Cow

Qawqam

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Tradition / Region: Malta Mythology
Alternative names: Qawqam
Category: Cow

The Myth

The Qawqam is a mysterious supernatural ox from Maltese folklore that roams the rocky countryside, hills, and isolated roads of the island at night. It is described as an enormous wild ox with immense strength and long powerful horns rising high above its head. Golden in color, it appears both beautiful and frightening, standing apart from ordinary animals.

The creature moves silently through open fields, low brushlands, and abandoned paths, appearing suddenly out of darkness before disappearing again without warning. Villagers believed that encountering the Qawqam was extremely dangerous. People who crossed its path risked injury or death, and its mere appearance was enough to drive travelers indoors after sunset.

The Qawqam was said to travel not only across the surface of the land but also beneath it. Certain hills and rocky places were believed to contain hidden passages through which the beast entered the underworld and returned again. Because of this, the ox was considered a creature that moved between worlds, belonging partly to the realm of the living and partly to unseen places below the earth.

At times the Qawqam was seen grazing quietly in the wilderness, glowing gold beneath moonlight as though it were part of the land itself. Yet people believed it could never truly be captured, owned, or followed. It always vanished before anyone could approach too closely.

Farmers and herdsmen sometimes connected the creature to the fragile nature of wealth, labor, and possession. The Qawqam represented power that could not be controlled — something valuable yet untouchable, capable of disappearing without trace.

The Qawqam remains remembered as a horned night-beast of Malta: a golden ox wandering lonely hills, hidden tunnels, and dark roads between the visible world and the unseen depths beneath the island.

Sources

Mifsud, S. D. (2014). The Maltese bestiary: An illustrated guide to the mythical flora and fauna of the Maltese Islands (p. 28).

Hornless Lion Cattle

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Tradition / Region: Sudanese Mythology
Alternative names: Lion Cattle, Hornless Cattle of the Lions
Category: Lion, Cow

The Myth

Among the Dinka, hornless cattle were believed to be dangerous and unnatural animals closely connected to lions and wilderness spirits. Unlike ordinary cattle with horns, hornless cattle were feared for their aggression and strange behavior. Folktales claimed they did not truly belong to human beings at all, but to lions.

One famous story tells of two brothers both named Deng. One was born to a human mother, while the other was the son of a lioness who had raised both boys together as brothers. Although the lioness cared for them for many years, she eventually turned against the human Deng and attacked him out of jealousy and beastly hunger. After many struggles, the lioness was killed by her own son to protect his brother.

Later, the lioness’s relatives sought revenge. The two brothers traveled into the land of the lions to confront Miyar, the lion-chief and cousin of Deng of the lioness. After reaching the lion settlement, Deng challenged Miyar and killed him in combat.

The death of the lion chief caused panic throughout the camp. The lions fled into the wilderness, and with them fled the strange hornless cattle that belonged to them. According to the tale, these hornless cows transformed into lions and lionesses and disappeared into the forest alongside their masters.

Only the ordinary horned cattle remained behind for the human brothers to take home.

The story explains an old Dinka belief that hornless cattle possessed something wild and dangerous within them. They were thought to follow lions naturally, behave more fiercely than ordinary cattle, and even share a spiritual connection with predatory beasts. In folklore, hornless cattle were not fully separated from the world of lions, but stood somewhere between domesticated animal and supernatural creature.

Sources

Deng, F. M. (1974). Dinka folktales: African stories from the Sudan. New York: Africana Publishing Company.

Mantahungal

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Tradition / Region: Philippines Mythology
Alternative Name: –
Category: Cow

The Myth

The Mantahungal is a terrifying creature from the folklore of the Tagbanua people of Palawan in the Philippines. It is said to dwell deep within remote mountain forests at high altitudes, far from human settlements.

The creature is usually described as resembling a gigantic hornless cow covered in long shaggy hair that hangs almost to the ground. Despite its cattle-like appearance, the mantahungal possesses a monstrous mouth filled with huge fangs and tusk-like teeth, including massive upper and lower tusks used to tear apart its prey.

According to legend, the mantahungal is a violent predator that hunts humans and animals in the mountain wilderness. It chases down victims through the forest before ripping them apart with its enormous teeth.

Stories describe it as a hidden and feared creature of the highlands, rarely seen but associated with danger, disappearance, and death in isolated forest regions.

Sources

Cryptid Archives. (n.d.). Mantahungal. Retrieved May 10, 2026, from https://cryptidarchives.fandom.com/wiki/Mantahungal

Bestiary.us. (n.d.). Mantakhungal. Retrieved May 10, 2026, from https://www.bestiary.us/mantakhungal/en/

Tur

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Tradition / Region: Bosnian Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Cow

The Myth

Tur is a colossal black bull believed to carry the weight of the Earth upon his back. He is not merely an animal, but a cosmic being whose existence sustains the balance of the world itself.

Described as immense beyond measure, Tur’s body stretches like a living foundation beneath the world. His dark coat shines like night, and his massive horns are said to reach into the sky, sometimes imagined as piercing the clouds.

According to legend, earthquakes and tremors occur when Tur shifts his horns. Even the smallest movement can shake mountains and disturb the land. Because of this, people believed that the stability of the world depended entirely on his stillness.

Tur is usually calm and unmoving, but this calm is what keeps existence intact. If he were ever to rise or fully move his body, it was said that the Earth would collapse—mountains would fall, seas would overflow, and the world would be destroyed.

For this reason, Tur was both feared and respected. People would offer prayers or small sacrifices to keep him at peace, hoping to prevent any movement that could bring catastrophe.

Tur represents a powerful mythological idea:
a world-bearing creature whose stability maintains reality, where even the slightest disturbance reminds humanity how fragile the order of the world truly is.

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Tur (Bosnian-Slavic mythology). In Wikipedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tur_(Bosnian-Slavic_mythology)

Minotaur

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Tradition / Region: Greek Mythology
Alternate Names: Asterion, Minotauros
Category: Cow, Hybrid

The Myth

The Minotaur is a creature born from Pasiphaë, wife of King Minos of Crete, and a divine bull sent by Poseidon. It possessed the body of a man and the head of a bull and was confined within a labyrinth constructed by Daedalus, where it was fed human victims sent from Athens.

After Minos became king of Crete, he prayed to Poseidon for a sign of divine favor. The god sent a white bull, which Minos was meant to sacrifice, but he kept it instead. As punishment, Poseidon caused Pasiphaë to fall in love with the bull. With the help of Daedalus, she entered a wooden cow and mated with it, giving birth to Asterius, called the Minotaur. The creature grew large and ferocious and fed on humans. Minos, following an oracle, had Daedalus build a labyrinth to contain it.

After the death of Minos’s son Androgeus, Athens was forced to send seven youths and seven maidens as tribute to be devoured by the Minotaur. When the time came again, Theseus volunteered to go. In Crete, Ariadne helped him by giving him a thread to navigate the labyrinth. Theseus entered, found the Minotaur, and killed it. He then used the thread to escape and led the others out.

Sources

Theoi Project contributors. (n.d.). Minotauros (Minotaur). In Theoi Greek Mythology, from https://www.theoi.com/Ther/Minotauros.html

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Minotaur – Creation myth. In Wikipedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minotaur#Creation_myth

Kubiore Neushi

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Tradition / Region: Japanese Mythology
Alternate Names: Sleeping Cow with a Broken Neck
Category: Cow, Statue

The Myth

Kubiore Neushi is remembered as a stone cow statue connected to Takimiya Hachiman Shrine in Sanuki.

In the year 888, the land of Sanuki suffered a terrible drought. Rivers dried up, rice fields withered, and the villagers feared famine. Sugawara no Michizane, then governor of the province, fasted, purified himself, and climbed Mount Shiroyama to pray for rain.

At first, the heavens sent firestones and then pebbles, which frightened the people, but Michizane continued his devotions. On the final night of his ritual, the god of Mount Shiroyama appeared to him in a dream and told him that if he offered even a single drop of water to the heavens, a heavy rain would come.

Michizane threw his ink-soaked brush into the sky. At once, black clouds gathered, thunder rolled, and rain poured over the land. The dying crops revived and the villagers rejoiced. They gathered at Takimiya Hachiman Shrine and danced in celebration.

It is said that the joy of that day was so great that the stone cow statue before the shrine joined the dance. In its enthusiasm, the cow broke its neck and became known as the Sleeping Cow with a Broken Neck. The villagers preserved their celebration as the Takimiya Nembutsu Dance in memory of the rain and the event.

Gallery

Sources

TYZ Yokai Blog. (2021). 首折れ寝牛 (Kubiore Neushi). From https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1078437894.html

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Fairy Cow

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Tradition / Region: Irish Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Cow

The Myth

In Ireland it was often said that the fairy folk kept herds of magical cattle and sometimes shared their bounty with humans. These fairy cows were usually hornless, often red or speckled, and known for their endless milk and for bearing calves year after year.

One winter in County Donegal, a poor family with many children faced starvation. One stormy night they heard the lowing of a cow outside their home. When they went out, they found a red-speckled cow standing quietly at their door. They brought her into their barn, and the very next day she calved and gave rich, plentiful milk.

The family searched to see if the animal belonged to anyone, but no one claimed her. For years she stayed with them, producing calves and filling their vessels with milk, keeping the household alive.

One day, however, the father found her grazing in a newly sown field. In anger he lifted his staff to strike her, forgetting the blessing she had been. At once the cow gathered her calves and vanished, and neither she nor her offspring were ever seen again.

Other tales told of fairy cattle that seemed to die suddenly. People believed that in such cases the fairies had taken the real animal and left behind a piece of enchanted wood shaped like a cow. Because of this, it was thought unwise to eat meat from a beast that had died strangely, for it might belong to the fairy world.

By the sea, it was also said that undersea folk kept their own herds, which grazed on the ocean’s growth and sometimes appeared to human eyes as seals.

Thus the fairy cow was remembered as a creature of otherworldly kindness, one that could bring life and plenty, yet would vanish the moment gratitude gave way to anger.

Sources

Monaghan, P. (2004). The Encyclopedia of Celtic Mythology and Folklore. Facts on File, p. 170.

Eshō

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Tradition / Region: Japanese Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Cow

The Myth

At Enkō-ji Temple there once lived a monk named Shaku Eshō. During his lifetime, he took a bundle of firewood belonging to the temple—wood meant for boiling water—and gave it away to another person. Not long after this act, Eshō died.

Some time later, a cow at the temple gave birth to a calf. As it grew, the animal was put to work pulling carts and hauling heavy loads of firewood each day without rest.

One day, while the ox strained beneath its burden, a monk unknown to the temple appeared at the gate. Watching the animal struggle, he said quietly:

“Monk Eshō may have been skilled in reciting the Nirvana Sutra, but it seems he is not very good at pulling a cart.”

At these words, the ox burst into tears, gave a deep sigh, and fell down dead.

The driver accused the visiting monk of causing the animal’s death and had him seized and reported. Yet the monk’s appearance was noble and radiant, unlike that of an ordinary person. Artists were summoned to paint him, and each portrait they made resembled Kannon Bodhisattva. Soon afterward, the monk vanished, and it was said that Kannon had appeared in human form and then departed.

From that time on, people told that the ox had been none other than Monk Eshō reborn, condemned to labor for his wrongdoing. Similar stories were also told of other monks who misused temple goods and were reborn as cattle, forced to pull carts and bear burdens as punishment.

Thus the tale endured as a warning that even small acts of theft could bind a soul to a life of toil, and that the lowing of a weary ox might carry the regret of a human past.

Gallery

Sources

Keikai. (822). Nihon-koku genpō zen’aku ryōiki [日本国現報善悪霊異記, Miraculous Stories of Reward and Punishment in This World]. Nara: Yakushiji Temple.

TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia. 恵勝, from https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1078437911.html

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El Toro el Súpay

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Tradition / Region: Argentine Mythology
Alternate Names: Devil Bull; Toro Supray
Category: Cow

The Myth

In the lands of Santiago del Estero, near the Saladillo River, people speak of a fearsome creature called the Toro el Súpay.

This bull is said to be enormous beyond any natural size. Its head appears partly human and partly bovine, set upon a strong upright neck. Its mane and tail bristle, and smoke pours from its nostrils. Some say its horns shine like gold, flashing in the light as it moves.

Though terrible to behold, the bull is not always a bringer of harm. It is believed to guard the herds of the one who owns it, ensuring that livestock thrive and multiply beyond ordinary fortune. Yet such prosperity is never free, for people say the owner must have made a pact with the Supay, the devil of the region.

The truth of this bond is revealed only when the master dies. At that moment, the Toro el Súpay gathers the soul of the dead and drives away every animal belonging to him. By dawn, while mourners may still sit beside the body, the corrals stand empty, and no beast remains.

Thus the Toro el Súpay is remembered as a bull of dark blessing, one that brings wealth in life but claims all in death, leaving behind only silence where herds once stood.

Sources

Colombres, A. (1984). Seres sobrenaturales de la cultura popular argentina. Ediciones Del Sol, p. 48.

Endure and Refrain

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Tradition / Region: Alchemical Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Cow

The Myth

In an old alchemical image, there is shown a powerful bull held in check by a man with a rod. Behind the animal stand several cows, calm and watchful, some heavy with young.

The bull strains forward with great strength, but its leg is bound so that it cannot rush ahead. The herdsman stands firm before it, guiding and restraining the beast so that it does not break loose among the cows.

The scene is quiet, yet full of tension. The bull’s power is clear, but it is not destroyed. Instead, it is held and directed. The cows behind remain safe, and the herd continues in order.

The image has been remembered as a lesson shown through animals: that strength must be governed, that force must sometimes be held back, and that endurance and restraint preserve what is meant to grow.

Thus the bound bull and the waiting herd became a lasting emblem, showing how power, when guided, protects life rather than bringing ruin.

Gallery

Sources

Alciato at Glasgow: Emblem: Anechou kai apechou. Sustine & abstine. (n.d.). https://www.emblems.arts.gla.ac.uk/alciato/emblem.php?id=A21a034

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