Resources · Creatures, spirits & other beings
Folklore Dictionary
Meet the beings of folklore: explore their names, descriptions and associated traditions, from familiar creatures to less familiar inhabitants of the otherworld.
1,598 reference entries · Browse A–Z or explore by place
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Creature coverage
Zoom or move the map, then choose “Filter to this area” to list creatures with a tradition location in that view. You can combine this with a character family or a search term.
Creatures associated with a tradition
45 creatures at 61 tradition locations · 17 without tradition coordinates
Markers use tradition coordinates linked through source names, recorded aliases, language groups or reviewed associations. Language-group links show cultural context, rather than verified creature occurrences in every tradition. Creatures sharing a location are grouped; select a marker to see their names. Counts cover all matching entries across every results page.
Use the location filter or the list below to browse associated places.
Browse associated places without the map
- Ancient Greece (5)
- Aztec; Aztec and Teotihuacan iconography (1)
- Bosnia Muslims (3)
- Bosnians (3)
- Bulgarians, Balkarians (3)
- Byelarusians, Belarusians (3)
- Catalan (1)
- China (2)
- Croatians, Croats; Italians of Dalmatia (if the motif is absent among other Italians) (3)
- Czech, Czechs (3)
- Danes, Danish (3)
- Dogon (1)
- Dutch, Flemish (2)
- Early Russian written sources (3)
- Eastern Ukrainians (3)
- England, British, Bretons (2)
- Faroe Islands (3)
- Finland (1)
- Finns (1)
- Frisians (2)
- Germans: North (Low- and Central German dialects): Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg, Pommern, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony, incl East Frisia and Oldenburg), Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Thüringen, Saxony-Anhalt, Sachsen, Brandenburg, Rügen (3)
- Germans: Northeast (Brandenburg, Meklenburg, Rügen, Pommern, Silesia, Posen) (2)
- Germans: South (Upper German dialects): Alsace (Elsass), Baden-Württemberg, Bawaria, Swabia, Switzerland, Bohemia, Sudeten, Austria (2)
- Germans – Southwest: Alsace (Elsass), Baden-Württemberg, Swabia, Switzerland (2)
- Germany (1)
- Greece (5)
- Greeks (modern), Balkarians (5)
- Greeks of Cyprus (5)
- Icelanders (3)
- Japan (16)
- Japan (16)
- Japan AD 700-1700 (16)
- Japanese folklore outside of Ryukyu (16)
- Kashubians (3)
- Lithuania (1)
- Lithuanians (1)
- Macedonians, Balkarians (3)
- Maori, Moriori (Chatam Islands) (1)
- Mapuche (2)
- Northern Ryukyu Islands (with southern Kyusyu in case of absence across the rest of Japan (16)
- Northern Ukrainians (3)
- Norwegians (3)
- People's Republic of China (2)
- Philippines (1)
- Philippines (1)
- Poles (3)
- Russian Pomors ("seasiders"): Lower Pechora (3)
- Russian Pomors ('seasiders'): Terski Coast (Murmansk province) (3)
- Russian Pomors (“seasiders): Arkhangelsk province without its southern part (Shengur district and Konosha dstrict), Karelia White Sea coast (3)
- Russians: Central part of ethnic territory as in A.D. 1500 (Tver, Yaroslavl, Moscow, Kostroma, Vladimir, Ivanovo, Nizhny Novgorod, Ryazan, Tula, Kaluga, Smolensk provinces; in case of absence in other areas also Russians in Vyatka, Perm, Kazan provinces) (3)
- Russians: Novgorod and Pskov provinces (3)
- Russians: Olonets province/SE Karelia, Shengur district of Arkhangelsk province (3)
- Russians: Southern part of ethnic territory as in A.D. 1500 (Belgorod, Voronezh, Tambov, Penza, Lipetsk, Orel, Kursk, Bryansk provinces; in case of absence in other areas also Russians in Samara, Simbirsk and Saratov provinces) (3)
- Russians: Vologda province (incl. Belozersk, Kirillov and Cherepovets districts of form. Novgorod Province) (3)
- Rusyns, Hutsuls (3)
- Scandinavia (1)
- Scandinavians: early written sources ("Edda"; Saxo Grammaticus etc.); Gothland picture stones; Ancient Germans (Late Bronze Age in Scandinavia) (3)
- Scotland, Scots, Picts, Scotti, Scottish (3)
- Serbs, Monte Negro, Balkarians (3)
- Slovakians, Slovaks (3)
- Slovenians, Slovenes (3)
- Sorbians (Luzhitsa Serbs) (3)
- Southern and Central; Ryukyu Islands: Yaeyama, Miyako, Okinawa (16)
- Swedes (3)
- Tats (3)
- Terek Cossacks (3)
- Thailand (3)
- Transylvanian Saksons (2)
- Wawenock, Abenaki, Penobscot (2)
- Western Ukrainians (3)
Browse the dictionary
62 matching entries
| Creature | Tradition | Description | Map locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| NivatakavachasSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Hindu | Ocean demon | — |
| NixSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Female water spirit | 15 |
| NobusumaGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Supernatural wall, also a monstrous flying squirrel | 5 |
| NocnitsaSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Slavic | Nightmare spirit | 27 |
| NommoDivine and sacred beings (suggested)Spirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Dogon | Primordial ancestral spirits usually described as amphibious, hermaphroditic, fish-like creatures | 1 |
| Noppera-bōSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Japanese | Faceless ghost | 5 |
| NozuchiGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Small sea serpent | 5 |
| NuckelaveeSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested)Giants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Scottish | Malevolent human-horse-fish hybrid | 1 |
| NueGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Monkey-raccoon dog-tiger-snake hybrid | 5 |
| Nü GuiThe dead and disembodied souls (suggested) | Chinese | Vengeful female ghost | 1 |
| NukekubiGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Disembodied, flying head that attacks people | 5 |
| Nuku-mai-toreSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Māori | Forest spirit | 1 |
| NuliGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Medieval Bestiary | Humanoid with backwards, eight-toed feet | — |
| NumenSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Roman | Tutelary spirit | — |
| NunoSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Philippine | Malevolent little people | 1 |
| NuppeppoGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Animated chunk of dead flesh | 5 |
| NurarihyonSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Japanese | Head-sized ball-like creature that floats in the sea and teases sailors | 5 |
| Nure-onnaGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Japanese | Female monster who appears on the beach | 5 |
| NurikabeSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Japanese | Spirit that manifests as an impassable, invisible wall | 5 |
| Nyami NyamiSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Tonga (Zimbabwean) mythology | Snake-spirit of the Zambezi River | — |
| NykštukasSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Lithuanian | Cavern spirit | 1 |
| NymphSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Greek | Nature spirit | 3 |
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How to cite: Fielder-White, Jonathan (2026). The Folklore Database. Citation version 1.261029.1 (29 October 2026). https://folkloredatabase.com.
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