hello! first time poster to this sub; i've grown to be very curious and fascinated with appalachian folklore and wish to read into it more. most material i look up is your classic nosleep horror story, but i want to know more about the passed-down legends, stories and traditions from that area. any resource, piece of literature or personal story helps! thank you
My new album ‘A Straunge and Terrible Wunder’ is now available on Bandcamp for pre-order!
My 3rd album on @wrong_speed_records and one I’m really proud of. It’s a soundtrack to East Anglia’s most iconic folklore tale of Black Shuck at its most fearsome.
Limited edition ‘Scorchmark Splatter’ vinyl.
A bunch of extras included (inlays, booklets, postcards)
Heavy & Spooky mastering by Wayne Adams
Incredible art, typography and sigils by Danny Davies
Design and layout by Chris Summerlin
Photography by Steve Gullick
In memory of my mate Matt Parke who died at Xmas time. ❤️
It’s an amazing package. Head over to Bandcamp to preorder.
https://thebreedling.bandcamp.com/album/a-straunge-and-terrible-wunder
Hello everyone, I’m looking specifically for information on vampire folklore around different parts of the world. I’ve done a fair bit of research on the vyrkolaks and strigoi between others, but I’m fairly interested to learn more about vampire folklore in different parts of the world and from different cultures.
Fair enough to assume, all myths begin from real stories, so I suppose I’m trying to learn and figure out what the real story behind the vampire folklore is.
I’ve read in several researches mentions to what we nowadays call post mortem, body twitches after death and decomposition. So I lean towards believing this, having been something not fully understood in those times when vampire folklore was born, was something that gave way to all the vampirism stories and mythology. However, I do want to understand better the emerging background of vampire folklore.
I’ve also found mentions of “supernatural powers” vampires were thought to have, such as shapeshifting, compulsion, etc. some of these are actually even discussed within popular tv shows and films.
I’m currently looking into acquiring the book Vampires: A Handbook of History & Lore of the Undead by Agnes Hollyhock. If anyone has any other suggestions for reading material, I’ll be glad to hear them too!
Thanks in advance!
Hi all :)
Im trying to make some original characters with the main premise of them being witches from different countries and backgrounds.
Im really inspired how different folklore differentiates in different countries and religions. I wanted to ask from your own background or country of origin what folklore about witches does your country believe in or tales about similar supernatural circumstances. Just a curious question for research proposes :D
There's a new chapter every Friday on Wattpad @TheZenPenguin, there's also a link in my profile
Hello there everyone so I've been a folklore nerd for a good bit and after trying to do a deep dive into first nations folklore and specifcally the witigo spirit and how it was described I could not help but notice some major overlaps with Algonquin and Dinee folklore with the idea of a ulveham wolf skin being needed for a transformation alongside the taboos of murder and cannibalism. I can't help but see some similarities with the above mentioned first nations folkelore beings. So I want to hear what people who are alot more learned than me think, am I grasping at straws?
I've been deep in research on Brazilian folklore for a personal project, and the more I learn about Caipora, the more I'm convinced she's one of the most fascinating mythological figures that almost never gets discussed outside of Brazil.
Here's what makes her different from most folklore creatures:
She's not a monster. She's not a demon. She's something harder to categorize — a force of nature with her own moral logic.
Caipora (also spelled Curupira in some regional traditions, though they're distinct figures) is described as a small, dark-skinned being who lives deep in the Brazilian forest. She rides a peccary — a wild pig native to South America — through the forest at midnight. She smokes a pipe made from a wild plant called taquara. She speaks to every animal in the forest, and they obey her.
Her purpose is protection. She guards the animals of the forest from hunters who take more than they need. The rule in Brazilian oral tradition is very specific: hunting for survival is tolerated. Hunting for sport or excess is punished.
The punishments are elaborate. She confuses hunters in the forest — makes them walk in circles for days, unable to find their way out. She mimics sounds to lead them astray. In some versions, she can shapeshift entirely to deceive. There are accounts in Brazilian folklore collections going back centuries of hunters swearing they encountered her and barely escaped.
What I find most interesting is how morally complex she is compared to similar figures in other traditions. She's not random or cruel. She has a clear code. And within that code, there's actually a way to earn her respect — some traditions say a hunter who leaves a tobacco offering and asks permission before hunting will be protected by her rather than hunted.
She appears across multiple Brazilian states with slightly different characteristics depending on the region — the Tupi-Guarani indigenous traditions are the earliest source, but she absorbed and evolved through centuries of contact with Portuguese colonizers and African enslaved peoples brought to Brazil. The figure that exists in popular Brazilian culture today is a synthesis of all of that.
Has anyone here encountered Caipora in any academic sources or other contexts? I'd love to know if there are parallel figures in other traditions — the "forest guardian with a moral code" archetype feels universal but I can't find many direct comparisons.
Hello! I've been interested in stories set in the future for years, regardless of genre or form (novels, radio plays, TV series, games, etc.). However, until now, I've mainly devoured contemporary cultural works dedicated to this topic and hadn't really considered how long people have been creating stories set in (their) future times. But, since I'm running out of ideas for what to read or watch on this topic, today I spontaneously wondered: are there any fairy tales or legends that focus on depicting the (relative) future? I'm specifically referring to stories told by people over many hundreds of years. Do we have any stories that indicate that in the old times, people even wondered what would happen in the next few decades or even centuries? I'd be grateful for any answers!
I tried reading Ajbjornsen's Norse stories and Calvino's Italian folktales, but it is all colored in Christianity. Which has its own beauty, but I would like to find some folktales from pre-christian pagan era.
Thank you for the help.
I'm reading a book by early-20th-century-occultist,-but-also-maybe-a-Catholic-priest Montague Summers about the history of werewolves.
He mentions, in a footnote, that Spain does not have a strong werewolf tradition, especially compared with the rest of Europe.
I was curious if (a) this is even true (Summers is ChatGPT before ChatGPT existed; he doesn't always know the difference between a fact and something that is fact-shaped); and (b) if there was a reason why? It's not from a lack of wolves.
ETA: The first image is of the Dover Thrift Edition of Summers's The Werewolf in Lore and Legend. It's a woodcut of what looks to be an Aztec being mauled by a wolfish beast. There's no notation, inside or out, to tell who the artist is, or the subject.
The second image is a black-and-white photo of Montague Summers.
Like I mean theres so many. Brownies, leprechauns, tomtes/nissas, gnomes, gonks like why 😭. Also where do each of them live like does someone have a map?
As Noon settles over the savanna, a tribe of Tokoloshe relaxes after a long day of foraging. Unbeknownst to them, a hungry Big Cat, Skehmet has been stalking them through the tall grass, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
The elder is unaware to process what’s going on while the rest of the tribe tries to warn him even though his fate is sealed in the jaws of the feline.
The Tokoloshe originates from South African folklore, its akin to the goblins from Europe it’s interesting to explore other cultures out there, also Skehmet was a mix of multiple species such as; Caracal, Leopard, and a bit of Saber tooth.
The idea of fantasy creatures being preyed upon a normal looking animal comparable to real life it’s pretty interesting, I love how it turned out and it’s really great to add in my art portfolio one day!! 🤞
Hi - I'm looking for book recommendations about folklore and legend. I've always been interested in folk tales and myths, and read lots of child-friendly books about them and them fiction based on mythology as I grew up (yes, Percy Jackson, but I ate up anything with that folkloric vibe!) I studied Classics at school and ever since I have always delighted in morsels and little stories about folklore as I go through life. But I've never properly sat down intending to learn more folk tales and legends.
I would love recommendations of your favourite non-fiction books about folklore. Something that's an introduction to different folk traditions around the world, or something focusing more on the folklore of the British Isles or Scandinavia. Also open to fiction that feels like an immersive experience in those specific folk traditions!
I’ve been looking into Folklore vampires as of late and have found them to be far more interesting and terrifying compared to the modern “sexy vampire.” Does anyone know of any great books, YouTube videos, or documentaries about vampires and their differences between cultures?
I’m from Bulgaria and I’ve always been fascinated by samodivi. In our folklore they’re described as spirits of dead women who become beautiful but dangerous beings, living in forests and mountains. People say they appear in remote places and at night, often near water or in deep woods.
Growing up, I heard stories that you should avoid the places where they dance, because if you see them or disturb them, you can get lost, fall under a kind of spell, or something bad can happen to you. They’re not really “evil”, but they’re definitely not safe either.
I was wondering if anyone outside Bulgaria has heard of them, or if there are similar beings in other cultures. They feel a bit like fairies or nymphs, but darker.
Just curious what they remind you of.
Thanks for any help. I love fairy tales, I love poetry. I'm looking for a bit of poetic verse featured in a fairy tale/folk tale?? something really jewelled and beautiful.
Also just as an interest, fairy tales where poetry is a focus of the story.
Thank you 🌚🌿🌀