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Lange Wapper

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Tradition / Region: Belgian Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Demon

The Myth

Lange Wapper is a water spirit said to dwell in the black mud of the canals and moats of Antwerp. He hides beneath the water and emerges to wander the city and its outskirts, playing cruel and often dangerous tricks on humans.

According to a legend from Wilrijk dating to the sixteenth century, Lange Wapper was once an ordinary boy. One day, he saved an old woman—revealed to be a witch—from drowning. As a reward, she granted him the power of shapeshifting. With this gift, he could alter his size at will, becoming so enormous that he could leap from one city to another in a single bound. From this ability, he gained his name, meaning “Long Strider.”

Lange Wapper can take many forms. He appears as a cat, a dog, a man, a child, or even as an ordinary object such as a white napkin. He may grow immensely tall, with long legs that allow him to peer into the windows of houses, or shrink himself to a tiny size. He can even duplicate himself. In one guise, he becomes a boy who plays with other children until he provokes a violent quarrel. In another, he transforms into a crying infant; when a young mother, moved by pity, offers him her breast, he suddenly resumes his true form as a large man and mocks her cruelly.

Many of his pranks ended in death. He was said to delay servants sent to fetch a midwife, causing newborns to die before baptism. He strangled drunkards by simply twisting their necks. Because of these acts, people came to regard Lange Wapper as a devil rather than a mere spirit.

When his mischief was complete, Lange Wapper would announce himself with a horrific, unmistakable laugh, so that people knew who had tormented them. According to tradition, his presence in Antwerp ended only after statues of the Virgin Mary were placed on street corners throughout the city. After this, Lange Wapper fled Antwerp and was seen no more.

Chii-uya (Nursing Parent)

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Tradition / Region: Japan (Okinawa Prefecture, Sanbara region)
Alternate Names: Chi-uya, Chi-nu-uya
Category: Yōkai / spirit of the dead

The Myth

Chii-uya, also known as the Nursing Parent, is a spiritual being spoken of in the Sanbara region of Okinawa. She appears in the form of a woman with an extremely gentle face, long black hair that looks freshly washed, and unusually large breasts.

It is believed that when an infant or a child under the age of six dies, the Chii-uya takes the child under her care after death. She breastfeeds and raises the deceased child in the spirit world. Because of this belief, when a young child dies, families hold a ritual in which a tiered box of food is placed on a table and prayers are offered to the Nursing Parent. In the villages of Kunigami and Ōgimi, children are buried in special graves, and it is said that the Chii-uya dwells in these burial places.

In Nakijin Village, it is said that showing a mirror to an infant is forbidden. Infants may mistake the surface of water for a mirror and wander toward rivers or the sea, where they are believed to be pulled beneath the water by the Chii-uya.

One story from the Kijoka area of Ōgimi Village tells of a woman whose second child fell ill after growing quickly in infancy. One night, as the mother left the bedroom door slightly open, she saw a woman with large breasts standing there, smiling gently and beckoning her inside. The figure vanished moments later. Soon after, the child’s condition suddenly worsened, and he died that night.

Another tale tells of a mysterious woman who visited a sweets shop every night carrying a freshly washed baby. She would buy sweets for the child and leave quickly. At the same time, villagers began hearing a child crying from an old grave outside the village, even during the day. When the grave was finally opened, a living baby was found inside. The money the woman had used to buy sweets was discovered to be burned paper money reduced to charcoal. From then on, people said that the woman who visited the shop had been the spirit of the child’s mother, acting under the influence of the Chii-uya.

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Yukijorō (Snow Lady)

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Tradition / Region: Japan (Yamagata; Miyagi Prefecture)
Alternate Names: Yuki-joro, Yuki-onna (related)
Category: Snow spirit / yōkai

The Myth

Yukijorō is one of the names used for a type of Yuki-onna, spoken of in various regions as a supernatural presence connected to snow and winter nights.

In the Yamagata region, Yukijorō are said to appear to people and make them hold a baby, much like the figure known as Ubu-onna. When this happens, the person holding the child is granted superhuman strength. In other stories from the same region, Yukijorō are said to kidnap and eat human children.

In Ichisako, in present-day Kurihara City, Miyagi Prefecture, it is said that during the depths of winter people sometimes encounter a pale and beautiful woman dressed entirely in white. She appears near Tagawa Bridge, at the boundary between the villages of Masaka and Nagasaki. If a passerby doubts her presence or becomes suspicious, the woman suddenly vanishes. In this area, this apparition is known as Yukijorō.

Across these accounts, Yukijorō is remembered as a winter apparition—sometimes helpful, sometimes deadly—appearing silently in snowbound places and disappearing as suddenly as she arrives.

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Rankweil Geist

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Tradition / Region: Austrian Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Ghost

The Myth

In the region between Dornbirn and Haselstauden, people walking at night often heard sneezing beneath the bridge over the Fischbach. Most ignored the sound and continued on their way. One night, however, a traveler, hearing the sneezing, called out, “God help you, if you need help.”

At once, a man appeared before him and answered that he could indeed be helped—if the traveler would carry him that very night to Rankweil. Though exhausted, the traveler agreed, saying that he would first return home to eat supper and tell his wife of his plan. When he did so, his wife pleaded with him not to keep such a dangerous promise, but he refused to break his word.

The man returned to the bridge, where the spirit awaited him. The ghost leapt onto his back, and the traveler was forced to carry it all the way through the night, bearing its heavy weight until they reached Rankweil. At the steps of the church, the spirit finally dismounted and said, “You have redeemed me, and I will redeem you as well.”

The man, drenched in sweat and weakened by the ordeal, returned home. From that night on, he fell ill, and six weeks later he died. It was said that the ghost had vowed during his lifetime to make a pilgrimage to Rankweil but had never fulfilled his promise. After death, he was forced to wander until someone carried him there, binding his redemption to the life of the one who helped him.

Nachtwerkertjes

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Tradition / Region: Dutch Mythology
Alternate Names: Werkgeesten (related)
Category: Spirit

The Myth

In Dutch folklore, Nachtwerkertjes are mysterious beings heard at night inside workshops and workspaces. When loud hammering, sawing, or other work noises are heard in the middle of the night—without any human present—it is said that the nachtwerkertjes are at work.

Their presence is believed to be a sign of what is to come. Hearing them foretells that there will soon be much work to be done, as if the spirits are preparing in advance. In the Zaan region, where windmills dominate the landscape, the sounds of nachtwerkertjes are specifically taken as a warning that a storm is approaching. Such storms often caused damage to mills, leading to extensive repair work afterward.

Thus, the nachtwerkertjes do not appear directly to people, but announce themselves through sound, acting as unseen workers whose nocturnal activity signals impending labor and disruption.

Bökh

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Tradition / Region: Shamanistic traditions (Central and Inner Asia)
Alternate Names: —
Category: Shaman / spirit intermediary

The Myth

In shamanistic belief, bökh are shamans who stand between the material world and the realm of spirits. They are understood as individuals capable of communicating directly with unseen beings and forces that shape human life.

Through ritual practice, the bökh enters trance states to cross into the spiritual domain. In this state, they encounter various spirits, which may be ancestral spirits of the dead, spirits of animals and natural forces, or celestial beings associated with the sky and higher realms. These spirits are approached for guidance, healing, protection, and knowledge.

The bökh does not command the spirits by force, but negotiates with them through chants, drumming, offerings, and ritual movement. Their role is to carry messages between worlds, restore balance when illness or misfortune strikes, and protect the community from harmful spiritual influences.

In this tradition, the bökh is not merely a healer or priest, but a living bridge between humanity and the spiritual order that surrounds and penetrates the world.

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Baccoo

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Tradition / Region: Guyana Mythology and Suriname Mythology
Alternate Names: Bakru (Sranan Tongo), Bakulu, Bakuu (Saramaccan)
Category: Spirit

The Myth

A Baccoo is a supernatural being found in the folklore of Guyana and Suriname. Descriptions of the creature vary, but it is often said to have an oversized head and a small body, with one half made of wood and the other half of flesh. Some accounts note that it lacks kneecaps, giving it an unnatural way of moving.

Baccoo are believed to exist in two main forms. Some serve humans—usually merchants or individuals seeking success—after a contract is made with them. Others roam freely, haunting the areas where they dwell. Those who keep a baccoo must feed it regularly, most commonly with milk and bananas.

When bound to a person, a baccoo may be sent to perform tasks. It can act as an invisible messenger, carrying information from place to place, or it may be used to torment others by throwing stones, starting fires, or causing unexplained disturbances. These acts are often attributed to unseen forces, though people familiar with the lore recognize them as the work of a baccoo.

The origin of the baccoo is uncertain. Some traditions connect it to the Abiku of Yoruba belief, a spirit associated with children who die before being named, commemorated through small wooden figures. Others trace it to the mmoatia spirits of Akan folklore. Over time, these influences blended, and the baccoo became a shared figure across multiple cultural traditions in the region.

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Baccoo. In Wikipedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baccoo

Ki-tamashii / Ishi-tamashii

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Tradition / Region: Japan
Alternate Names: Spirits of Trees and Stones
Category: Nature spirits / primordial yōkai

The Myth

In ancient belief, it was said that all things possessed a soul. Trees were thought to have spirits, stones were thought to have spirits, and even the most silent and unmoving objects were believed to be alive in ways unseen by humans.

These souls were known as Ki-tamashii (the spirit of trees) and Ishi-tamashii (the spirit of stones). When night fell and the world grew quiet, these spirits were believed to awaken. Trees and stones, which appeared still and lifeless by day, might stir after dark, their spirits rising and moving freely.

It was imagined that these spirits could dance together in the darkness, unseen by ordinary eyes. Some appeared ghostlike, others furred or strange in form, but all belonged to the unseen life of the world itself. Their existence reflected the belief that nature was never truly inert, only sleeping.

These spirits were understood to be ancient beings—older than named monsters or later yōkai—arising from the earliest ways people understood the world, when the boundary between living beings and objects had not yet been firmly drawn.

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Chairo-kaze

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Tradition / Region: Japan
Alternate Names: Brown Wind
Category: Spirit wind / atmospheric yōkai

The Myth

Chairo-kaze, or “Brown Wind,” is a mysterious spirit wind described by Shigeru Mizuki based on an experience from his childhood. He wrote about it in a school composition titled Brown Wind, later recalling it in his personal writings.

As a child, Mizuki would occasionally encounter a strange wind that made him feel uneasy and different from ordinary gusts of air. The experience always occurred at night, so he could never actually see the wind’s color. Despite this, he instinctively named it the “Brown Wind,” sensing that it carried an uncanny and mysterious presence.

This phenomenon is later mentioned in books about yōkai and supernatural phenomena, including sections devoted to so-called “spirit winds,” where Chairo-kaze is treated as an example of an unseen but perceptible supernatural force felt rather than seen.

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Shirami

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Tradition / Region: Japan (Shimonami Village, Kitauwa District, Ehime Prefecture)
Alternate Names: Shirami Yūren (related)
Category: Sea spirit / ghost

The Myth

In Shimonami Village in Ehime Prefecture, Shirami is said to appear in the sea at night. It is believed that the spirits of the dead sometimes enter the water and swim through the darkness, glowing white as they move across the surface.

Fishermen who witnessed these glowing figures referred to them as baka. However, it was believed that if the spirits heard themselves being called by this name, they would become enraged. In their anger, they would cling tightly to a boat’s oar, bringing misfortune or disaster upon those at sea.

A similar phenomenon is known from Uwajima folklore as Shirami Yūren, which was later introduced by Shigeru Mizuki. These accounts are thought to describe the same or closely related manifestations of restless spirits appearing upon the water at night.

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