Since the dawn of time, humans have been telling stories, passing them down from generation
to generation.
From urban legends, to ghost stories, to terrifying creatures from folklore -- the stories never
cease.
So today on Top 5 Scary Videos, I’m going to be counting down our list of the Top 5
Scary Monsters From Folklore.
Before we begin though, be sure to stick around until the end of the video where I’ll be
responding to some of your comments, and with that, let’s jump in.
5 The Wendigo Also known as Windiga or Witiko, the Wendigo
originates from Native-American legend, and is said to be a demonic half-beast as told
by the Algonquian peoples along the Atlantic coast of the USA and Canada.
The legend itself lends its name to the disputed modern medical term Wendigo Psychosis, which
is supposed to be a culture-bound disorder.
To quote Basil Johnston, a teacher and scholar: “The Wendigo was gaunt to the point of emaciation,
it’s desiccated skin pulled tauntly over it’s bones.
With its bones pushing out against its skin, its complexion the ash grey of death, its
eyes pushed back deep into their sockets, the Wendigo looked like a gaunt skeleton recently
disinterred from the grave.
What lips it had were tattered and bloody.
Unclean and suffering from suppuration of the flesh, the Wendigo gave off a strange
and eerie odor of decay and decomposition, of death of corruption.”
The most common interpretation of the Wendigo is that it’s a spirit that possesses a person
after they resort to cannibalism -- whether that be under dire circumstances or not -- and
turns them into a wendigo.
They are also said to have an endless craving for human flesh and are sometimes said to
grow in proportion to the meals that they eat so that they never get full.
Wendigo’s are known to have superior speed and stealth, the ability to mimic human voices,
near perfect hunting skills, and in some cases, the ability to control the weather.
They are also known to bring darkness before dusk.
4 Dover Demon Originating in Dover, Massachusetts, The Dover
Demon is a small humanoid that was subject of an intensive scare during the 1970s, when
multiple witnesses came forward reporting sightings across the area.
This monster is described as looking like a gray alien, except that it has skin of a
rosy orange colouration.
It has a large head on a small body, and oftentimes travels on all fours.
Its eyes are said to glow, sometimes orange, sometimes green.
The first sighting begins at 10:32pm on April 12, when Bill Bartlett, Mike Mazzocca and
Andy Brodie were driving north on Farm Street.
Bartlett, who was driving, spotted something creepy along the side of the road -- thinking
it was a dog or cat he thought nothing of it, that was until his headlights illuminated
the creature.
The creature turned its head and looked at the group, his large head on his stick thin
body, and his eyes glowing an orange colour.
Now, skeptics claim that the Dover Demon is simply a lost baby moose which has been glimpsed
under unusual conditions, making it appear humanoid.
However, people don’t believe this explanation and point out that all sightings happened
during the wrong time of year for a moose that small to exist.
3 Baba Yaga Hailing from Slavic folklore, the Baba Yaga
is a supernatural being or witch that takes on the form of an old hideous woman.
In some stories she is said to fly around in a mortar, wielding a pestle and dwelling
deep in the forest inside a hut that is said to stand on chicken legs.
Baba Yaga has become one of the most memorable and distinctive figures in European folklore.
In certain stories it is said that Baba Yaga may help or hinder those who encounter her
or seek her out.
In others she is known to kidnap children -- threatening to eat them; in fact, many
tales of witches living in houses made of candy or cake were named Baba Yaga.
In some stories heroes would venture into the wilderness to seek out the help of Baba
Yaga, asking her for advice or assistance in completing a quest.
Sometimes she played the role of an antagonist while other times she was a source of guidance.
No matter the story, she always drives a hard bargain, and will set out her conditions and
terms of the agreement.
All of her verbal contracts allowed her the right to eat anyone who was later unable or
unwilling to fulfill their end of the deal.
2 Dullahan (DOOL-a-HAN) The Dullahan, also known as the Headless Horseman,
is a type of Fae originating from Irish folklore.
It is said that this sinister being appears as either a man or a woman riding atop a black
hore, but the rider has no head upon their shoulders, instead it is carried under the
arm.
It is also said that the head appears dead and rotten with a demonic grin spread across
its face from ear to ear.
The Dullahan is also known to carry a whip made from a human’s spine, and sometimes
pulls a wagon which is adorned with funeral objects.
According to legend, around midnight on certain Irish festivals or feast days, the Dullahan
may be observed riding a dark and snorting steed across the countryside.
A storyteller from the Mourne Mountains once recounted his experience with the monster
stating: “I seen the Dullahan myself, stopping on the brow of the hill between Bryansford
and Moneyscalp late one evening, just ast the sun was setting.
It was completely headless but it held up its own head in its hand and I heard it call
out a name.
I put my hand across my ears in case the name was my own, so I couldn’t hear what it said.
When I looked again, it was gone.
But shortly afterwards, there was a bad car accident on that very hill and a young man
was killed.
It had been his name that the Dullahan was calling.”
Now, it is said when the Dullahan stops riding, that is where a person is due to die and when
a Dullahan calls out the person’s name, the person immediately perishes.
There is no way to block the road against a Dullahan -- all locks and gates open to
them when they approach.
They are however frightened of hold, and even a single gold pin can drive a Dullahan away.
1 Teke Teke Hailing from Japan, Teke Teke is a malevolent
ghost/demon similar to that of the infamous Kuchisake-onna, or the Slit-Mouthed Woman.
Teke Teke was originally a human who was bullied and in some stories assaulted, resulting in
her jumping off a train platform onto the tracks and getting cut in half by the oncoming
train.
It is said that she barely survived due to the cold weather, with her crawling to a person
for help, but instead of aiding her, they left her to die.
Now, Teke Teke’s vengeful spirit stalks the streets of Japan.
She often lurks in urban areas and around train stations at night.
Since she no longer has a lower half, she travels on either her hands or elbows, dragging
her upper torso and making a scratching “teke-teke”-like sound.
According to legend, if she encounters an individual, she will chase them and slice
them in half, killing them in such a way that mimics her own disfigurement.
One particular legend goes as follows: “As a young school boy was walking home at night,
he spotted a beautiful young girl standing by a windowsill resting on her elbows.
They smiled at each other for a moment.
They boy wondered what a girl was doing in an all-boys school, but before he could wonder
more about the girl, she jumped out of the window and revealed her lower half was missing.
Frightened, he stood on the sidewalk, but before he could run, she caught up to his
location quickly and cut the boy in half.”
Well, there we have it!
Do you guys agree with our list?
Were there any scary monsters from folklore that we missed?
Leave us all your thoughts and feelings in the comments down below and perhaps we can
do a part 2.
Before I go though, I just want to respond to a few comments from one of our last videos,
Top 5 Scary Horrors Movie Openings.
Kristen Guerra said: “Jaws is cool, it’s the ultimate nightmare, the nightmare that
will never end.”
---
Graham Barlow said: “I’m sure you left out the original “When A Stranger Calls”
to justify a part 2!” ---
Beezer said: “I love that you had Suspiria on this list.
The opening is great as is the whole movie.
I also love that you commented on Goblin’s score in the movie.
Speaking of scores, a video on the Top 5 Best Scores in Horror Films would be a great idea.”
---
Steve Kass said: “Alfred Hitchcock was a genius when it comes to suspense” ---
I’m The Canadian said: “Please don’t ever leave this channel Lucy.
And if you do ever want to leave please don’t.”
---
And on that note, if you haven’t already, be sure to give this video a big thumbs up,
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And until next time, see ya later.