some lesser known mythical creatures

jikininki

Jikininki are from Japanese Buddhism and they mean human eating ghosts. They are spirits of cursed individuals who were greedy in life, and are now forced to seek out and eat corpses.

dullahan

The Dullahan is from Irish legends and it means without a head. Its a headless horseman, who rides a black horse and carries his head in one hand and a human spine on the other hand, which it uses as a whip.

blemmyes

Another form of headless creatures, the Blemmyes; they are cannibals and have faces on their chest. They lived in ancient Libya according to Herodotus. Their name is formed using two Hebrew terms, which roughly translate to “no brain”.

pontianak

This is from Indonesian mythology and the word literally means “woman who died in childbirth”. You know its a Pontianak, when you hear a baby cry, which is how they announce their presence.

abarimon

Abarimon are a legendary race of people from a country with the same name, where they live side by side with animals. They have backwards feet, and in spite of that, are able to run at great speeds.

leshy

A leshy is a woodland spirit from Slavic legends which protects animals and forests. It is a tall creature which can change its size, has hair and a beard made out of living grass and vines, and it has a tail, hooves, and horns. It’s skin is pale and its eyes are green. It is close to the gray wolf and bears. As a weapon it carries a club and its considered to be the lord of the forest. They also have no shadow.

bakhtak

Ever have a nightmare? Of course you have, according to Persian legends a Bakhtak is a creature you can blame this for. It’s invisible and it sits on the chest of its victims, turning their dreams into nightmares and it weighs so much that it also causes sleep paralysis in its victims.

bean nighe

A Scottish fairy, said to be a messenger from the underworld to bring omens of death. It’s name literally means “washerwoman”.

akaname

A demon from Japanese folklore, this unusual creature commonly takes the form of a red and warty humanoid with frog-like features and a long tongue. Its name means Filth Licker, which is essentially all it does with its life: lick filth.

manananggal

The manananggal is generally described as a female, though it’s believed to be a hermaphrodite, and has a nasty tendency to suck blood and devour human flesh.