-->

Senin, 13 Maret 2017


The following is a list of demons, ghosts, yōkai, obake, yūrei, and other legendary creatures that are notable in Japanese folklore and mythology.

A

  • Abumi-guchi â€" A furry creature formed from the stirrup of a mounted military commander who worked for Yamata no Orochi.
  • Abura-akago â€" An infant ghost who licks the oil out of andon lamps.
  • Abura-sumashi â€" A spirit with a large head who lives on a mountain pass in Kumamoto Prefecture.
  • Akabeko â€" A red cow involved in the construction of Enzō-ji in Yanaizu, Fukushima.
  • Akaname â€" A spirit who licks off filth in untidy bathrooms.
  • Akashita â€" A creature that looms in a black cloud over a floodgate.
  • Akateko â€" A red hand dangling out of a tree.
  • Akkorokamui â€" An Ainu monster resembling a fish or octopus.
  • Akurojin-no-hi â€" A ghostly fire from Mie Prefecture.
  • Amabie â€" A Japanese mermaid yokai.
  • Amaburakosagi â€" A ritual-disciplinary demon from Shikoku.
  • Amamehagi â€" A ritual-disciplinary demon from Hokuriku.
  • Amanojaku â€" A small demon that instigates people into wickedness.
  • Amanozako â€" A monstrous goddess mentioned in the Kujiki.
  • Amazake-babaa â€" An old woman who asks for sweet sake and brings disease.
  • Amefurikozō â€" A little boy spirit who plays in the rain.
  • Amemasu â€" An Ainu creature resembling a fish or whale.
  • Ameonna â€" A rain-making female spirit.
  • Amikiri â€" A net-cutting bird-headed, crustacean-armed, snake-bodied spirit.
  • Amorōnagu â€" A Tennyo from the island of Amami ÅŒshima.
  • Amaterasu â€" A sun goddess.
  • Anmo â€" A ritual-disciplinary demon from Iwate Prefecture.
  • Aoandon â€" The demonic spirit which arises from an andon lamp at the end of a Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai.
  • Aobōzu â€" The blue monk who kidnaps children.
  • Aonyōbō â€" A female ghost who lurks in an abandoned imperial palace.
  • Aosaginohi â€" A luminescent heron.
  • Arikura-no-baba â€" An old woman with magical powers.
  • Ashimagari â€" A spirit which entangles the legs of travelers.
  • Ashinagatenaga â€" A pair of characters, one with long legs and the other with long arms.
  • Ayakashi (yōkai) â€" A phenomenon considered to be the funayurei.
  • Azukiarai (or Azukitogi) â€" A spirit that washes azuki beans.

B

  • Bake-kujira â€" A ghostly whale skeleton that drifts along the coastline of Shimane Prefecture.
  • Bakeneko â€" A shape-shifting cat.
  • Bakezōri â€" A zori straw sandal spirit.
  • Baku (spirit) â€" Supernatural beings that devour dreams and nightmares.
  • Basan â€" A large fire-breathing chicken monster.
  • Bashōnosei
  • Betobeto-san â€" Invisible spirit which follows people at night, making the sound of footsteps.
  • Binbōgami â€" The spirit of poverty.
  • Biwa-bokuboku- Animated biwa lute.
  • Buruburu
  • Byakko â€" Japanese version of the Chinese White Tiger.
  • Byōbunozoki

C

  • Chōchinobake â€" A possessed chōchin lantern.
  • Chōchinbi â€" Demonic flames which appear in footpaths between rice-fields.

D

  • Daidarabotchi â€" A giant responsible for creating the geographical features of Japan.
  • Daitengu â€" The most powerful tengu, each of whom lives on a separate mountain.
  • Danzaburou-danuki â€" a tanuki from Sado Island.
  • Datsue-ba â€" An old woman in the Underworld who removes clothes (or skin if unclothed) of the dead.
  • Dodomeki â€" A hundred-eyed demon.

E

  • Enenra â€" A monster made of smoke.
  • Enkō â€" Kappa of Shikoku and western HonshÅ«.

F

  • FÅ«jin â€" The wind god.
  • FÅ«ri â€" A monkey-like yokai.
  • FunayÅ«rei â€" Ghosts of people who died at sea.
  • Furaribi â€" A creature engulfed in flames that flies aimlessly.
  • Furutsubaki-no-rei â€" A soul-sucking plant.
  • Furu-utsubo â€" An animated jar.
  • Futakuchi-onna â€" The two-mouthed woman.

G

  • Gagoze â€" A demon who attacked young priests at Gangō-ji temple.
  • Gaki â€" Starving ghosts of especially greedy people.
  • Gashadokuro â€" A giant skeleton that is the spirit of the unburied dead. Also known as Gaikotsu.
  • Genbu â€" Japanese version of the Chinese Black Tortoise.
  • Goryō â€" The vengeful spirits of the dead.
  • Gozu and Mezu â€" Underworld guards.
  • Guhin â€" Another name for tengu.
  • GyÅ«ki â€" Another name for Ushi-oni.

H

  • Hakanohi
  • Hakuja no Myojin â€" A white serpent God.
  • Hakutaku â€" A beast which handed down knowledge on harmful spirits.
  • Hanako-san â€" A spirit of a young World War IIâ€"era girl who haunts school restrooms.
  • Hannya â€" A noh mask representing a jealous female demon.
  • Harionago â€" A woman with a thorn-like barb on the tip of each strand of her hair.
  • Hashihime â€" A woman-turned-spirit associated with the bridge at Uji.
  • Heikegani â€" Crabs with human-faced shells. They are the spirits of the warriors killed in the Battle of Dan-no-ura.
  • Hibagon â€" The Japanese version of the Bigfoot or the Yeti.
  • Hiderigami â€" The spirit of drought.
  • Hihi â€" A baboon-like Chinese yokai.
  • Hikeshibaba â€" An old woman who extinguishes lanterns.
  • Hinode
  • Hitodama â€" A fireball ghost that appears when someone dies, signifying the dead person's spirit.
  • Hitotsume-kozō â€" A one-eyed child spirit.
  • Hitotsume-nyÅ«dō â€" A one-eyed monk spirit.
  • Hiyoribō â€" The spirit which stops rainfall.
  • Hoji â€" The wicked spirit of Tamamo-no-Mae.
  • Hone-onna â€" A skeleton-woman.
  • Hō-ō â€" The legendary Fenghuang bird of China.
  • Hoshi-no-Tama â€" A ball guarded by a Kitsune (fox) which can give the one who obtains it power to force the Kitsune to help them. It is said to hold some reserves of the Kitsune's power.
  • Hōsōshi â€" A ritual exorcist.
  • Hotoke â€" A deceased person.
  • Hyakki Yakō â€" The demons' night parade.
  • Hyōsube â€" A kind of hair-covered Kappa.

I

  • Ibaraki-doji â€" Offspring of an oni.
  • Ichiren-Bozu â€" Animated prayer beads.
  • Ikiryō â€" Essentially a living ghost, as it is a living person's soul outside of their body.
  • Ikuchi â€" Sea-serpent that travels over boats in an arc while dripping oil.
  • Inugami â€" A dog-spirit created, worshipped, and employed by a family via sorcery.
  • Inugami Gyoubu â€" A type of tanuki.
  • Isonade â€" A fish-like sea monster with a barb-covered tail.
  • Issie â€" A lake monster.
  • Itsumade â€" A fire-breathing bird-like monster.
  • Ittan-momen â€" A possessed roll of cotton that attempts to smother people by wrapping itself around their faces.
  • Iyaya â€" A woman whose face is reflected as an old man.

J

  • Jami - A wicked mountain spirit.
  • Janjanbi â€" A soul in the form of a ball of fire, named for the sound it makes.
  • Jibakurei â€" A spirit that protects a specific place.
  • Jikininki â€" Ghosts that eats human corpses.
  • Jinmenju â€" A tree with human-faced fruits.
  • Jishin-namazu â€" The giant catfish that causes earthquakes and tsunami. It was blamed during the Ansei quake & tsunami.
  • Jorōgumo â€" A spider-woman.
  • Jatai â€" Animated folding screen cloth.
  • Jubokko â€" A vampiric tree.

K

  • Kahaku (河伯) â€" Another name for a Kappa.
  • Kakurezato
  • Kamaitachi â€" The slashing sickle-clawed weasel that haunts the mountains.
  • Kambarinyōdō â€" A monk spirit that spies on people using the toilet.
  • Kōtahi (コタãƒ') - A Manawa Bradford, a spirit monkey that is very hairy and gets engulfed in rage. The "Kotahi" is also commonly referred to as "カノト"
  • Kameosa â€" A possessed sake jar.
  • Kanedama â€" A spirit that carries money.
  • Kappa â€" A famous water monster with a water-filled head and a love of cucumbers.
  • Karasu-tengu â€" Crow demon.
  • Karura â€" Anthropomorphic eagle akin to the Hindu Garuda.
  • Kasa-obake â€" A possessed paper umbrella monster.
  • Kasha â€" A cat-like demon that descends from the sky and carries away corpses.
  • Katawaguruma â€" A type of Wanyudo, with an anguished woman instead of a monk's head in a burning wheel.
  • Kawauso â€" River otters.
  • Kawaakago â€" A river spirit that pretends to be a crying baby.
  • Kechibi â€" Fireballs with human faces inside.
  • Keneō â€" An old man seated in the underworld who weighs the clothes given to him by Datsue-ba.
  • Keseran Paseran â€" Creature from folklore that resembles a ball of fluff floating in the air.
  • Keukegen â€" A small dog-like creature covered entirely in long hair.
  • Kijimuna â€" A tree sprite from Okinawa.
  • Kirin â€" The Japanese version of the Qilin of China, which is part dragon and part deer with antlers, fish scales and an ox's tail. Said to be a protective creature and the guardian of the metal element.
  • Kitsune â€" A fox spirit.
  • Kitsunebi â€" Flames created by the Kitsune.
  • Kitsune no yomeiri
  • Kiyohime â€" A woman who transformed into a serpent demon out of the rage of unrequited love.
  • Kodama â€" A spirit that lives in a tree.
  • Kodama Nezumi - A spherical Japanese dormouse, would swell up and explode at the approach of humans, the Matagi saw it as an omen and would not hunt that day if one was seen.
  • Kokakuchō â€" The Ubume bird.
  • Komainu â€" The pair of lion-dogs that guard the entrances of temples.
  • Konaki-jiji â€" This yokai disguises itself as an abandoned baby then cries until someone picks it up.
  • Konoha-tengu â€" A bird-like Tengu.
  • Koropokkuru â€" A little person from Ainu folklore.
  • Kosenjōbi â€" Fireballs that float over former battlefields.
  • Kosode-no-te â€" A possessed kosode.
  • Kubikajiri â€" Female corpse-chewing graveyard spirit.
  • Kuchisake-onna â€" The slit-mouthed woman.
  • Kuda-gitsune â€" A small fox-like animal used in sorcery.
  • Kudan - A cow with a human face.
  • KyonshÄ« â€" The Japanese version of the Chinese hopping vampire, known as "jiangshi".
  • Kumo Yōkai â€" A Japanese spider demon.
  • Kyōkotsu â€" A skeletal figure that emerges from a well.
  • Kyōrinrin â€" Possessed scrolls or papers.

M

  • Mekurabe â€" The multiplying skulls that menaced Taira no Kiyomori in his courtyard.
  • Miage-nyÅ«dō â€" A spirit that grows as fast as you can look up at it.
  • Mikaribaba â€" A one-eyed old woman.
  • Mikoshi-nyÅ«dō â€" A bald goblin with an extending neck.
  • Misaki â€" High-ranking divine spirits.
  • Mizuchi â€" A dangerous water dragon.
  • Mokumokuren â€" A swarm of eyes that appear on a paper sliding door in an old building.
  • MomonjÄ«
  • Mononoke â€" Any mischievous and troublesome creature/entity of uncertain origin.
  • Morinji-no-kama â€" Another name for Bunbuku Chagama, the tanuki teakettle.
  • Mōryō
  • Mujina â€" A shapeshifting badger.
  • Mu-onna â€" The nothing woman.
  • Myōbu â€" A title sometimes given to a fox.

N

  • Namahage â€" A ritual-disciplinary demon from the Oga Peninsula.
  • Namazu â€" A giant catfish that causes earthquakes.
  • Nekomata â€" A cat yokai.
  • Nuppeppō - A genderless blob of flesh with a hint of a face in the folds of fat.
  • Ningyo â€" A fish person or "mermaid".
  • Nobusuma â€" A flying squirrel-like monster.
  • Noderabō â€" Strange creatures that stand near a temple bell.
  • Noppera-bō â€" A faceless ghost.
  • Nozuchi â€" A fat snake-like creature.
  • Nogitsune â€" A dangerous kitsune.
  • Nue â€" A monster with the head of a monkey, the body of a raccoon dog, the legs of a tiger, and a snake-headed tail. It plagued the emperor with nightmares in the Heike Monogatari.
  • Nukekubi â€" A vicious human-like monster whose head detaches from its body, often confused with the Rokurokubi.
  • Nuppeppo â€" An animated lump of decaying human flesh.
  • Nure-onna â€" A female snake-like monster who appears on the shore.
  • Nuribotoke â€" An animated corpse with blackened flesh and dangling eyeballs.
  • Nurikabe â€" A ghostly wall that traps a traveler at night.
  • Nurarihyon â€" A strange character who sneaks into houses on busy evenings.
  • NyÅ«dō-bōzu â€" A yokai that grows larger the further one looks up.
  • NyÅ«naisuzume

O

  • Obake (or Bakemono) â€" Shapeshifting spirits.
  • Obariyon â€" Yokai which rides piggyback on a human victim and becomes unbearably heavy.
  • Oboroguruma â€" An oxen cart with a face in its carriage.
  • Oiwa â€" The ghost of a woman with a distorted face who was murdered by her husband. One of the most famous onryō.
  • ÅŒkaburo
  • ÅŒgama - A giant toad which breathes rainbow-like smoke and wields a giant spear against whoever attacks it.
  • Okami â€" A powerful wolf spirit that either takes your life or protects it.
  • Okiku â€" The plate-counting ghost of a servant girl.
  • ÅŒkubi â€" The huge face of a woman which appears in the sky.
  • Okuri-inu â€" A spectral dog which follows lone travellers, attacking them if they trip. Similar to the Black dog of English folklore.
  • ÅŒmagatoki â€" Dusk.
  • ÅŒmukade â€" Giant, human-eating centipede that lives in the mountains.
  • Oni â€" The classic Japanese demon. It is an ogre-like creature which often has horns.
    • Oni of Rashomon
  • Onibaba â€" The demonic hag of Adachigahara.
  • Onibi â€" A demonic flame which can suck out life if they come too near.
  • Onihitokuchi â€" One-eyed oni that kill and eat humans.
  • Onikuma - Bear yokai.
  • Onmoraki â€" Bird-demon created from the spirits of freshly dead corpses.
  • ÅŒnyÅ«dō â€" Wastebasket taxon for all 'priestly' demons.
  • Onryō â€" A vengeful ghost formed from powerful feelings like rage or sorrow.
  • Otoroshi â€" A hairy creature that perches on the torii gates to shrines and temples.
  • Onmyoji â€" A human who has powers like a yokai's.
  • Osakabe

R

  • Raijin â€" The God of Thunder.
  • RaijÅ« â€" A beast that falls to earth in a lightning bolt.
  • Rōjinbi â€" A ghostly fire that appears with an old person.
  • Rokurokubi â€" A person, usually female, whose neck can stretch indefinitely.
  • Ryuu â€" The Japanese dragon.

S

  • Sa Gojō â€" The water-monster Sha Wujing from Journey to the West, often interpreted in Japan as a Kappa.
  • Samebito â€" A shark-man from the undersea Dragon Palace.
  • Sankai â€" Amorphous afterbirth spirit.
  • Sansei
  • Sarakazoe
  • Satori â€" An ape-like creature that can read one's thoughts.
  • Sazae-oni â€" A turban snail that turns into a woman.
  • Sesshō-seki â€" The poisonous "killing stones" which Tamamo-no-Mae transformed into.
  • SeiryÅ« â€" Japanese version of the Chinese Azure Dragon.
  • Shachihoko â€" A tiger-headed fish whose image is often used in architecture.
  • Shibaemon-tanuki â€" A tanuki from Awaji Island.
  • Shichinin misaki â€" A group of 7 ghosts who sicken the living.
  • Shidaidaka â€" A humanoid yokai that appears above roads.
  • Shikigami â€" A spirit summoned to do the bidding of an Onmyōji.
  • Shikome â€" Wild women sent by Izanami to harm Izanagi.
  • Shinigami â€" The Japanese Grim Reaper.
  • Shiranui â€" A mysterious flame seen over the seas in Kumamoto Prefecture.
  • Shirime (尻目) â€" An apparition in the shape of a man having an eye in the place of his anus.
  • Shirōneri â€" Possessed mosquito nettings or dust clothes.
  • Shiryō â€" The souls of the dead, the opposite of ikiryo.
  • Shisa â€" The Okinawan version of the Shishi.
  • Shishi â€" The paired lion-dogs that guard the entrances of temples.
  • Shōjō â€" Red-haired sea sprites who love alcohol.
  • Shōkera â€" Is a creature which peeks in through the skylight of an old house.
  • Sōjōbō â€" The famous Daitengu of Mount Kurama.
  • Suiko â€" Another name for Kappa.
  • Son GokÅ« â€" The monkey king Sun Wukong from Journey to the West.
  • Sunakake Baba â€" A witch who uses sand.
  • Sunekosuri â€" A dog-like yokai that rubs up against people's legs when it is raining.
  • Shuten-doji
  • Suzaku â€" Japanese version of the Chinese Vermilion Bird.
  • Suzuri-no-tamashii

T

  • Taka-onna â€" A female monster that can stretch its waist to peer inside buildings.
  • Tamamo-no-Mae â€" A wicked nine-tailed fox who appeared as a courtesan.
  • Tanuki â€" A shape-shifting raccoon dog.
  • Teke Teke â€" A vengeful spirit of a school girl, with a half upper torso body, who goes around killing people by slicing them in half with a scythe, mimicking her own disfigurement.
  • Ten
  • Tengu â€" A wise demon with two variants: a red man with a long nose, or a bird-like demon.
  • Tenjōkudari
  • Tenka (kaika)
  • Tenko (fox)
  • Tennin â€" A heavenly being.
  • Te-no-me â€" A ghost of a blind man with his eyes on his hands.
  • Teratsutsuki
  • Tesso â€" A priest who was snubbed by the emperor and became a swarm of rats which laid waste to a rival temple.
  • Tōfu-kozō â€" A yokai that appears as a young boy carrying a plate of tofu.
  • Tsuchigumo â€" A clan of spider-like yokai.
  • Tsuchinoko â€" A legendary serpentine monster. It is now a cryptid resembling a fat snake.
  • Tsukinowaguma â€" A legendary bear.
  • Tsukuyomi â€" A moon god.
  • Tsukumogami â€" An animated tea caddy that Matsunaga Hisahide used to bargain a peace with Oda Nobunaga. It is now understood to mean any 100-year-old inanimate object that has come to life.
  • Tsurube-otoshi â€" A monster that drops out of the tops of trees.
  • Tomoe(fox)

U

  • Ubume â€" The spirit of a woman who died in childbirth.
  • Uma-no-ashi â€" A horse's leg which dangles from a tree and kicks passersby.
  • Umibōzu â€" A giant monster appearing on the surface of the sea.
  • Umi-nyōbō â€" A female sea monster who steals fish.
  • Ungaikyo â€" A possessed mirror.
  • Ushi-no-tokimairi
  • Ushi-oni â€" A name given to an assortment of ox-headed monsters.
  • Ushi-onna - A kimono-clad woman with a cow head.
  • Ushirogami
  • Uwan â€" A spirit named for the sound it shouts when surprising people.

W

  • Waira â€" A large beast that lurks in the mountains, about which little is known.
  • Wani â€" A water monster comparable to an alligator or crocodile. A related word has been applied to the Saltwater crocodile.
  • WanyÅ«dō â€" A flaming wheel with a man's head in the center, that sucks out the soul of anyone who sees it.

Y

  • Yadōkai â€" Monks who have turned to mischief.
  • Yama-biko â€" Small creatures that create echoes.
  • Yamajijii â€" An old man with one eye and one leg.
  • Yamako
  • Yamaoroshi â€" A possessed vegetable grater, almost porcupine-like in appearance.
  • Yamata no Orochi â€" The eight-headed dragon/serpent monster slain by the god Susanoo.
  • Yama-inu â€" Dog-like mountain spirit, that may appear to travelers on mountain roads; may be friendly, or may attack and kill the traveler, depending on the tale, (also see the Japanese wolf).
  • Yama-uba â€" A Crone-like yōkai.
  • Yashima no Hage-tanuki â€" A tanuki that protects the Taira clan.
  • Yatagarasu â€" The three-legged crow of Amaterasu.
  • Yato-no-kami â€" Deadly Snake Gods which infested a field.
  • Yobuko â€" A mountain-dwelling spirit.
  • Yōkai/Youkai â€" A class of supernatural monsters, spirits, and demons in Japanese folklore. They can also be called ayakashi (妖?), mononoke (物の怪?), or mamono (é­"物?).
  • Yomotsu-shikome â€" The hags of the underworld.
  • Yonakinoishi
  • Yōsei â€" The Japanese word for "fairy".
  • Yosuzume â€" A mysterious bird that sings at night, sometimes indicating that the okuri-inu is near.
  • Yuki-onna â€" The snow woman.
  • Yurei â€" Ghosts in a more Western sense.

Z

  • Zashiki-warashi â€" A protective childlike house spirit.
  • Zennyo Ryūō â€" A rain-making dragon.
  • Zorigami â€" An animated clock.
  • Zuijin â€" A tutelary spirit.
  • Zunbera-bō â€" Another name for the Noppera-bō.

See also

  • Japanese mythology
  • Kaidan

References

External links

  • Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist and Shinto Deities
  • 百物語怪談会 Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai | Translated Japanese Ghost Stories and Tales of the Weird and the Strange, a blog by Mizuki Shigeru
  • 133 Yokai Statues on Mizuki Shigeru Road
 
Sponsored Links