Dwarf

Angalapona

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Tradition / Region: Madagascar Mythology
Alternate Names: –
Category: Dwarf, River dweller

The Myth

The Angalapona is a human-like being smaller than a grown person, only slightly larger than a child. It lives in water but is never wet, dwelling in a cave beneath the water into which no water enters. It moves through the water by a turning door and passes back and forth without becoming soaked. Its hair is very long, nearly reaching the ground when it stands. It is regarded as a director of divination and the foretelling of fortunate days, and diviners call upon it when working oracles.

A woman named Renisoarahanoro was once in an uninhabited place when the Angalapona called to her by a name pleasing to it. It led her toward its dwelling, and they passed through the water without becoming wet. When they reached the cave, she refused to go farther and stayed at the entrance. She would not eat its food, such as raw eels and crayfish, and because she remained by the doorway her clothes became covered in water-plants. The Angalapona and his wife decided to send her home, but first they granted her the power of divination. After that, people consulted her for this purpose.

Another person, Rainitsimanahy, said that while he was in an uninhabited place, an Angalapona came to him at night and wished him to be its husband. When he refused, it followed him continually.

Many people say they have seen this being, especially those afflicted with a disease called jila.

Gallery

Sources

Sibree, J. (1896). Madagascar before the conquest: The island, the country, and the people, with chapters on travel and topography, folk-lore, strange customs and superstitions, the animal life of the island, and mission work and progress among the inhabitants. New York: Macmillan; London: T. F. Unwin.

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Dwarfs of Wallebroch

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Tradition / Region: Luxembourg Mythology
Alternate Names: Diekirch Goblins, Plattfüßchen
Category: Dwarf

The Myth

In a ravine between Diekirch and Ingeldorf, it was said that the Knights Templar once gathered. Yet the people of the region spoke of them not as knights, but as small beings — goblins who lived underground.

In a nearby plain called Wallebroch, another group of these creatures assembled for their councils. They were known as the Plattfüßchen, a kind of goblin said to dwell beneath the earth.

Thus the land between Diekirch and Ingeldorf was believed to shelter hidden underground folk who met in secret places and lived unseen beneath the ground.

Gallery

Sources

sagen.at contributors. (n.d.). Zwerge bei Diekirch. In sagen.at, from https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Zwerge_Diekirch.html

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Krasnoludek

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Tradition / Region: Polish Mythology
Alternate Names: Krasnal
Category: Dwarf, Gnome

The Myth

In Polish folk tradition, krasnoludki are small, human-shaped beings who live close to the hidden places of the world—forests, hills, cellars, and quiet corners where people rarely look. They are usually described as no taller than a child’s knee, with bearded faces, clever eyes, and bright red pointed caps that mark them out from ordinary folk.

Krasnoludki are not mighty warriors or terrifying spirits. Instead, they belong to the older, gentler layer of folklore: quiet helpers, watchers, and sometimes tricksters. They move unseen among humans, observing daily life and occasionally intervening. When treated with respect, they may help with small tasks, guard treasures, or bring subtle good fortune. When mocked or disrespected, they can just as easily hide things, confuse travelers, or vanish altogether, taking their luck with them.

They are often imagined as living in groups, with strong bonds of kinship, and are skilled with simple crafts and handiwork. Though small, they are clever and resilient, and their red caps are said to be symbols of vitality and protection.

In many tales told to children, krasnoludki represent a world just beside the human one: familiar, homely, and magical without being grand. They remind people that the land itself is alive with watchers, and that kindness toward small, unseen beings is repaid in quiet ways.

Over time, krasnoludki became figures of warmth and nostalgia in Polish storytelling—symbols of folk wisdom, endurance, and the magic hidden in everyday life.

Gallery

Sources

Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Krasnoludek. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krasnoludek

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Hansjop

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Tradition / Region: Dutch Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Dwarf, Gnome

The Myth

On the heath near Oss, there rises a low hill called the Hansjoppenberg. There, people say, lives a small dwarf-like being known as Hansjop.

Lonely walkers crossing the heath at dusk or in quiet weather may find themselves unexpectedly accompanied. A short figure appears beside them, walking along as if by chance. He does not threaten, nor does he ask questions. He simply keeps pace, sharing the path in silence or light-hearted calm.

After walking a little way together, Hansjop suddenly stops. With a cheerful “houdoe”—a familiar Brabant farewell—he turns aside and vanishes back into his hill, leaving the traveler alone once more, unsure whether what they experienced was real.

Some say Hansjop is no harmless dwarf at all, but the restless spirit of a man named Hans Joppe, or Hans Jacob, who in 1678 murdered his wife and was punished with a brutal execution. According to this telling, his soul never left the place and now wanders the heath, neither fully at peace nor openly hostile.

Whether friendly hill-dweller or condemned ghost, Hansjop remains a figure of quiet encounters—appearing only to the solitary traveler, walking beside them for a time, and disappearing again into the earth as suddenly as he came.

Gallery

Sources

Abe de Verteller contributors. (n.d.). Van aardmannetje tot zwarte juffer: Een lijst van Nederlandse en Vlaamse elfen en geesten. In Abe de Verteller, from https://abedeverteller.nl/van-aardmannetje-tot-zwarte-juffer-een-lijst-van-nederlandse-en-vlaamse-elfen-en-geesten/

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Hiwai-abere

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Tradition / Region: Papua New Guinea Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Dwarf, Shapeshifter

The Myth

Hiwai-abere are wicked female beings who resemble women but are marked by grotesque and unsettling features. They are described as very fat, with large heads, swollen bellies, and unusually short legs. Their fingernails are long and sharp like spears, and with these they are able to hunt and kill wild pigs. Wherever they go, they constantly break wind, an action that is both comic and disturbing, and yet they possess extraordinarily sharp hearing, able to detect even a whisper from far away.

Despite their monstrous nature, hiwai-abere are masters of deception. They can disguise themselves perfectly, even taking on the appearance and features of specific human women. Through this ability, they approach men they desire and insert themselves into human society unnoticed. In many folk tales, a hiwai-abere replaces a bride at a wedding or abducts the rightful wife and takes her place in the household.

At first, the husband notices only that something is wrong. His wife seems changed in strange and troubling ways. The hiwai-abere cannot properly perform ordinary women’s work and instead demands to be served. She becomes possessive and jealous, preventing her husband from speaking to or approaching other women. The household falls into disorder, and the husband grows increasingly distressed by the inexplicable transformation of his wife.

Eventually, the deception is uncovered. The hiwai-abere is exposed for what she truly is, often through her inability to maintain human behavior or through the intervention of others. Once revealed, she is driven away, and the rightful wife is restored. The tales always end with the reuniting of the legitimate couple and the removal of the dangerous impostor.

Through these stories, the hiwai-abere stand as symbols of deception, disruption, and the fear of identity being stolen. They embody the danger of false appearances and the belief that what looks human may not always belong to the human world.

Gallery

Sources

Landtman, G. (1970). The Kiwai Papuans of British New Guinea: A nature-born instance of Rousseau’s ideal community.

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Wawa

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Tradition / Region: Papua New Guinea Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Dwarf

The Myth

At Mabudavane stands a huge, isolated block of stone. This stone is known as the house of Wawa.

Wawa is a being shaped like a man, but he is very short and thick in build. From his head grow bushes and flowers, as though the land itself has taken root in him. When he works in his garden, he removes these plants and sets them aside, placing them back on his head when his labor is finished.

A long tale is told of Wawa’s cruelty and fierce revenge against a man who once offended him. Though the full story is rarely spoken, it is enough to make people cautious of his temper and respectful of his presence.

At night, Wawa can sometimes be seen standing on top of his stone house. People also hear the sound of him banging his door as he enters his dwelling. These noises are taken as signs that he is awake and moving.

When the Mawata people come to this place to catch crabs, they perform certain rites in Wawa’s honor, acknowledging his authority over the land. The spirits of the dead are also said to pass by Wawa’s house on their journey to Adiri, making his dwelling a threshold between worlds.

Two men of Mawata are known as Wawa’s special friends. To them he appears in dreams, offering guidance and useful advice. His favor is personal, not communal, given only to those he chooses.

From Wawa’s house runs a narrow path leading to a flat slab of rock. On this stone, Wawa sharpens his axe. Long oblong marks in the rock are said to be the traces of this sharpening. The path remains worn and clear, though no ordinary human ever walks it.

Thus Wawa endures as a being of stone, soil, and spirit—rooted in the land, feared for his vengeance, respected through ritual, and quietly present where the living, the dead, and the earth itself meet.

Gallery

Sources

Landtman, G. (1970). The Kiwai Papuans of British New Guinea: A nature-born instance of Rousseau’s ideal community.

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Obouibi

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Tradition / Region: Papua New Guinea Mythology
Alternate Names: Obóubi, Obóubi-spirits
Category: Spirit, Dwarf

The Myth

The Obouibi are mysterious beings who belong to the water. They live in the sea and travel far up the rivers, moving freely between saltwater and freshwater. Though they are spirits, they appear largely human in form. Both male and female Obouibi exist, and they resemble ordinary people, except that the females wear skirts made of grass. At times, an Obouibi may be seen swimming like a frog, its short limbs and stout body cutting through the water.

The language spoken by the Obouibi is said to be the same as that of humans, but their voices are feared. Those afflicted with sores or sickness are believed to be under their influence. They are masters of crocodiles and other water animals, and when a crocodile kills someone unexpectedly, people say it is the work of the Obouibi. At night, a strange wailing may be heard from the water—this is said to be their cry.

Some Obouibi live near villages such as Kimusu. They kill and eat dugong, leaving behind piles of bones. Some of these bones are left in the water, some are taken fresh, and others are arranged in circles, much like the way humans arrange the skulls of enemies they have captured. If a canoe is lost at sea, the people believe the occupants have been taken by the Obouibi and will never return. Sometimes, however, a person may escape. It is said that one man passed an Obouibi and was carried alive to their dwelling beneath the sea, where he remained for several days.

There is a story of a handsome Puruma boy who was visited at night by a beautiful Obouibi girl while he slept in his canoe. He married her and kept her hidden from the people. She bore him a child, and for a time lived among humans. But one day, when the husband was absent, she overheard people speaking badly of her. That night, she took her child and returned to the water, vanishing back into her own world.

It is also said that male Obouibi sometimes rise from the sea and take human women with them, carrying them away into the depths.

The Obouibi are known to give medicines and knowledge to certain people through dreams. These gifts are used in harpooning and gardening. Along with other related beings, they are closely associated with dugong hunting. Harpooners appeal to them for success and guidance, and in earlier times offerings of dugong bones were made to gain their favor.

Thus, the Obouibi remain beings of both danger and knowledge—powerful water spirits who can kill, heal, abduct, or instruct, and whose presence is felt wherever rivers meet the sea.

Gallery

Sources

Landtman, G. (1970). The Kiwai Papuans of British New Guinea: A nature-born instance of Rousseau’s ideal community.

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