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Yōkai
are a class of supernatural entities and Spirit (supernatural entity) , spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful", and while the Japanese name is simply the Japanese transliteration or pronunciation of the Chinese term ''yaoguai, yāoguài'' (which designates similarly strange creatures), some Japanese commentators argue that the word ''yōkai'' has taken on many different meanings in Japanese culture, including referring to a large number of uniquely Japanese creatures. are also referred to as , or . However, most Japanese generally think of the two loose classes of spirits as highly different, although some academics and Shinto practitioners acknowledge similarities within the seeming dichotomy between the natures of them and most ''kami'', which are generally regarded as relatively beneficent in comparison, and class the two as ultimately the same type of spirits of nature or of a m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kappa (folklore)
In traditional Japanese folklore a —also known as , , with a boss called or —is a reptiloid with similarities to . can become harmful when not respected as gods. Accounts typically depict them as green, human-like beings with webbed hands and feet and Turtle shell, turtle-like carapaces on their backs. A depression on the head, called a "dish" (), retains water, and if this is damaged or its liquid is lost (either through spilling or drying up), a becomes severely weakened. The favor cucumbers and love to engage in sumo wrestling, sumo-wrestling. They are often accused of assaulting humans in water and removing a mythical organ called the from their victim's anus. Terminology The name ''kappa'' is a contraction of the words ''kawa'' (river) and , a doublet (linguistics), variant form of (also ) "child". Another translation of kappa is "water-sprite". The ''kappa'' are also known regionally by at least eighty other names such as , , , , , ., citing Ōno (1994), p. 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
