Nang Tani (; "Lady of Tani") is a female spirit of the Thai folklore. According to folk tradition, this

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

appears as a young woman that haunts wild

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...

trees (''

Musa balbisiana ''Musa balbisiana'', also known simply as plantain, is a wild-type species of banana. It is one of the ancestors of modern cultivated bananas, along with '' Musa acuminata''. Description It grows lush leaves in clumps with a more upright habit ...

''), known in

Thai language Thai,In or Central Thai (historically Siamese;Although "Thai" and "Central Thai" have become more common, the older term, "Siamese", is still used by linguists, especially when it is being distinguished from other Tai languages (Diller 2008:6 ...

as ''Kluai Tani'' (กล้วยตานี). ''Nang Tani'' belongs to a type of female

s or

fairies A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...

related to trees known generically as '' Nang Mai'' (นางไม้; "Lady of the Wood") in the Thai lore. There is a similar spirit in the

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

n folklore, as well as in the Lao popular tradition. ''Nang Tani'' may also be called ''Phi Tani'' (ผีตานี; "Ghost of Tani") or ''Phrai Tani'' (พรายตานี; "Nymph of Tani").

Legends

This ghost inhabits the clumps of wild banana trees and is popularly represented as a beautiful young woman wearing a green traditional Thai costume. Most of the time ''Phi Tani'' remains hidden, but she comes out of the tree and becomes visible especially on full moon nights. She has a greenish complexion, blending with the tree, but her lips have the red color of the ripe ivy gourd. Her hair is black, abundant and untied. She generally appears in a standing position and her feet don't touch the ground, but hover slightly above it. In some modern representations the lower part of her body is represented with an immaterial quality, her waist cloth ending in a kind of wisp emanating from the tree trunk. It is considered a bad omen to cut trees from the clump ''Tani'' inhabits. Offerings are made to her in the form of sweets, incense sticks and flowers. People also often tie a length of colored satin cloth around the trunk of the banana tree believed to be haunted by her. The ''Kluai Tani'' type of banana tree does not belong to the cultivated varieties. Owing to their connection with ghosts, people prefer not to have them growing near their homes and they are not found within village compounds. However, clumps of this tree are found not far from inhabited areas, often at the outskirts of villages or at the edge of cultivated fields by the roadside. They look very much like average banana trees, but their fruits are not edible. Their leaves are commonly used in Thailand to wrap locally produced sweets and the

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

for the treatment of

ulcer An ulcer is a discontinuity or break in a bodily membrane that impedes normal function of the affected organ. According to Robbins's pathology, "ulcer is the breach of the continuity of skin, epithelium or mucous membrane caused by sloughin ...

s in

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

. Legends of the Thai

oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication in which knowledge, art, ideas and culture are received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another.Jan Vansina, Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (19 ...

say that this spirit may harm men, especially those who have wronged women, but she is mostly considered benevolent. ''Nang Tani'' generally has a gentle disposition and may give food to passing Buddhist monks.

Amulets An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word , which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects a pers ...

featuring Nang Tani are popular and come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some people tie lengths of colored silk around the trunks of the banana trees reputed to be haunted by ''Nang Tani''.

Modern adaptations

''Nang Tani'' is a popular folk spirit that has been featured in some Thai films such as '' Nang Phrai Tani'' (นางพรายตานี), a film made in 1967 that has become a

classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of Masterpiece, lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or Literary merit, highest quality, class, or rank – something that Exemplification, exemplifies its ...

. ''

Nang Tani Nang Tani (; "Lady of Tani") is a female spirit of the Thai folklore. According to folk tradition, this ghost appears as a young woman that haunts wild banana trees (''Musa balbisiana''), known in Thai language as ''Kluai Tani'' (กล้ว� ...

'' (นางตานี), Tani Thi Rak (ตานีที่รัก), Mon Rak Nang Phrai Patha Nang Tani (มนต์รักนางพรายปะทะนางตานี) and 2000 film Phrai Tani (พรายตานี), are less important movies in which the banana tree ghost plays the main role. She also plays a role in other films such as horror movie Nang Phrai Khanong Rak (นางพรายคะนองรัก), among others. ''Tani'' appeared as well in a Sylvania light bulb commercial for Thai audiences. This female ghost is much loved in Thai

popular culture Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art

f. pop art F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distributi ...

or mass art, sometimes contraste ...

, representations and stories about her, sometimes humorous, are common in Thai comic

books A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, mo ...

and story books. Tani has a role as well in the '' Nak'' animated movie. In the PC

MMORPG A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...

Ragnarok Online ''Ragnarok Online'' (, ''Rageunarokeu Onrain'' marketed as ''Ragnarök'', and alternatively subtitled ''The Final Destiny of the Gods'') is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) created by Gravity (Korean company), Gravity based ...

'', ''Nang Tani'' is inspiration of the MVP boss character Lady Tanee of the Ayothaya Dungeon.

Similar ghosts

* Bashōnosei: Japanese ghostly banana trees (''

Musa basjoo ''Musa basjoo'', known variously as Japanese banana, Japanese fiber banana or hardy banana, is a species of flowering plant belonging to the banana family Musaceae. It was previously thought to have originated in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan, f ...

''), they usually appear as a human face amongst the broad, flat banana leaves. If any woman sees a handsome man underneath bashōnosei, it means she is about to become pregnant and later will give birth to children who will be demons. This legend originates from the

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...

Legends

Modern adaptations

Similar ghosts

See also

References

External links