Zombie

Hiieneitsid

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Tradition / Region: Estonian Mythology
Alternative names: Sacred Grove Maidens
Category: Zombie

The Myth

The Hiieneitsid are mysterious white maidens who dwell within sacred groves. They are described as pale, naked women who guard these ancient holy places together with their red dogs.

According to a legend from Kassari Island, a vast sacred oak forest once covered the center of the island, separating two villages that did not know of each other’s existence. After a wandering pig discovered a path through the forest, the villagers began traveling between the settlements.

At first, people passed through the sacred grove without trouble. Later, however, the Hiieneitsid appeared with their red dogs and stopped everyone on the path, asking: “Do you know the song of the Hiieneitsi?” Those who could recite the sacred song were allowed to continue, but anyone who did not know it was chased away by the dogs.

The Hiieneitsid themselves taught this song to a few people by repeating it to them. Others composed their own verses in hopes of passing through unseen, beginning with the words:

“The Hiieneitsid did not see me,
Nor did the dogs of the Hiieneitsid…”

The maidens also forbade people from entering the sacred grove to perform sacrifices or hold religious ceremonies.

The great sacred grove was eventually cut down, leaving only memories, local traditions, and place names behind. One later explanation claimed that the Hiieneitsid had actually been Catholic priests disguised in strange garments to frighten people away from the old sacred grove, though the older tradition remembered them as supernatural guardians of the sacred forest.

Sources

Matthias Johann Eisen. (2002). Hiieneitsid (No. 117). In Esivanemate varandus II: Kodused jutud. Eesti Kirjandusmuuseum

Gul-yabani

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Tradition / Region: Turkish, Azerbaijani, Kyrgyz and Tajik folklore
Alternative names: Gul, Ghul, Desert Demon
Category: Demon, Zombie

The Myth

The Gul-yabani is a fearsome spirit of the wild places, known throughout parts of Central Asia and the Turkic world. Its name means “Desert Demon,” and it is regarded as a dangerous being that inhabits lonely steppes, cemeteries, deserts, forests, and remote mountains. Travelers who encounter it after sunset are said to face terror or death.

The creature is usually described as gigantic, standing three to four meters tall and covered in gray or black fur. It possesses an overpowering animal-like stench, backward-facing feet or clawed limbs, and often appears in the form of an enormous shepherd or hairy man. Its arrival is accompanied by shrill whistling in the darkness.

Among Turks and Azerbaijanis, Gul-yabani wanders cemeteries and desolate places at night. It frightens travelers and is especially known for riding horses, tangling their manes before vanishing into the darkness. In some parts of western Azerbaijan it was even identified with harmful water spirits. It was believed that if a Gul-yabani could be captured and pierced with a needle, it would become bound to its captor and perform work for them, although often doing the opposite of what was intended.

The Kyrgyz of the Eastern Pamirs and the Tajiks believed the creature lived in deserts and mountain forests. Although monstrous in appearance, it speaks with a human voice and often challenges strong men to wrestling matches. Only exceptionally powerful individuals are capable of fighting it as an equal.

Stories tell of a man near Tajikabad who encountered a giant shepherd after sunset. The two wrestled throughout the night, neither able to defeat the other. When dawn arrived, the stranger was revealed to be covered in wool. The creature gifted the man a piece of its fur and promised friendship, telling him that burning the hair would summon it. A mullah later explained that the mysterious shepherd had been a Gul-yabani and warned that revealing the encounter could bring death.

The Gul-yabani is said to understand every language, though it communicates through thoughts rather than spoken words. Those who establish contact with it may gain unusual powers, and only extremely pious mullahs are believed capable of seeing the creature clearly.

Hunters seldom encounter Gul-yabani because the monster greatly fears gunfire and can smell gunpowder from many kilometers away. One story tells of a police chief resting beside his car in the mountains when a tremendous force began shaking the vehicle. Looking outside, he saw an enormous hairy being devouring meat from a basin. The creature pressed its giant hands against the rear window of the car before fleeing when the officer fired his pistol. Two massive handprints were said to remain on the glass.

Mysterious, foul-smelling, and immensely powerful, the Gul-yabani is remembered as one of the great monsters of Turkic folklore—a giant hairy demon that roams the lonely wilderness and appears only when night falls.

Sources

Bestiary.us. (n.d.). Gjul-Jabani. In New Bestiary: Encyclopedia of Imaginary Beings. Retrieved June 16, 2026, from https://www.bestiary.us/gjul-jabani

Gawgaw

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Tradition / Region: Malta Mythology
Alternative names: Il-Gawgaw
Category: Zombie

The Myth

The Gawgaw is a terrifying undead-like being from Maltese folklore, feared as a cursed creature that wanders through villages and fields during the night of Christmas Eve. It was believed to be connected to people born on December 24th, who were thought to have “stolen the Lord’s birthday” by entering the world on that sacred night.

According to the belief, anyone born on Christmas Eve carried a hidden curse. Every year, on the night of their birth, they would fall into a deep unnatural sleep and unknowingly transform into the Gawgaw. Their body or spirit — depending on the version of the tale — would leave the house and roam through the darkness until dawn.

The Gawgaw was described as a horrifying figure with long tangled hair covered in slime, twisted claws, and a staggering corpse-like walk. It moved through empty streets groaning hoarsely and terrifying anyone unlucky enough to encounter it. Some stories claimed it could slip through tiny cracks and openings to enter homes unnoticed.

Another tradition described the Gawgaw not wandering the roads, but furiously laboring through the countryside all night long. Dragging a massive harrow called a xatba behind it, the creature tore through fields making tremendous noise from midnight until the first church bells rang around four in the morning. Only then would it return home exhausted and resume human form.

Those cursed by the transformation supposedly remembered nothing upon waking, though their bruised bodies, exhaustion, and muddy clothes revealed what had happened during the night. Some wives even claimed their husbands physically vanished from bed every Christmas Eve before mysteriously returning by morning.

To prevent the transformation, the cursed person was required to remain awake the entire night. They occupied themselves by endlessly counting grains of rice or the holes of a sieve until sunrise, since falling asleep meant surrendering to the curse.

Old beliefs also claimed the Gawgaw could predict the end of winter. If, during its nightly wandering, its whiskers touched damp ground or dew, winter was considered nearly over. If the earth remained dry, cold weather would continue.

Children were warned that the Gawgaw hunted misbehaving youths. It was said to kidnap them during the night and carry them away to distant lonely places where they would perish from hunger and abandonment.

On the island of Gozo, folklore also spoke of the Mleika, the wife of the Gawgaw. She crept into houses on New Year’s Eve, bringing either good fortune or misfortune depending on the cleanliness and order of the household she visited.

Sources

Bestiary.us. (n.d.). Gavgav. Retrieved May 17, 2026, from https://www.bestiary.us/gavgav/

Kinoly

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Tradition / Region: Madagascar Mythology
Alternative names: Kinbly
Category: Zombie

The Myth

The Kinoly is a corpse-like being from Malagasy folklore said to emerge from the dead after burial. It still resembles a human, but only partially. Its eyes are unnaturally red, its fingernails become long and claw-like, and its stomach and intestines have decayed away entirely. Despite this horrific appearance, the rest of the body remains disturbingly human. The Kinoly wanders at night stealing food from the living, especially rice, and is feared as a restless creature trapped between life and death.

According to the belief, certain dead people transform into Kinoly after burial. Their relatives leave them in the tomb until the stomach and bowels decay. Once this has happened, the grave is opened so the being may leave. From then onward it roams the countryside like a nocturnal scavenger.

Stories about the Kinoly often emphasize its strange weakness. Although constantly stealing rice and food, it can barely carry anything. One tale tells of a man who secretly watched two Kinoly — a male and female — attempting to steal rice together. The male lifted the sack onto his shoulder and immediately cried out in agony from the weight. The female then tried carrying it on her head but also collapsed beneath the burden. Even in undeath they were frail and miserable creatures.

Another story tells of a traveler who unexpectedly encountered a Kinoly face to face. The man was horrified by the creature’s glowing red eyes and its long nails. When he questioned the being about its appearance, the Kinoly answered calmly before suddenly attacking and tearing into him.

Among the Betsileo people, becoming a Kinoly was considered tragic rather than glorious. It was viewed as a terrible fate both for the dead person and for their family. The creature represented corruption after death, endless hunger, and the fear that the dead might not remain peacefully in their graves.

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.

Maupun

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Tradition / Region: Polish Mythology, Ukranian Mythology
Alternate Names: Maoupunu, Maupunu
Category: Mermaid, Zombie

The Myth

In the marshlands and river regions of eastern Polesia, it is said that not only girls become rusalki after death. Sometimes a boy may share their fate.

If a child dies before baptism, his soul cannot rest. Such a boy may return as a wandering spirit, bound to the waters and the fields. One such spirit is known as Maupun.

Maupun was once an unbaptized boy. After death he did not pass into the world of the dead, but instead came to dwell among the rusalki—the restless spirits of girls who died before receiving baptism. Over time, he became their leader and chief, ruling over them as they wandered the wetlands and meadows.

The rusalki under Maupun’s command are said to appear as pale girls with bright, shining eyes and wild, shaggy hair. During Trinity Week they leave the waters and roam the rye fields and grassy places, laughing loudly, singing, and playing together beneath the open sky.

But their laughter is dangerous. Anyone who encounters them must flee at once. If they catch a person, they will tickle and clutch them until they die.

And it is Maupun who leads them—
the boy who never received baptism,
now lord of the wandering mermaids of the marsh.

Sources

Bestiary.us contributors. (n.d.). Maupun. In Bestiary.us, from https://www.bestiary.us/maupun/

Mouryō

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Tradition / Region: Chinese mythology
Alternate Names: Hōryō, Hōliang, Hōxiang, Hongliang, Mizuha
Category: Mountain dweller, Zombie, Demon

The Myth

In the deep places of the world—where mountains rise thick with trees and rivers slip silently through stone—there dwell beings known as the mouryō. They are not born as humans are, but arise from the spirit of the land itself: from forests, streams, roots, and shadows beneath the earth.

Ancient texts say that the mouryō appear like small children, no taller than three-year-olds, yet their forms are unsettling. Their skin is dark and reddish, their eyes glow red, their ears are long, and their hair is strangely beautiful. Though they resemble children, they are not innocent. They linger near graves, riverbanks, and old pine trees, places where the boundary between life and death is thin.

At night, the mouryō creep from the roots of trees or from wet earth. They dig into burial grounds and feast upon the livers of corpses, sustaining themselves on the remains of the dead. Because of this, people once feared them greatly, believing that graves left unguarded would invite these beings. Some said that when a corpse vanished, carried away in the night, it was not the work of hellfire or demons from below, but the mouryō dragging the body back into the forest.

In later tales, the mouryō became confused with other corpse-stealing monsters. Some claimed they were the same as the fiery kasha, while others insisted they were water spirits, haunting rivers and marshes. Still others said they were kin to the kappa, born of stagnant waters and rot. No matter the explanation, the fear remained the same: the mouryō were creatures that thrived where decay met neglect.

Travelers avoided old trees at night, and families guarded their dead, for it was said that once a mouryō had tasted a corpse, it would return again and again. Silent, patient, and hungry, the mouryō endured as a reminder that the land itself remembers death—and that some spirits feed upon what humans leave behind.

Gallery

Sources

TYZ-Yokai Blog contributors. (n.d.). 魍魎 (Mouryō). In TYZ-Yokai Blog, from https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1072334859.html

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Hrökkáll

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Tradition / Region: Icelandic Mythology
Alternate Names: Coil-eel
Category: Fish, Eel, Zombie

The Myth

Long ago, a malicious wizard in Iceland defied the natural order. From polluted water he drew up a dead eel, half-rotted and foul, and by dark arts forced it back into motion. Thus was born the first Hrökkáll, the coil-eel—an unnatural thing animated by corruption and spite.

Though the wizard himself vanished with time, the creature did not. The Hrökkáll bred, and its descendants spread into stagnant ponds, still waters, and sluggish rivers, thriving wherever decay and filth gathered.

A Hrökkáll is about two feet long and shaped like an eel, but its body is armored with flexible scales as hard as iron. Along its sides run sharp, saw-toothed fins. Like many fearsome fishes of Iceland, it exudes a corrosive venom, and its flesh is deadly to eat. When captured, Hrökkálls have been known to melt through soil and stone alike, dissolving their escape and slipping back into the water.

They wait unseen beneath the surface until a person steps into their domain. Then the Hrökkáll strikes, coiling tightly around a leg. With crushing force and slicing edges, it cuts through flesh and bone, severing the limb entirely. Whether it is the acid of its venom, the blades of its fins, or both together that accomplish this horror is unknown.

Men and horses alike fall victim to the Hrökkáll, but sheep are spared, for their legs are too slender for the creature to grasp.

In later times, the name Hrökkáll passed into common speech, and came to be used for electric eels as well—but in old tales, it is remembered as a thing born of sorcery, rot, and water gone bad.

Sources

A Book of Creatures contributors. (n.d.). Hrokkall. In A Book of Creatures, from https://abookofcreatures.com/2015/08/12/hrokkall/

Aderyn y Corff

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Tradition / Region: Welsh mythology
Alternate Names: Corpse Bird
Category: Bird, Zombie

The Myth

The Aderyn y Corff, the “corpse bird,” appears at the very edge of life, when death is no longer distant but imminent. In Welsh tradition, it does not wander the countryside at random nor bring vague ill fortune. It comes with purpose. When a person is near death, the bird is said to arrive outside the house, perching near a door or window, and calling softly into the night.

Its cry is described as sounding like dewch, dewch—“come, come.” This is not a threat or a warning meant to be avoided. It is a summons. The call is directed not to the living, but to the soul of the dying, inviting it to leave the body and pass onward. In this role, the Aderyn y Corff acts as a messenger between worlds, announcing that the moment of crossing has arrived.

The creature’s form marks it as something profoundly unnatural. It is said to have no feathers and no wings, yet it flies. This impossibility places it outside ordinary creation, identifying it as a being that does not belong fully to the physical world. Its movement obeys no natural law, only the logic of death and transition, reinforcing its status as a liminal presence suspended between life and the otherworld.

When it is not calling to the dying, the Aderyn y Corff is believed to dwell in another realm entirely—a plane of illusion or unreality that exists alongside the human world but rarely touches it. Death is one of the few moments when the boundary thins enough for the bird to cross over. It does not linger after its task is done. Once the soul has departed, the bird vanishes.

In many tellings, the Aderyn y Corff is closely associated with the screech owl, whose piercing nocturnal cry has long been linked to death across Europe. In Welsh usage, the name itself can refer to such owls, blurring the line between natural bird and supernatural herald. Yet folklore insists that when the call comes at the right moment, it is no ordinary owl but the corpse bird itself.

The Aderyn y Corff is feared, but not hated. It does not kill, curse, or deceive. It simply announces what cannot be changed. Its presence affirms a belief deeply rooted in Welsh tradition: death does not arrive silently. The otherworld sends a messenger first, and when the corpse bird calls, the soul is already being gathered.

Sources

Sikes, W. (1881). British Goblins: Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions. Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, p. 213.

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