the person who tormented and killed it.
In addition to the occasional individual who enshrined such dog kami therewere also families who did so. These were known as Inu Kami Suji (Dog Kami Family). Inugami could make a family rich by stealing for them and getting rid of compeditors. This meant that such families were greatly feared for it was believed that they would send their dog kami out to possess and harm others, and people would place a needle in their cloths in order to prevent this.
The families who worshiped inugami would honor them, giving them food offerings. As with most things relating to shamanism in Japan the family line of spirits was passed down to females, thus when a girl married inugami would follow her to her new home. After this new inugami would be born each time she had children (the exact number varies from story to story).
Ittanmomen (Japan)
A yokai which appears as a flying long strip of white cloth. It drops down on people and winds around them, crushing them until they suffocate to death.
Iuer (Yakut)
Spirits of a location such as a mountain, rock, river, tree, etc.
Izuyuuma (japan)
A giant harry cave dwelling monster with four bird like legs and the face of a human, it can change its shape and will at times seek to date human woman. Though it is a cruel creature that will likely eventually flay their skin from their faces.
Jack In Irons
Is a supernatural being of great stature, wearing clanking chains, who may at any moment spring out on a passer-by in the dark.
Jack o the bowl (Swiss)
A helpful house fairy which would be rewarded with bowls of fresh cream.
Jack O Lantern
The Spirits of wicked people who died they use glimmering lights to lead travelers into bogs and moors. In order to protect oneself from them is to put one's cap inside out and avoid pointing at them. For they will attack those who point at them. He can be helpful as he will light the way of those who request it but being internally duelistic in nature he can turn back to his misleading nature at any time.
Jaud
Monsters which come from the souls of still born children.
Javinė (Lithuanian)
The goddess of the grain barn she was a household fairy type figure who protected barns and food storage.
Jeanie of Biggersdale
A dangerous spirit which haunts the woodlands of North Riding Yorkshire. One night a drunk brash young man made a bet that he could rouse her from the woods. So he rode up to Mulgrave Wood and called for her to come.
“I'm Coming” She called in anger and chased him nearly to the river where she cut his horse in two, but luckily for him he was thrown clear across the water and so was safe as she could not cross after.
Jec Kanta Ot (Khanty)
Invisible evil spirits that some times appear as a skeleton. They kidnap people's souls and take these to the underground world of the dead. If a man felt morning sickness, aching bones, and similar pains in the morning it was the result of this spirit trying to take their soul. However the Jec Kanta Ot had to flee when the dawn came so it couldn't always finish it's work.
Jenny Greenteeth
A specific name for a Grindylow
Jenny- wi'-t'-lantren
Another name for Will o the Wisp
Jentilak (Basque)
A race of giants, they are the builders of megalithic monuments and the teachers of humanity.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jentilak
Jembalang Tanah (Malaysia)
Forest spirits, they are said to grow directly from the forest itself. They terrorize those who damage their forest. Though they can be pacified if provided with food or through chanting a mantra. For this reason people would always make offerings and have ceremonies before cutting down more of the jungle.
Jerangkung (Malaysia)
A spirit which obeys Its master if it is properly cared for but which begins to suck the blood of family members if it isn't cared for.
Jerecki (Selkup)
Essentially vampires or sorcerers or evil spirits which drink blood. They have long teeth and can't be killed by any means other than an aspen stick. When they were killed it put a curse on the place, so that anyone who went there would become stupid.
Jer Kuguza (Mari-El)
(old man or old women of the lake)
The spirit of the lake which can be offended by making the lake impure (throwing dead animals in it, putting feces in it, etc). If offended the lake can cause illness or even take the entire lake somewhere else.
Jievaras (Lithuania)
A Lithuanian female spirit of the grain fields, she was offered bred and cheese in return for a good harvest. Believed to reside in the last bit of uncut rye so that during the harvest woman would leave a few small patches of grain uncut for her to reside in. These would later be braided and offerings of bread and salt left under them when the harvest was finished.
Jiji (Komi)
A tall man who is flat as a board, with mouth and eyes that are too big for his face. It was believed that he took unattended children.
Jimmy Squarefoot (Manx)
Jimmy Squarefoot " was a cross between a human being and a tusked boar who haunted the hillward parts of Malew and Arbory, and whose footprints were found where he had shown himself.
Jin Tanah (Malaysia)
Spirits of the land who act as protectors of a region. Those entering a new land usually offered it eggs, grilled chicken, glutinous rice, and similar dishes in order to avoid having it attack them.
Jipi (Khanty)
The name for owl, for it was believed that the purpose of owls was to destroy dangerous spirits that humans could not see. The owls could also come to people as a messenger or change form into that of a human in order to marry one.
Jisatsuobake (Japan)
A yokai which appears as an old woman in an abandoned temple causing people to kill themselves by cutting themselves open with their knives or swords. She tried to do this to one man who only had a fan and so he was unsuccessful at killing himself.
Joan the Wad (Cornish)
A type of Will o the Wisp
Jurogumo (Japan)
A spider which can take the form of a beautiful woman, she often lives in wilderness areas and seeks to kill men by snagging them with her web or by tricking them with illusions. In one case she pretended to be holding a human child that turned out to be nothing more than a stone statue.
Justə Kuguza (Mari-El
Beats on trees and the walls of houses to keep people awake as he calls for children to come out to play. It freezes people to death, pinches their feet and noses, hits people over the head with a wooden mallet. Hates the singing of drunk people and attacks them.
They sow up the door on cold nights.
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