They can live either in caves or mountain tops, and are particularly intelligent. And thats something we need to know in case we come across the creature! Extract from Songs of the Frontier Warriors (Zuku Bajraktar), translated by Robert Elsie , And make your eyes as you once had them., Syri i Keq is one of the curses of Albania; the Evil Eye. The Ora's appearance alters according to the personality and attributes of the human a white Ora for the brave and industrious, or a black Ora for the lazy or cowardly.[8], In Northern Albania, the Oras are represented similarly to the Southern Albanian Fatia as a group of three mythological goddesses who gather in the night to perform the task of determining the childs fate at birth and distribute their favours upon the child. The defense against Night Hags is to close all keyholes to stop them from entering the room. She accepted, for some reason, but she soon realised that this was not a game. And yes, its a huge generalization once again, but in this particular case it also involves bad blood between Albania and the Turkish Ottoman Empire or the modern day Turkey. For a cover? Zmey are specifically attracted to female beauty and have been rumoured to capture young maidens and take them to their remote lairs. However, not everyone agrees with this description. When Ana arrived, they told her that they wanted to play a game during their lunchtime. B Baloz Bardha D Dhampir Div (mythology) Drangue E E Bija e Hns dhe e Diellit F Fatia K Kukudh Kulshedra L Ljubi O Ora (mythology) P Perria S Basically, my point is that just like you can be afraid of cruel and evil people, you have a reason to be wary of dhampirs too, perhaps in some cases even more. The Ora ( Albanian: or, definite form: ora, pl. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. [9] Ora travel with their person and provide protection. One must never disturb a snake, even if its found within a babys cradle as it is the ora that belongs to the house and the baby. Drop a comment in the box, wed love to hear from you! Yes, you read that right. [28] As revealed in Albanian epic poetry, the Zana observe Albanian battles, offering their assistance and protection where needed. However, others have viewed her differently. He is visualised as a wise but strong old man with a full, white beard. Shefit Koboci Afrdita Armati Bardha Bindusi Bolla Baloz (monster) Constantin and Doruntin Any kind of partnerships and even a simple interaction could turn Albanians into vampires. It is said that Lubia has many heads and regenerative abilities that can grow her heads back in case theyfall off in some way. It keeps its eyes closed . Their importance and the love which the heroes have for them are carefully represented in the songs, while they are rarely described physically. [1] [2] Often depicted as three female deities, the Ora "maintain the order of the universe and enforce its laws" [3] - "organising the appearance of humankind." [4] Serbia - Bauk is an animal-like mythical creature in Serbian mythology. Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country that has suffered with war greatly. It may not be the first time you hear the word shtriga. Among the main bodies of Albanian folk poetry are the Kng Kreshniksh ("Songs of Heroes"), the traditional non-historical cycle of Albanian epic songs, based on the cult of the legendary hero. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. If you cross paths with a snake before sunrise or after sunset it foretells the death of some of your relations.[27], Within Albanian folklore, the role of the Ora tends to differ. Only the shtriga herself could cure those she had drained. Well, apparently vrykolakas can be pretty judgemental too. The next day, he told his masons about his dream. During the day, Earthly Beauty spends time with her sister, Sea Beauty, and in the evening the wind returns her to Baba Tomorri. Believe in God and youre protected! Here is our assortment of Balkan folklore and mythical beings. [20], The Albanian National Awakening (Rilindja) gave rise to collections of folklore material in Albania in the second half of the 19th century. The next boogeyman on the list is called Buba and we know even less about this one. He envisioned that for the monastery to be built successfully he had to incorporate someone into its walls. Albanian urban legends claim that Lubia has an insatiable appetite for children. Very straightforward. Lets just assume that you can choose one yourself. Hadhayosh: Gigantic land Creature (Persian Mythology) 45. How can you fight back? Albanian scholars have published numerous collections of Albanian oral tradition, but only a small part of this material has been translated into other languages. [62][63][64] Bektashism is a Muslim dervish order (tariqat) thought to have originated in the 13th century in a frontier region of Anatolia, where Christianity, Islam and paganism coexisted, allowing the incorporation of comparable pagan and non-Muslim beliefs into popular Islam. This specific ability even got them a nickname Daywalker.. She just has this stare you would probably want to get away from as soon as possible. Melton is a bright and educated man and I genuinely found his book a very interesting read. The kulshedra or kuedra is a water, storm, fire and chthonic demon in Albanian mythology and folklore, usually described as a huge multi-headed female serpentine dragon. Fatit are Birth Fairies. The three Ora then seek the help of Mujo to seek revenge on Paji. They could then be captured and killed at the threshold as they vainly attempted to pass. The story of the three sisters occurs in the oldest house in the town of Pranj and is a great piece of Balkan Folklore. zana) comes from Illyrians to the present day. And if you tried to distract yourself from her stare somehow, you would very quickly notice her crooked nose. [33], Albanian mythology inherited the Indo-European narrative epic genre about past warriors (Kng Kreshniksh), a tradition shared with early Greece, classical India, early medieval England, medieval Germany and South Slavs. And the creature is always heavily covered in flowing fabric or its own grave shroud. Within Albania, people believed the Ora would protect them, while others believed the Ora were dangerous creates with evil purposes. But not until the rain completely washed their blood from the ground and when their bones were ploughed back into the earth. So some people believe that if they believe in God, shtriga will be helpless and youll have immunity against her. [2] [1] The kulshedra is believed to spit fire, cause drought, storms, flooding, earthquakes and other natural disasters against mankind. But yeah This one really gave me the creeps, even without a detailed description. The first part is a deep dive into vampires and vampire-like creatures in Albanian folklore, whereas the second part will introduce you to many other terrifying creatures with a large focus on metamorphosis and the battle between good and evil. A cross made of pig bone could be placed at the entrance of a church on Easter Sunday, rendering any shtriga inside unable to leave. In fact, the creature enjoys the thrill of taking peoples lives in the weirdest way Ive ever heard of. Mount Tomorr is a mountain range in central Albania. He clenched it and squeezed it and crushed it to pieces., Mujos brother Halili sets out to search for the only one he wishes to marry, Tanusha - the daughter of the King in the Realm of the Christians. hopefully they are just myths haha! Another scary creature from Albanian mythology is the Bajloz. In various tales there is a certain degree of Pellazgian influence, some mythological figures derive from pellazgian mythology. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Baba is woken by his four eagles and makes sure Earthly Beauty is taken to safety before setting off to battle Shpirag. The French consul in Janina and Thessalonika, Auguste Dozon, published Albanian folk tales and songs initially in the 1879 Manuel de la langue chkipe ou albanaise (Manual of the Shkip or Albanian Language) and in the 1881 Contes albanais, recueillis et traduits (Albanian Tales, Collected and Translated). Clearly, vrykolakas sounds like a cowardly predator, avoiding a confrontation with its victims and only sneaking into their homes when theyre asleep. In some regions of Albania, people have used garlic (Albanian: hudhr); to send away the evil eye or they have placed a puppet in a house being built to catch the evil. The Czech linguist and professor of Romance languages and literature, Jan Urban Jarnik, published in 1883 Albanian folklore material from the region of Shkodra in Zur albanischen Sprachenkunde (On Albanian Linguistics) and Pspvky ku poznn ne albnskch uveejuje (Contributions to the Knowledge of Albanian Dialects). "[59] In Ottoman times education in the Albanian language was forbidden. Whenever vrykolakas saw people going to a church, it would loudly and openly mock the people of faith and on some occasions even throw rocks at them to emphasize his disapproval. In Lubias case, I *think* that she is meant to protect children from predatory people. [6] The earliest attested cult of the Albanians is the worship of the Sun and the Moon. Most believe he is visible only at night, especially during thetwelve days of Christmasand in the earlyspring. Albanian legendary creatures (16 P) Pages in category "Albanian mythology" The following 25 pages are in this category, out of 25 total. [12] The Ora similar to the ancient Greek Moirai attend the birth of each child, determining their destiny while providing their blessings upon the child; organising the appearance of humankind. Baba Tomorri has taken a fine-looking bride, Earthly Beauty. Balkan Folklore - North Macedonian Mythical Creatures It's time to meet some of North Macedonia's mythical creatures! Dino himself published Valt e Detit (The Waves of the Sea), which, at the time of its publication in 1908, was the longest printed book in the Albanian language. As for lugats target, generally it could be anyone, although mostly its children. Only the shtriga herself could cure those she had drained. Basically scaring them to listen to rules, or else the terrible boogeyman will show up. more appealing. Baba Tomorri has inflicted many wounds on the face of Shirag which can still be seen today. The characters in Albanian tales, legends and myths include humans, deities, demigods, monsters, as well as supernatural beings in the shapes of men, animals and plants. The two titans eventually killed one another and poor Earthly Beauty drowned in her tears, which became the Osum River. However, this particular vampire is also known for making its hunting process quite theatrical. Nothing about vrykolakas makes much sense to me and it sounds like a classic case of the broken telephone. But thats not all. They also have the tail of a snake, golden wings and incredible physical strength. Turns out that not only can lugats bite cause mental and spiritual distress, but it can also lead to the victim becoming the predator. 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