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
29 creatures at 43 tradition locations · 0 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
- Bosnia Muslims (2)
- Bosnians (2)
- Bulgarians, Balkarians (2)
- Byelarusians, Belarusians (2)
- Croatians, Croats; Italians of Dalmatia (if the motif is absent among other Italians) (2)
- Czech, Czechs (2)
- Danes, Danish (12)
- Dutch, Flemish (12)
- Early Russian written sources (2)
- Eastern Ukrainians (2)
- England (1)
- England, British, Bretons (13)
- Faroe Islands (12)
- Frisians (12)
- 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 (29)
- Germans: Northeast (Brandenburg, Meklenburg, Rügen, Pommern, Silesia, Posen) (12)
- Germans: South (Upper German dialects): Alsace (Elsass), Baden-Württemberg, Bawaria, Swabia, Switzerland, Bohemia, Sudeten, Austria (12)
- Germans – Southwest: Alsace (Elsass), Baden-Württemberg, Swabia, Switzerland (12)
- Germany (15)
- Icelanders (12)
- Kashubians (2)
- Macedonians, Balkarians (2)
- Northern Ukrainians (2)
- Norwegians (12)
- Poles (2)
- Russian Pomors ("seasiders"): Lower Pechora (2)
- Russian Pomors ('seasiders'): Terski Coast (Murmansk province) (2)
- Russian Pomors (“seasiders): Arkhangelsk province without its southern part (Shengur district and Konosha dstrict), Karelia White Sea coast (2)
- 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) (2)
- Russians: Novgorod and Pskov provinces (2)
- Russians: Olonets province/SE Karelia, Shengur district of Arkhangelsk province (2)
- 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) (2)
- Russians: Vologda province (incl. Belozersk, Kirillov and Cherepovets districts of form. Novgorod Province) (2)
- Rusyns, Hutsuls (2)
- Scandinavians: early written sources ("Edda"; Saxo Grammaticus etc.); Gothland picture stones; Ancient Germans (Late Bronze Age in Scandinavia) (12)
- Scotland, Scots, Picts, Scotti, Scottish (13)
- Serbs, Monte Negro, Balkarians (2)
- Slovakians, Slovaks (2)
- Slovenians, Slovenes (2)
- Sorbians (Luzhitsa Serbs) (2)
- Swedes (12)
- Terek Cossacks (2)
- Transylvanian Saksons (12)
- Western Ukrainians (2)
Browse the dictionary
29 matching entries
| Creature | Tradition | Description | Map locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| AlpSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Male night-demon. | 1 |
| AskefrueSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Female tree spirit. | 15 |
| Church grimSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Guardian spirit | 15 |
| Doppelgänger | German | Ghostly double | 1 |
| DrudeSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Possessing demon | 1 |
| DwarfSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Little people nature spirits | 15 |
| ElfSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Nature and fertility spirit | 15 |
| Elwetritsch | German | Birdlike forest creature of the Palatinate and Pennsylvania Dutch country | 1 |
| ErlkingSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Death spirit | 1 |
| FafnirSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic mythology | Dwarf who was cursed and turned into a dragon. He was later slain by Sigurd in the Saga of Nibelung. | 15 |
| FiredrakeGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Germanic | Dragon | 15 |
| GulonGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Germanic | Gluttonous dog-cat-fox hybrid | 15 |
| HeinzelmännchenSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | household spirit | 1 |
| KlabautermannSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Ship spirit | 1 |
| KoboldSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Little people and mine or house spirits | 1 |
| KofewaltSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | House spirit | 15 |
| LindwormGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | Germanic | Dragon | 15 |
| Mare | Germanic and Slavic folklore | Malicious entity which causes or appears in bad dreams | 42 |
| MephistophelesSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Demon or devil | 1 |
| NachzehrerThe dead and disembodied souls (suggested) | German | Anthropophagous undead | 1 |
| NeckSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic mythology | Female water spirit | 15 |
| NixSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | Germanic | Female water spirit | 15 |
| PoltergeistThe dead and disembodied souls (suggested) | German | Ghost that moves objects | 1 |
| PutzSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | House spirit | 1 |
| SchratSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German and Slavic | Either a wood sprite, domestic sprite and/or a nightmare demon | 28 |
| ShellycoatSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | English, Scottish and German, as schellenrocc | Water spirit | 4 |
| VielfrasGiants, monsters and fabulous creatures (suggested) | German | Gluttonous dog-cat-fox hybrid | 1 |
| Weiße FrauenSpirits and otherworld peoples (suggested) | German | Female spirit | 1 |
| Wolpertinger | German | Forest animal comprised from various animal parts (similar to a Chimera) | 1 |
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How to cite: Fielder-White, Jonathan (2026). The Folklore Database. Citation version 1.261028.1 (28 October 2026). https://folkloredatabase.com.
0009-0006-1672-4451
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