All entries
2,216 entries so far, best known first. 3,111 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
🇩🇪 GermanyVril Society
A fictional secret society from conspiracy theories about Nazi Germany and occult energy.Belief · Power and authority Legendary
🇬🇷 GreecePhemonoeΦημονόη
A mythic Greek poet and priestess of Delphi linked to prophecy and verseFigure Legendary
🇬🇷 GreecePasiphaëΠασιφάη
A Cretan queen and solar goddess cursed with lust for a bull, mother of the MinotaurFigure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇷 GreecePhoebeΦοίβη (Phoíbē)
A Titaness of prophecy and the original keeper of the Delphic oracleFigure · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇨🇴 ColombiaMohan
A forest spirit and ancestor soul in Colombian Indigenous folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAmphiarausἈμφιάραος
A Greek seer and hero who became a healing oracle after being swallowed by the earth.Figure · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceBranchusΒράγχος
A mortal lover of Apollo who became a prophet and founded an oracle cult in ancient Greece.Figure · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomBluecap
A blue flame spirit of English mines that guides miners and warns of dangerBeing · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandFand
An otherworldly woman in Irish mythology who becomes the lover of the hero CúchulainnFigure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇨🇦 CanadaChasse-galerieLa Chasse-galerie
A French-Canadian folktale about lumberjacks who fly a canoe to visit lovers on New Year's EveFigure · Love and attraction · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇩 IndonesiaNini Pelet
A West Javanese sorceress legend linked to Mount Ciremai and the origin of the word for love charmsFigure · Love and attraction · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇩 IndonesiaKeong Emas
A Javanese legend about a princess turned into a golden snailFigure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇹🇼 TaiwanLui-kong-tsiau雷公鳥
A Taiwanese thunder-creature said to summon storms from treetopsBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceHorkosὍρκος
A Greek divine personification of the curse that follows a broken oathFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇵🇭 PhilippinesAnggitay
A Philippine mythic creature with a woman's torso and a horse's lower body.Being Legendary
🇵🇭 PhilippinesBungisngis
A one-eyed giant from Philippine folklore that laughs constantly and relies on hearing.Being Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanKeneō懸衣翁
A Japanese oni who judges souls by the weight of their clothes at the Sanzu RiverBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇪🇬 EgyptAuðumbla
A primeval cow in Norse mythology that nourished the first giant and revealed the first god.Being Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceMares of DiomedesΔιομήδους ἵπποι
Man-eating horses from Greek myth, captured by Heracles as his eighth labourBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇩 IndonesiaOrang Pendek
A bipedal primate said to live in the forests of SumatraBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaAbarimon
A mythical tribe with reversed feet, said to inhabit the Himalayas and run at extreme speeds.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreNis PukNiß Puk
A legendary household spirit from Northern Germany and Denmark that helps or torments its owner.Being · Luck and prosperity · Protection Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanWanyūdō輪入道
A flaming wheel with a monk's head that steals souls in Japanese folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenVittra
A forest spirit from northern Sweden linked to livestock and seductionBeing · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanKiyohime清姫
A Japanese folktale about a woman who becomes a serpent after being rejected by a monkFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 1 moreAšvieniai
Twin horse deities of Baltic mythology who pull the sun chariotBeing · Protection Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomNanny Rutt
A cautionary figure from Lincolnshire folklore who lures girls into the woodsFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇦🇱 AlbaniaStihistihí
A fire-breathing storm demon from Albanian folkloreBeing Legendary
🇺🇸 United StatesBlack-eyed children
A modern American urban legend about pale children with dark eyes who seek entry into homes.Figure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreSwan maiden
A folk motif where a man steals a bird-woman's feather cloak to force marriage.Figure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaChedipeचेदिप
A witch-vampire spirit of the Godavari region that drains men and feeds on sorrowBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇧🇷 BrazilRomãozinho
A cursed immortal boy from Brazilian folklore who never grows and causes mischief.Figure · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreSebile
A medieval enchantress who evolved from a classical prophetess into an Arthurian fairy queenFigure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇹🇷 Turkey and 1 moreMidasΜίδας
A Phrygian king from Greek myth who gained a golden touch and donkey earsFigure · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇲🇽 MexicoOtomitl
A giant son of Aztec myth who settled the land after a great flood.Being Legendary
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreOgre
A legendary humanoid monster known for its size and cannibalistic appetiteBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenKnights of Ålleberg
Swedish ghost story about sleeping warriors in a mountainFigure · Power and authority Legendary
🇳🇴 NorwayTroll
A Nordic creature of folklore and myth, ranging from mountain dwellers to modern fantasy icons.Being · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaIndus worm
A giant carnivorous river creature from ancient Greek accounts of the IndusBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandGlas Gaibhnenn
A fabulous cow of Irish myth that yields boundless milk and sparks a quest for vengeance.Being · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇦🇱 AlbaniaKukudh
An undead revenant from Albanian folklore that haunts houses and spreads sickness.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenVardøger
A spirit double that precedes a person in time and spaceBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandTír na nÓg
An island realm in Irish myth where time stands still and youth never fadesBelief · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreWerecat
A feline shapeshifter found in global folklore and occult beliefBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFiddler's Green
A maritime afterlife of endless music and rest for veteran sailorsBelief · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇧🇷 BrazilBestial beastBesta-fera
A centaur-like creature in Brazilian folklore thought to be the Devil.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇨🇱 ChileCamahueto
A one-horned river bull from Chilote folklore that drags people to the seaBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomGwragedd Annwngwraig Annwn
Welsh lake fairies linked to the origin of black cattle and the Tylwyth TegBeing Legendary
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Mohan: Sanjuan, Public domain, source
- Sebile: tony_57, CC BY 3.0, source
- Ašvieniai: Wojsyl , 2005, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kiyohime: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Midas: The Midas Painter, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ogre: Henry Justice Ford, Public domain, source
- Knights of Ålleberg: Photograph: Nasko, Public domain, source
- Troll: John Bauer, Public domain, source
- Glas Gaibhnenn: Internet Archive Book Images, No restrictions, source
- Tír na nÓg: Arthur Rackham, Public domain, source
- Camahueto: Rjcastillo, CC BY 4.0, source
- Back-footed being: Hartmann Schedel (1440-1514),, Public domain, source
- Vril Society: John Martin, Public domain, source
- Pasiphaë: ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Phoebe: Olivierw, Public domain, source
- Amphiaraus: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Branchus: Francesco Bini, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chasse-galerie: Henri Julien, Public domain, source
- Keong Emas: Post of Indonesia, Public domain, source
- Swan maiden: Walter Crane, Public domain, source
- Horkos: Furienmeister, Public domain, source
- Auðumbla: Jakob Sigurðsson [2], Public domain, source
- Mares of Diomedes: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Orang Pendek: Tim Bertelink, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nis Puk: R2D3LA, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Black-eyed children: Megamoto85, CC BY-SA 4.0, source