Tradition / Region: Turkic traditional beliefs (Volga region, Central Asia, North Caucasus, Western Siberia, Altai–Sayan)
Alternate Names: İye, Ee, Iye, Iyase (elemental forms)
Category: Spirit-masters / place spirits
The Myth
In Turkic traditional belief, Ee (also called İye or Iye) are spirits who permanently inhabit and rule specific places, objects, and elements of the world. Every natural or cultural space is believed to have its own ee: mountains, forests, fields, rivers, springs, baths, mills, barns, abandoned houses, ravines, and swamps all possess their own spirit-master.
These spirits are understood as the rightful owners of their domains. They dwell continuously in one place and govern what happens there. Ee may appear in human form—male or female—and are often described with unusual features such as being blind, slant-eyed, three-eyed, fat, or otherwise distorted. They can be benevolent or hostile, depending on how humans behave toward their domain.
Among the Kazan Tatars, West Siberian Tatars, and Bashkirs, ee are divided into specific elemental and domestic spirits. These include su iyase, the master of water; urman iyase, the forest spirit; and oy iyase or yort iyase, the house spirit. Among the Altai and Sayan peoples, a prominent figure is tag-eezi, the master of mountains and taiga, though ee were believed to inhabit all landscapes and could function as protectors of clans tied to particular territories.
In Western Siberian traditions, ee were believed to dwell in abandoned houses, swamps, and ravines, places considered dangerous or spiritually unstable. In Islamized Turkic traditions, especially among the Turkmens, ee gradually came to be regarded as malevolent spirits or genies bound to specific locations.
Among the Chuvash, the iye is believed to live under the stove or in bathhouses. In these places, it may play tricks on people—pushing them, dislocating limbs, or causing their eyes to twist—but it is not purely evil. The iye can also protect the household, prevent fires, increase livestock, support beekeeping, and bring success in trade. For this reason, offerings such as bread, baked goods, or small objects are thrown onto the stove during household rituals.
In later folklore, ee were increasingly blamed for illnesses affecting people and animals, including weakness, exhaustion, and paralysis, especially in children. These afflictions were believed to result from violations of unwritten rules, such as sleeping on boundaries, lying on damp ground without prayer, or leaving children unattended. To appease or expel an ee, people performed incantations and offered sacrifices such as human- or animal-shaped figurines made from dough, bread, or rowan twigs.
Though feared for their capacity to harm, ee were never simply demons. They were understood as guardians and enforcers of cosmic and social order, reacting to human respect or neglect. When treated properly, they protected their domains and those who lived within them; when offended, they punished transgressions, reminding people that every place in the world had a living master.
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