Tradition: Latvian Mythology
Alternative Names: Lietuvēns, Lietonis, Lītūņš
Category: Demon
The Myth
Lietuvēns is usually described as a small, wretched-looking child that moves quickly. It sometimes takes the form of an ugly, vicious woman resembling a witch. It can enter houses through holes, cracks, keyholes, or other small openings and always leaves through the same place by which it entered.
Lietuvēns is believed to be the soul of a murdered person who was strangled, drowned, or hanged and is cursed to remain in the world for as long as that person was originally meant to live. In some beliefs, it is the soul of an unbaptized child.
At night, Lietuvēns rides upon sleeping people and domestic animals, particularly horses and cows, and strangles or crushes them beneath its weight. Its victim rapidly becomes exhausted and covered in sweat, losing their strength as the creature tortures them. The victim may see only a glimpse of Lietuvēns and feel its entire weight pressing down upon them, making it difficult to breathe or move. Eventually the creature leaves, sometimes leaving the victim close to death. Sleep paralysis is therefore understood as an attack by Lietuvēns.
Lietuvēns can also attack animals, although it is said not to torment people or animals that were born during the daytime.
A person attacked by Lietuvēns can drive it away by moving the little or big toe of the left foot. The creature immediately flees.
The Lietuvēns cross is another protection against the creature. It may be a simple pentagram or a larger double form made from two pentagrams. The strongest form is associated with the auseklis, the morning star and the victory of light over darkness. The sign can be placed on doors, thresholds, windows, animals, or even on the fingernails of someone suffering from an attack. It must be drawn in a single continuous movement; if the line is broken, the protection will not work.
Lietuvēns may also be trapped by sealing the hole, crack, or keyhole through which it entered. A piece of mottled wood is used to close the opening. If the creature cannot find a way out, it may transform into a beautiful young woman and remain inside the house until the opening is restored. As soon as the exit is opened, she escapes.
Farm animals can be protected by attaching a knife, comb, or scythe to their backs, since Lietuvēns can be injured by sharp objects. It may also be driven away with a rowan stick when caught behind an animal’s left ear. Oiling an animal’s back makes it too slippery for Lietuvēns to ride, and animals with a cut right ear are also said to be avoided by the creature.
Lietuvēns can finally be freed by finding its body and burying its bones with proper honors. At the moment of burial, a thunderstorm and lightning are said to arise, signifying that the troubled soul has finally been taken into the other world.
Sources
“Lietuvēns.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed September 12, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lietuv%C4%93ns