The International Guide to the Mythological

Origin: English and Scandinavian Habitat: Churchyards Behavior: Moderate Description:  A ghost of a big black dog. Facts:  Church grims oversee the welfare of a particular  church  and protects the  churchyard  from those who would profane and commit  sacrilege  against it.  It dwells in the churchtower or some other place of concealment, or wanders the grounds at night.  In English and Scandinavian folklore, when a new churchyard is opened it is believed that the first person buried there had to guard it against the devil. In order to prevent a human soul from having to perform such a duty, a dog is buried on the north part of the churchyard as a substitute.  In Yorkshire tradition, it is an ominous parent and is known to toll the church bell at midnight before a death.  They are associated with dark stormy weather . It often appears as a  black dog  but is known to take the fo...

Origin: Dutch Mythology/Legend Habitat: Streets Behavior: Aggressive Description:  Oude Rode Ogen was said to have been a 7-foot-tall (2.1 m) black man who changed into a large black dog with fiery red eyes. In more recent times he has taken the form of a dark shadow figure with red eyes whose late evening appearance is usually followed by a menacing dog's growl.  Facts: Oude Rode Ogen  or  Old Red Eyes , otherwise known as  The Beast of Flanders , is a Dutch bogeyman or ghost  whose tales and sightings began after a true series of events . The legend of Oude Rode Ogen began in the Flanders region of Belgium in the late 17th century after reports of children who went missing and were believed to be victims of a cannibalistic shape shifter.  Witnesses claimed to have seen a large naked black man running away after trying to steal a young girl from her bed . He was shot at and seen to change into a large...

Origin: American Colonial Mythology Habitat: Forests, Woods, Behavior: Aggressive Description: Due to its nature, it has never been seen before. Some have reported it as furry and tall.  Facts: The Hidebehind is said to prey upon humans that wander the woods at night , and was credited for the disappearances of early colonial loggers when they failed to return to camp.  As its name suggests, the Hidebehind is noted for its ability to conceal itself. When an observer attempts to look directly at it, the creature can suck in and morph its body to  hides again behind an object of any shape or the observer and therefore can’t be directly seen.  The Hidebehind uses this ability to stalk human prey without being observed and to attack without warning. Once the person is killed, the Hidebehind drags the person back to their lair to be eaten. The Hidebehind enjoys eating intestines specifically. 

Origin: Arabian Mythology  Habitat: Inanimate Object (Lamp) Behavior: Aggressive Description:  A race of supernaturally empowered beings with shapeshifting abilities. They are often portrayed as having a demonic-like appearance, but they can also appear in beautiful, seductive forms.  Facts:  Djinn have the ability to intervene in the affairs of people . Djinn are self-propagating and can be either good or evil. They can be conjured in magical rites to perform various tasks and services. A djinni (singular) appears as a wish-granting “genie” in folk tales such as in The Book of 1001 Nights collection of folk tales.  The djinn are masterful shape-shifters, and their favored forms are snakes and black dogs . They also can masquerade as anything: humans, animals, ghosts, cryptids, and other entities such as extraterrestrials, demons, shadow people, fairies, angels and more.  They exist in their own realm, possibly a parallel dimension, ...

Origin: Philippine Mythology Habitat: Mountains, Forests Behavior: Moderate Description:  It is a tall, bony humanoid creature with the head and hooves of a horse and disproportionately long limbs, to the point that its knees reach above its head when it squats down. Facts:  The form of the Tikbalang traces back 4000 years, with roots in Hinduism.  Tikbalangs scare travelers, lead them astray and play tricks on them such that the travelers keep on returning to an arbitrary path no matter how far they go or turn. This is counteracted by wearing one's shirt inside out. Another countermeasure is to ask permission out loud to pass by or, not to produce too much noise while in the woods in order not to offend or disturb the tikbalang.  A superstition popular with the Tagalog of Rizal Province is that Tikbalangs are benevolent guardians of elemental kingdoms. They are usually found standing at the foot of large trees looking arou...

Origin: South American Mythology Habitat: Mountains, Jungles, Woods, Forests Behavior: Aggressive Description:  They can take on the appearance of a beautiful woman but when changing into their true form, the most notable feature is their one leg terminating into a bovine-like hoof . They is described as possessing one breast, bulging eyes, catlike fangs, a hooked nose, big lips, and tangled hair.  Facts: Deriving from vampire mythology, the Parasola or "One foot" is a female monster from the jungle who lures men away from their companions and sucks the blood from her victims .  They can transform into other animals,  materializing as a large black dog or cow.  They often interferes with work by blocking shortcuts through jungles, disorienting hunters, and throwing hunting dogs off the scent of their game.  They is  usually regarded as protective of nature and the forest animals and unforgiving when humans enter their doma...

Origin: Norse  mythology Habitat: Graveyards/Gravesite Behavior: Aggressive Description:  They are d ead bodies usually swollen, blackened or dead blue skin, and generally hideous to look at. Their bodies are described as being extremely heavy. Facts: Draugar live in their graves, often guarding treasure buried with them in their burial mound, wreak havoc on living beings, or torment those who had wronged them in life. They are animated corpses — unlike ghosts they have a corporeal body with similar physical abilities as in life. Older literature makes clear distinctions between sea-draugar and land-draugar.  Draugar possess superhuman strength , can increase their size at will, and carry the unmistakable stench of decay.  They are also noted for the ability to rise from the grave as wisps of smoke and "swim" through solid rock ,  which would be useful as a means of exiting their graves.  In folklore, draugar slay their victims through va...