Tradition / Region: Spanish Mythology
Alternative names: Diañu Burlón (“Mocking Devil”), Diablo Burlón (“Mocking Devil”)
Category: Sheep
The Myth
Diano is a deceptive demon from the folklore of northern Spain, most commonly appearing in the form of a beautiful goat. Rather than attacking people outright, it tricks exhausted travelers into mounting its back before revealing its true supernatural nature.
According to the Asturian legend El Diañu Burlón and the closely related Navarrese tale El Diablo Burlón, a weary traveler resting in a forest encounters an unusually handsome goat. The animal calmly kneels as if inviting the traveler to ride it. Believing he has found an easy way to continue his journey, the traveler climbs onto its back.
The moment he does, the goat suddenly begins to grow to an enormous size and bolts into the forest at terrifying speed. Racing through mountains and woodland with impossible swiftness, it carries its helpless rider ever deeper into the wilderness. The traveler, unable to escape and convinced he is about to die, desperately calls upon God and the saints for protection. At the sound of these prayers, the demonic goat instantly vanishes, throwing the rider safely to the ground before disappearing without a trace.
The legend presents Diano as a supernatural deceiver who preys upon the exhausted and unwary rather than killing through brute force. His goal is to terrify, mislead, and lure people away from safety into the unknown depths of the forest.
Diano’s appearance as a goat reflects medieval Christian symbolism. In the Gospel’s description of the Last Judgment, Christ separates the righteous sheep from the sinful goats, who are cast into eternal punishment. This imagery helped establish the goat as one of the Devil’s most recognizable forms throughout medieval Europe. In northern Spanish folklore, Diano embodies this symbolism, appearing as an attractive yet treacherous animal whose invitation leads only to fear, deception, and peril.
Sources
Bestiary.us. (n.d.). Diano. In New Bestiary: Encyclopedia of Imaginary Beings. Retrieved June 28, 2026, from https://www.bestiary.us/diano