Legendary practices
Known from myth, story and legend rather than from recorded practice.
- Living
- Revived
- Fading
- Historical
- Legendary
- Performed
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
馃嚙馃嚪 Brazil and 2 moreMapinguari
A hairy Amazonian monster with a belly mouth and backwards feetBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 Brazil and 2 moreCurupira
A backwards-footed forest guardian from Brazilian indigenous myth who punishes loggers and misleads travelers.Being 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚨馃嚪 Puerto Rico and 5 moreChupacabrachupacabras
A legendary creature said to drain livestock of blood, emerging from Puerto Rico in the mid-1990sBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚮馃嚜 Venezuela and 1 moreEl Silb贸n
A Venezuelan and Colombian legend of a cursed spirit who carries his father's bones.Figure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Seeing and foretelling Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 ChileTrauco
A small forest spirit from Chilo茅 mythology known for seducing women and causing pregnancyBeing 路 Love and attraction 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 1 moreChullachaqui
A one-footed forest spirit of the Amazon that lures or challenges humansBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚚馃嚧 Colombia and 1 moreTunda
A shapeshifting entity from the Pacific coast of Colombia and Ecuador that lures people into the forest.Figure 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoChaneque
Mexican folklore sprites that guard nature and homesBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico and 5 moreSihuanaba
A shapeshifting spirit that lures men with beauty before revealing a monstrous faceBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚮馃嚜 VenezuelaSayona
A vengeful Venezuelan ghost who hunts men for breaking marital vowsFigure 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoCamazotz
A bat spirit of the Maya underworld linked to night, death, and sacrificeBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoAhuizotl膩huitzotl
A legendary Aztec water creature said to lure people to their deathsBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚚馃嚧 ColombiaPatasola
A Colombian jungle monster that lures men with beauty before revealing a one-legged formBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilMinhoc茫o
A giant aquatic worm or fish from Brazilian folklore blamed for earthquakes and animal disappearancesBeing Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilBoi煤na
A powerful river serpent from Amazonian mythology that shifts shape to guard its watersBeing Legendary
馃嚛馃嚧 Dominican Republic and 1 moreCiguapa
A back-footed forest spirit of the Dominican Republic known for seduction and jealousyBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Love and attraction Legendary
馃嚨馃嚲 ParaguayAo Ao
A Guarani mythic beast that hunts humans and frightens children in ParaguayBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoWerejaguar
A supernatural figure from Olmec art, blending human and jaguar traits.Being 路 Power and authority 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 Chile and 1 moreCuerotr眉lke wekuf眉
An aquatic creature from Mapuche and Chilote myth that drags victims into the depths.Being 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilCapelobo
A Brazilian monster with a long snout that feeds on blood and brainsBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 1 moreDouen
A faceless creature with backwards feet from Trinidad and Tobago folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 Chile and 1 moreImbuncheif眉nche
A deformed child-monster of Chilote folklore that guards a warlock's cave and serves as an instrument of curse.Figure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 ChileWarlock of Chilo茅brujo chilote
A legendary network of sorcerers from the Chilean archipelago and their mythical powers.Belief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 ChileCamahueto
A one-horned river bull from Chilote folklore that drags people to the seaBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 2 moreMama D'Leau
A river spirit of the Caribbean islands who protects aquatic life and heals people.Being 路 Healing 路 Protection Legendary
馃嚚馃嚧 Colombia and 1 moreLa Bolefuego
A fiery apparition from the Llanos that hunts travelers and avoids prayer.Figure 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilBestial beastBesta-fera
A centaur-like creature in Brazilian folklore thought to be the Devil.Being 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 ChilePincoya
A Chilotan sea spirit whose dance predicts the catch of fish and seafood.Being 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilLobisomem
A South American shape-shifter born from family fate or sin, often linked to the full moon.Being 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 Chile and 1 moreKalku
A Mapuche sorcerer who works with negative powers and malevolent spiritsBeing 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚞馃嚬 Guatemala and 1 moreEl Sombrer贸n
A tall, hat-wearing figure from Guatemalan legend who courts young women and haunts neighborhoods at dusk.Figure 路 Love and attraction 路 Cursing and harm Legendary
馃嚚馃嚤 Chile and 1 moreGiant
Mythic humanoids of immense size and strength found in global folklore and ancient textsFigure 路 Wonder and entertainment Legendary
馃嚫馃嚮 El Salvador and 2 moreCipit铆o
A perpetual child spirit of Mesoamerica known for mischief and reversed feetFigure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Legendary
馃嚞馃嚲 Guyana and 1 moreBaccoo
A half-wood spirit from Guyanese and Surinamese folklore that serves as a mercenary or a haunting presence.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚚馃嚧 ColombiaMohan
A forest spirit and ancestor soul in Colombian Indigenous folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilRom茫ozinho
A cursed immortal boy from Brazilian folklore who never grows and causes mischief.Figure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Legendary
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Mohan: Sanjuan, Public domain, source
- Pincoya: Paul Lowry, CC BY 2.0, source
- Trauco: Seo2 (Cristian), CC BY 2.0, source
- Chullachaqui: LLs, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chaneque: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sihuanaba: Orlando Callejas, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ahuizotl: Infrogmation, New Orleans, Public domain, source
- Ao Ao: Cowboymax, CC0, source
- Werejaguar: Ruben Charles, ( http://www.rubencharles.com ), CC BY 2.0, source
- Camahueto: Rjcastillo, CC BY 4.0, source
- Capelobo: Di (they-them), CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Imbunche: Lufke, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mapinguari: Lauro Iyambae (@Aptix_4p0clix), CC0, source
- El Silb贸n: Mar铆a Auxiliadora Ram铆rez Prato, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Giant: Attributed to Francisco Goya, Public domain, source
- Chupacabra: Dick Langer, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Curupira: Sturm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source