Welcome to the Fae Zoo

Yāoguai, the Chinese spirits/demons

Yāoguài (妖怪) is a broad, diverse class of creatures in Chinese mythology. They can be anything non-human (usually animals, but also plants... even inanimate objects!).

Although the term yaoguai is commonly translated to English as "demon" it is important to note that not all of them are evil; malevolent or morally grey entities are typically called guai (怪 - "strange monster"), gui (鬼 - "spectre or ghost") or mó (魔 - "demon", closer to the Western sense).

So... what define 'yaoguai'?

Setting them apart from other type of monsters, is the possession of supernatural powers; These abilities—like shapeshifting or mind control— usually defy the natural and heavenly order.

Essentially, yaoguai are animals or objects that "level up" by absorbing enough life energy (called Qi - 氣 - pronounced 'chi') to become intelligent, magical beings. This accumulation of energy is sometimes achieved through Daoist practices - like training and meditation -although some of the yaoguai are just created by other reasons, for example misfortune and by "accidents" in nature.

They often strive for immortality: if they succeed in their goal, without becoming malevolent, they can even become divine beings, similar to deities.

Baba Yaga AKA. The Slavic Witch

Baba Yaga is a folkloric creature from Slavic cultures. A fairytale told like a bedtime story to young children in Eastern, Western, Northern, and Southern Slavic countries. But before I tell the story I know best, I want you to understand her a bit better from the research I've done. Baba, means 'Grandmother' or 'Old Woman' in what is known as contemporary Russian or Polish. But 'Baba' is also a pejorative synonym (A word for contempt or disapproval) for 'Woman', in particular it's used to describe a woman who is old, dirty, or even foolish. The very first reference of Baba Yaga came from Mikhail V. Lomonosov's, Russian Grammar in, 1755. In his book, Baba Yaga happened to be mentioned twice alongside other prevalent figures in Slavic tradition. In Mikhail's writing, she is known for her uniqueness as a folkloric creature. That no other figure in Slavic traditions is the same as her. Fun fact though, Western Slavic Cultures have, Ježibaba, a creature closely related to Baba Yaga. The two of these might've even originated from a common figure known during the Middle Ages or earlier. Anyways, my Baba Yaga fact inside of a Baba Yaga fact post is over.

When Baba Yaga happens to be described, it's most often said that she lives in a turning hut posted up on chicken legs, and that she may ride on a mop or broom, or most notably inside of a mortar while using a broom to sweep away her tracks. Baba Yaga's selection of tools are automatically viewed as being Pagan, and even as weapons for witchcraft because of the mortars use in ritualistic practices. That idea was given by Russian ethnographer, Andrey Torporkov.

A lot of what I found on Baba Yaga was written by men, and some of it was degrading on a level I will barely express. Some wrote that she is repulsive due to how her buttocks, nose, breasts, and even how her vulva looks. I won't be diving deeper on that information, because I find it is unnecessary for me to discuss that side of folklore.

But I will cover others. Sometimes Baba Yaga is said to live in the Faraway or Thrice-nine Kingdoms, "Beyond the thrice-nine kingdoms, in the thirtieth realm, beyond the fiery river, lives the Baba Yaga.", and in other stories Baba Yaga actually happens to be a trio of Baba Yagas, whom of which appear as sisters, all who seem to be sharing the same name. 

This was brought up in a version of "The Maiden Tsar" collected in the 19th century by, Alexander Afanasyev, a story which talked about a man named Ivan, who was a merchant's handsome son making his way home to the home of one of the three Baba Yaga sisters. A passage that seems to be pretty notable, as I've seen it in a few articles on this exact story happens to be the one that goes, 

'He journeyed onwards, straight ahead, and finally came to a little hut; it stood in the open field, turning on chicken legs. He entered and found Baba Yaga the Bony-legged. "Fie, fie," she said, "the Russian smell was never heard of nor caught sight of here, but it has come by itself. Are you here of your own free will or by compulsion, my good youth?"' 

'"Largely of my own free will, and twice as much by compulsion! Do you know, Baba Yaga, where lies the thrice tenth kingdom?"'

'"No, I do not," she said, and told him to go to her second sister; she might know.' 

The story continues on to tell the tale of how, Ivan, visited each of the three sisters in hope of finding the 'Thrice-tenth Kingdom', how he gained directions on how to blow the third sisters three horns from the second sister, and how he escaped the third sister who wanted to eat him on what was called the 'Firebird'. I have also read from other articles that she is meant to represent the opposite of the "ideal" woman. Something you don't want to be as a woman. Baba Yaga, instead of birthing and raising children, she lures them to her cottage in the woods and eats them. She doesn't marry or put the needs of others above her own. She is seen as deeply selfish to the point of being evil. Today though, it's been suspected that at one point in time, Baba Yaga, was actually an ancient Earth Deity, even a goddess, turned monster by later folklore. And to many witches of the modern day, Baba Yaga is a figure looked up to. Sometimes celebrated. The first full moon on the month of November, is said to be Baba Yaga's feast. That day is connected around harvest, rest, providence, thankfulness, and cycles. 

You too can even honor Baba Yaga, on the first full moon of November, by offering sheathes of corn, different foods, and assorted items. She even accepts intentional spell work, such as shadow work, banishments, and protection.  Baba Yaga may now be used as a tale to frighten children into behaving, she may be a monster, or an evil witch, but she may also just be a deity twisted into something monstrous by the word of man. Take my research how you will, and if you have any information I should know, or if I am wrong, please do share. I am always open to learning or fixing my mistakes. 

Popobawa: The Shape‑Shifting Shadow of Pemba Island

Popobawa occupies a singular place in East African folklore, a creature whose legend blends fear, politics, and the uncanny into one of the most striking modern hauntings of the Swahili coast. Emerging most famously on the Tanzanian island of Pemba, Popobawa is described as a shape‑shifting nocturnal entity whose presence is announced not by a visible form but by a suffocating sense of dread. The name itself—derived from popo (bat) and bawa (wing)—evokes a looming silhouette, a winged shadow gliding across rooftops before slipping into homes under the cover of darkness. Unlike older spirits rooted in pre‑colonial cosmology, Popobawa is a distinctly contemporary apparition, one that rose to prominence in the 1970s and has resurfaced in waves ever since, each outbreak accompanied by panic, sleepless nights, and mass communal vigilance.

Accounts of Popobawa’s appearance vary wildly, reflecting its reputation as a shapeshifter. Some describe a towering humanoid with a single glowing eye; others insist it manifests as a smoky, amorphous presence that presses upon its victims. What remains consistent is the creature’s association with nighttime assaults, paralysis, and an overwhelming sense of being watched. These experiences often mirror sleep paralysis, yet within the cultural context of Pemba and Zanzibar, they are interpreted through the lens of spirit possession and malevolent visitation. Popobawa’s attacks are said to target entire communities rather than individuals, moving from household to household in a predictable but terrifying cycle. This communal aspect distinguishes it from solitary hauntings and reinforces its role as a social, not merely supernatural, phenomenon.

The origins of Popobawa’s legend are deeply entangled with political upheaval. Many scholars argue that the first major wave of sightings in 1972 coincided with tensions following the Zanzibar Revolution and the subsequent union with mainland Tanzania. In this reading, Popobawa becomes a symbolic expression of collective anxiety—a supernatural language for articulating fear, instability, and the sense of unseen forces shaping daily life. Others trace the spirit to local djinn traditions, suggesting that Popobawa may have begun as a bound or angered djinn released through sorcery or political betrayal. Whether interpreted as a political metaphor or a spiritual entity, Popobawa thrives in moments of uncertainty, reappearing whenever social stress reaches a breaking point.

Appalachian Folklore, Wives Tales, and Superstitions: The lore and sayings may vary based on location, family tradition, and other factors, but this is just what I’m sharing from my experiences!

•Deaths and births always come in threes.

• Don’t throw your hair out! If a bird builds a nest with it, you’ll have migraines.

• “Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky at morning, sailor’s warning.”

• If the leaves on trees are flipped over with their backsides showing, rain’s coming.

• If you’re giving someone a wallet or purse as a present, put money in it to ensure they’ll never financially struggle.

• Spirits can’t cross running water.

• Cats and dogs won’t enter a room where spirits are present.

• Carry an acorn in your pocket for good luck, a penny for prosperity, and a nail for protection.

• If you’re having nightmares, put a Bible under your pillow. They’ll go away.

• Take a spoonful of honey to keep your words sweet.

• It’s bad luck to walk over a grave.

• A horseshoe hung above a door ensures good luck.

• A horseshoe in the bedroom staves away nightmares.

• If your right hand itches, you’ll soon be receiving money. If the left itches, you’ll be paying it.

• Rubbing a bit of potato on a wart helps it to go away.

• If the soles of your feet itch, you will soon walk on strange grounds.

• Black eyed peas, greens, and/or pork and sauerkraut should be eaten on New Year’s Day to welcome good luck and good fortune.

• Driving a nail into a bedframe or crib will drive away curses.

• If your ears are burning, someone’s talking about you.

• If you dream of fish, you are or will soon be pregnant.

• Listen to the wisdom of children, they see and know more than we think.

The Black Dog.

Otherwise knows as Black/Old Shuck, Church Grim, or Barghest, the Black Dog is an omen of English Folklore. The sight of a black ominous hound was a sign of troubles to come - rotten food, dead crops, floods or storms, or just an incoming death.

In (belated) honour of Halloween, here’s a spooky urban myth from Claxton Bay. Photo by Hayden Roach.

From Life in Trinidad and Tobago:

”This story dates back to the 1900s, where a young woman becomes the victim of circumstance in this tragic romance.

The lore says, in 1909 the daughter of a Spanish overseer on the Forres Park Sugar Estate, named Maria, fell in love with an Indian labourer who worked there. Maria’s parents, especially her father, did little to hide their disdain toward her relationship. One night, the overseer saw his daughter and her lover in what is described as a “compromising affair”, and became furious. So he waited, and when the young man left his daughter’s company, he made it clear to her that she wasn’t to see him again. But, Maria was in love, and had no intention of ending her relationship with the young man, and retorted that she’d rather die.

When his daughter refused to comply, he took an alternative approach calling upon his most loyal workers to execute the labourer. As the overseer of the estate, it was not difficult for him to persuade them to get the job done. However, word got back to Maria of her father’s plan, and was advised to warn her lover of his inevitable fate if he didn’t leave. Angry and terrified she left her home on a mission, determined to save her love. Unfortunately, Maria never makes it, on her way to him she is bitten by a snake but still she continued on, weakened by the venom, she falls to her death from the hill. Whether, the labourer is murdered by her father’s men, or they find Maria’s body before they could, is not known.

Grief stricken by the loss of his daughter, her father constructs a statue of the Virgin Mary in her memory, on the estate’s tallest hill where he pleaded for her forgiveness. Over the last century, since her death, people claimed to have seen Maria’s ghost trying to cross the Solomon Hochoy highway, where the statue still stands today, although decapitated.”

From Angelo Bissessarsingh’s Virtual Museum of Trinidad and Tobago:

“Many motorists travelling this stretch of roadway in the dead of night have been brought to a screeching halt or worse by swerving to avoid the apparition of a young girl seen darting across the double carriageway. Some have actually stopped to explore the nearby bushes on the verge of the roadway for evidence of her flight but to no avail.

a. i spent 16 years in orthodox day school, i guarantee i’ve learned a fuck ton of gemara.

“Ascending Jacob's Ladder: Jewish Views of Angels, Demons, and Evil Spirits” by Rabbi Ronald Isaacs

“A Treasury of Jewish Folklore” by Nathan Ausubel

“Divination, Magic, and Healing: The Book of Jewish Folklore” by Rabbi Ronald Isaacs

“Elijah’s Violin & Other Jewish Fairy Tales” by Howard Schwartz

“Gabriel’s Palace: Jewish Mystical Tales” by Howard Schwartz

“Golem: Jewish Magical and Mystical Traditions on the Artificial Anthropoid” by Moshe Idel

“Jewish Magic and Superstition: A Study in Folk Religion” by Rabbi Joshua Trachtenberg

“Magic, Mysticism, and Hasidism: The Supernatural in Jewish Thought” by Gedalyah Nigal

“Mimekor Yisrael: Selected Jewish Classical Folktales” by Micha Berdyczewski

“Miriam's Tambourine: Jewish Folktales from Around the World” by Howard Schwartz

“Next Year in Jerusalem: 3000 Years of Jewish Stories” by Howard Schwartz

“Ritual Medical Lore of Sephardic Women: Sweetening the Spirits, Healing the Sick” by Isaac Lévy and Rosemary Lévy Zumwalt

“The Bride Who Argued With G-d: Tales From the Trea­sury of Jew­ish Folklore” by Hava Ben-Zvi

“The Diamond Tree: Jewish Tales from Around the World” by Howard Schwartz

“The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic & Mysticism” by Rabbi Geoffrey W. Dennis

https://openlibrary.org/books/OL26399643M/Hatupatu_and_the_birdwoman

From what I get, "unclear". I am not a big expert on this so my sources will be bilingual Wikipedia... On the English Wikipedia you have mention that the first actual record of a belief in a Tooth Fairy comes from a 1908 article in the Chicago Daily Tribune - so this would make it American - but the belief in such an entity would take root in English superstitions going back to the Middle-Ages, such as children being told their baby teeth had to be burned else they would be looking for them in the afterlife.

As for the French Wikipedia... Well they don't speak about her/it because in France we have the Tooth Mouse. They just mention how it is the tooth-collecting figure in both Anglophone and Germanic cultures (Tooth fairy for England, Zahnfee for Germany, Tannfe in Norway), with also her often dominating in other countries where both the Fairy and the Mouse co-exist (like in Italy).

I will need to check one more thing...

... There we go. I checked Jacqueline Simpson's "The Folklore of Discworld" book - which is a VERY interesting book and I knew there would be something on the Tooth Fairy, given its importance in the Discworld (well, for "Hogfather" anyway).

Jacqueline Simpson says that "The Tooth Fairy" as an identified, singular entity comes from "America somewhere around 1960" (so Simpson wasn't apparently aware of the American article of 1908 shared by Wikipedia), but that it is since "about a hundred years" that in Britain people believe that "fairies" in general collect children's milk teeth from under pillows, leaving money in exchange. Simpson mentions however how before there is zero mention of "tooth fairies" in Victorian folklore - though she does note that Victorian folklorists were only interested in "exciting unusual customs and beliefs", so that if the tooth fairies were part of "everyday stuff in their own homes" they likely would not have been interested in it. Simpson then goes on to say the British current belief in a singular "Tooth Fairy" is due to American influence.

Simpson then proposes to see, as the earliest "trace" of the "tooth fairies", a specific poem from 17th century England, which is the "only" piece of evidence according to which "elves and fairies collect pretty little items from the human world" to decorate their dwellings in fairyland: the poem "Oberon's Palace", by Robert Herrick, 444th poem of his 1648's book "Hesperides". The poem describes the little grotto where Oberon the Fairy King makes love to Queen Mab - and we remain in the Romeo and Juliet's "Mab speech" logic of VERY little, very tiny fairies, as the cave walls are decorated with peacock feathers, fish scales, blue snake skins, dewdrops, etc... But the floor is a "mosaic of plum-tree gum, dice, brown toadstones, human fingernails, warts, and the teeth of squirrels and children "lately shed". Herrick goes on to say all these brings were "brought hither by the Elves". So we have here an idea that sets us on the path of what would later become the "tooth fairies".

Simpson also adds that while the 17th century didn't seem to have "tooth fairies", only maybe "teeth elves", there was however an actual recorded, recognized habit of getting rid of shed teeth - children would have to rub the tooth with salt and throw it in the fire. It was an habit that lasted all the way up to 1950s Britain, especially in the north of England, where this verse was preserved: "Fire, fire, burn a bone / God send me a tooth again / A straight one, a strong one / A white shiny bright one".

That was for the book.

Sasabonsam: The Vampire of the West African Forest 🧛🦇

Descriptions of the Sasabonsam vary across regions and traditions. Some accounts portray it as a humanoid creature with iron teeth, bloodshot eyes, long hair, and powerful legs. Others describe it with bat like wings, hooked feet, and an enormous wingspan. In many legends, it hangs from trees and captures victims before feeding on their blood.

Beyond its terrifying appearance, the Sasabonsam served an important role in traditional storytelling. Folklore scholars note that tales of the creature helped teach respect for the forest and its natural boundaries. In some Akan traditions, the Sasabonsam was seen as a guardian of sacred woodland areas, enforcing rules that protected the land from overuse and destruction.

As the legend evolved over centuries, the Sasabonsam became associated with witches, dark magic, and supernatural dangers. Christian missionaries later emphasized its demonic qualities, transforming it into a symbol of evil in some communities.