When I saw you guys suggesting this video my first thought was wow, how did I forget
to this one already, my second thought was - Ive got to do this right away.
So I did - I guess theres no reason to tell you that.
Today were going to Jamaica to look at some truly unique and bone chilling stories that
you will not forget in a hurry.
My name is Danny Burke and this is the Top 10 Jamaican Urban Legends.
Starting off at number 10 now we have Duppies.
This is a word of Jamaican origin meaning ghost or spirit - they are generally regarded
as evil - coming out to haunt people and night.
Theyve been seen by many Jamaicans and come in a number of different forms, some of which
well be discussing later.
A Duppy is regarded as a powerful being that can visit anytime of the day or night and
cause havoc or pain to invoke maximum fear in their chosen victim.
They are often the soul of a dead person that can take on human or animal form and sometimes
appear as a bull like creature bound in chains.
Many people fear that when their enemies die, they will come back to haunt them as a Duppy.
Contrary to belief, this works alongside the belief in heaven.
Its thought that after death, the soul of a person deemed as good goes to heaven to
be judge by God.
Before that, the spirit remains attatched to the body for 3 days.
This is the time when the spirits have a chance to escape and become a Duppy.
Duppy sightings often describe them violently attacking people, sometimes with rocks, other
times by violently shaking them.
We have a specific type of Duppy now at number 9 with the Rolling calf.
Some say this is the worst and most feared of all the spirits.
The rolling part of the name means roaming.
Its a shapeshifter that can appear in a number of different forms.
Its said that the most common are that of a hornless goat, black or white or spotted.
One of its front legs is human, the other is that of a horse and the two hind legs are
a goats.
Its tail curls over its back.
Its eyes are red and glow like blazing fires - its nose spits hot flames.
There is a collar on its neck with a chain that rattles and drags on the ground - warning
people of its approach.
A rolling calf is created from the soul of an especially evil person.
Murderers will always return as a rolling calf.
They seek to continue their evil ways by blowing bad breath on people which can cause all kinds
of calamity and suffering.
They are said to be found in bamboo and cottonwood as well as caves as abandoned houses.
Even so, they have been known to turn up pretty much wherever they please, bringing fear into
the hearts of those in the area …
Next up at number 8 we have Ol’ Hige.
This is said to be a witch like creature who is particularly gross in my opinion.
She is said to shed her skin and fly by night, taking on the form of an evil owl.
Her weapon of choise to kill humans is to suck out their breath when they are sleeping.
Using this method, she is said to be especially dangerous to babies.
However, her need to shed skin, while disgusting, is also the source of her weakness.
They say you need to put salt and pepper on the shed skin.
She will then be able to put the skin back on like normal because it will burn too much.
As the layers shed, she becomes weaker and vulnerable to attack.
Some versions of the story state that the person who finds the skin of Ol Hige must
say the words -Salt and pepper for you momma?- while pouring the mixture onto the skin.
Others say that laying an open bible beside a babies crib to protect them from the witch.
Creepy stuff.
Next up at number 7 we have River Mumma.
She is essentially a mermaid.
Jamaican legend says that she inhabits the countrys rivers and that all the fish are
her children.
People say she sometimes climbs out of the river to sit on the rocks and comb her long
black hair.
She may be a sight to see, but locals say you should never look at her - even for a
moment.
Theres no telling what she will do if you try.
Some say a since peek will cause you to fall into a deep trance.
At that point, shell grab you by the heels and drag you under the river.
Of course, with a creature like this on the loose, you may think people would want to
put an end to the creature - but thats not a good idea.
They say that if you try to catch River Mumma, all the fish in the river will disappear and
the river will run dry.
The best course of action is to just hope you don't cross paths with her.
Next up at number 6 we have Annee Palmer.
Many in Jamaica have heard of this famous ghost, also known as the White Witch.
Shes said to haunt the grounds of Rose Hall Plantation near Montego Bay.
The story goes that she was born in Haiti to an English mother and Irish father, spending
most of her life there.
When her parents died of yellow fever, she was adopted by a nanny who taught her witchcraft
and voodoo.
Annee moved to Jamaica and married John Palmer, owner of the Rose Hall Plantation.
Corrupted by the witchcraft she had been taught, Annee murdered her husband and also her next
2 husband while also killing a number of male plantation slaves.
Her killing spree was eventually brought to an end when she herself was murdered by a
slave named Takoo.
She had met her match in him as he was also trained in the ways of witchcraft.
Annee was buried in a tomb on the grounds.
Local legend says that her tomb was supposed to be sealed with a Voodoo ritual that would
have kept her spirit imprisoned there forever.
However, the ritual was never completed, leaving her ghost to roam free.
Many have reported seeing her ghost riding her horse around the plantation, or stood
on the balcony overlooking the grounds …
Next up at number 5 we have The Cotton Tree.
Many caribbean countries have spiritual stories linked to cotton trees.
In Jamaica, some believe that cotton trees are the resting place of spirits of the dead,
particularly its roots and branches.
Many of the Duppies we talked about earlier on the video are said to call a cotton tree
their home.
The belief is so prevalent that some people have refused to cut down silk cotton trees
for fear of releasing the spirits inside.
There was once even a case in Guyana of a highway being split into two lanes during
construction in order to avoid a sacred cotton tree there and not release its spirits.
Moving on to number 4 now we have The Legend of Lovers Leap.
In the 18th century, there were two slave lovers named Mizzy and Tunkey.
Legend says that the slave master took a liking to the girl.
He intended to break them up and showered her with gifts.
In a bid to have her for himself, he arranged for her lover to be sold off to another estate.
However, their love was too strong.
One night, they fled from the plantation.
Eventually though, their captors caught up with them and chased them to to the edge of
a large cliff.
After a few moments - they made up their minds and knew what they wanted to do.
Rather than face being caught and separated, the pair chose to end their lives by jumping
off the cliff together.
Forevermore, that spot was named Lovers Leap in dedication to their love in the face of
such evil.
Local legend says their spirits still live there, bound to each other.
Some say that if you stand on the cliff and look up on a clear night, you may catch a
glimpse of two falling stars, tumbling side by side.
Next up at number 3 now we have the Three Legged Horse and The Whooping Boy.
The Three Legged horse is another kind of duppy that many Jamaicans know about.
As you can probably gather from the name, this spirit takes the shape of a horse with
3 legs.
However, despite missing a leg, it can run faster than any horse youve ever seen.
It kills its victims by blowing hot air on them, roaming the Jamaican countryside.
It can be seen by moonlight, striking fear into the hearts of witnesses.
However, there are some ways to fight it and not be killed.
Firstly, it will never attack you in the dark.
It needs sunlight or artificial light to be able to attack you - so, the darker the better.
If you do find yourself being attacked in the light though - trees are your friend.
Its said that the 3 legged horse cannot attack you if you climb up a tree.
Only one being can ride the 3 legged horse, and that is the Whooping Boy.
He is another Duppy that which takes the form of a boy with long hair and red eyes.
He also kills by breathing hot hair on people.
He gets his name from the wild whooping sounds he cries while wandering at night or riding
the 3 legged horse.
Theyre scary alone, terrifying when together.
Moving on to number 2 nowe have The Flat Bridge Horror.
Accidents happen, but when they keep happening in the same spot - it raises some eyebrows.
Flat Bridge is one of those places, over the years its seen a number of people die - far
more than there should be.
Some put it down to the bridges poor condition but there are many who blame the Duppies.
They say that the spirits of those who died constructing the brdige now haunt it.
They are the ones to blame for all the accidents and vehicles pulled into the river.
They say when the water turns the colour of a green lizard, the duppies are going to pull
somebody in soon.
Others say its the work of mermaids who live in a bottomless hole just below the bridge.
Many believe that the mermaids are the reason each attempt to build a ridge along the bridge
has failed.
However, there is some good to their story, legend says that they can point the way to
a gold table that lies in the water under that bridge.
It surfaces on the hottest days at noon in the river.
Perhaps the most recent story to come from this bridge happened in 2016 when a car plunged
off it, killing 5.
Shane Harris was a 19 year old survivor.
He said that when the car was in the water, he couldn't find a way out.
Then he saw a white bright light, brighter than anything hed seen before - and out of
the light came a hand.
He grabbed the hand and when he opened his eyes, he was on the surface.
He said that just before the crash, they were talking about the legendary tale of the mermaid.
And finally at number 1 we have The Man From The Picture.
This story was posted by a woman to a forum and it goes like this.
One hot summer night she was cooling off by the window by a side passage to her house
which was secured by a metal grill.
She went to bed as normal but then suddenly woke from her sleep.
She looked out of the window and standing there was a tall elderly man.
He had a stern look on his face, his hands were folded behind his back.
He looked very real except but also not at the same time.
She stared at him for what felt like forever until eventually she threw her sheet over
her head and lay there trembling until finally falling asleep.
She woke up the next morning and rushed to tell her Grandmother what she had seen.
She hadnt even finished before her Grandmother said -Oh, you saw Jack last- … she asked
who Jack was.
The grandmother went to look for something.
She came back a few minutes later with a picture in his hand.
In the picture there was a tall man who looked exactly the same as the man she had seen the
night before at her window.
She broke down in tears, it was her first ghost experience.
She later found out that Jack was actually her great grandmothers father and he was buried
near the house on some family land.
She said she never forgotten the image of the man she woke up to standing at the window.
Thank you Jamaica, for such interesting and scary stories - I loved how unique they were
too - some of those are totally unique to Jamaica, I like that - we should do some more
unique countries next.
Do you guys know any countries whos scary stories are different to everyone elses?
Let me know, thanks for watching, Im Danny Burke and Ill see you all in the next video.