Mythical Creatures of Romanian Folklore, Part 1 (A to M)

Welcome to the mystical world of Romanian folklore, where myths and legends come to life through a tapestry of captivating creatures and fiercer monsters. Romanians and Moldovans have plenty of superstitions about the undead, about various forest spirits, giants, fairies and other magical and gruesome creatures. In this video, we will provide an extensive alphabetical list of the monsters and creatures featured in Romanian folklore. Before we start, don't forget to show your support by liking and subscribing to our channel, as we'll be bringing you more awesome stories, myths and legends. Apa Simbiti Translated as Saturday's water, it is a river that springs forth from beneath the tree of life situated in paradise. It marks the boundary between the two worlds, heaven and hell, and it is the source of all waters on the earth. After encircling the earth seven or nine times, a journey during which the water becomes less and less pure, the river pours into hell. According to legends, anything that falls into this water becomes lost, never to be found again. Balear A fantastic, giant creature, similar to a dragon, often taking the form of a serpent. It has wings and multiple heads, three, seven, nine, or even twelve, embodying evil and featuring in the majority of Romanian folktales. There are three types of Balear. Aquatic, who dwells in village wells and various bodies of water. Terrestrial, inhabiting chasms and desolate places. Aerial, associated with clouds, rain and storms. Borza A frightening female creature that scares children in their sleep. She appears in their dreams and frightens them, looking like an ugly, angry woman with a large mouth and black lips. Borza is invoked in various sayings and proverbs to frighten disobedient children. Brachnelae Strange fairies, sly and mischievous woodland spirits, who were sometimes deceitful, other times playful. They weren't regarded as harmful, their role being limited, to frightening travelers passing through the forest at night. These creatures are composed of mixed limbs from animals, birds and insects. Kolo Nastrova Translated as the Enchanted Horse. A mythical creature similar to Pegasus, from Greek mythology. It is a horse with supernatural powers. It speaks with humans, possesses enchanted objects, predicts the future, flies and breathes fire. It aids and advises positive heroes in all of their adventures. Capcorum A horrifying, cannibalistic creature, similar to an ogre, who kidnaps children or young ladies. It is a giant dog-headed monster, who lives in caves and dark forests. This malevolent giant devours everything he catches, and destroys entire villages. Kota Onca A malevolent, hideous creature, and a really powerful old witch. She embodies the negative character, from which the heroes of Romanian fairy tales, must stay away at all costs. She is also a renowned healer, and a skilled midwife with magical powers, a dangerous witch you wouldn't want to provoke. Krisnikul A monster that looks like a terrifying pig. The offspring of the union, between the devil and a woman. Immediately after birth, it starts to run around, squeal, and bite everyone in the house. To get rid of it, the midwife has to wrap it up, and open the oven door for it to enter the fire, and die incinerated. Crevance Personified as an elderly man, it is the frigid wind from the northeast, that manifests during winter, in the eastern regions of Romania. He appears as an old wizard, with an icy physique, hair resembling snow, and a beard and mustache adorned with frost. Eosma A malevolent fairy, who presides over illnesses, and brings various forms of death into the world. She looks like a sinister woman, with a terrifying grin and icy breath. It is believed that Eosma can take the form of an illness, such as the plague, or cholera. Yelili Supernatural female creatures, similar to forest sirens. These fairies dance on full moonlit nights, holding candles in their hands, and having bells on their ankles, luring and strangling innocent travelers. Sometimes they drive them to madness, other times they suffocate them with their embraces, or drown them in swamps. In the places where they dance, the ground remains scorched, and grass no longer grows. These are the so-called Yelili circles. Djidovi Exceptionally tall, and very powerful giants. According to legends, the waters of the Danube River only reached their ankles, and they could snatch a tree, without any effort. They lived in caves and thick woods, and were kind, patient, and friendly to humans, which they considered their successors. The age of giants came to an end with the Great Flood. Joimeritsa A mythological creature, resembling an old, tall, and ugly woman. A justiciary figure, who fights against laziness. She is the patron of spinning and weaving. She punishes lazy young women, and sometimes young men, by pinching their fingers, crushing their nails with a hammer, or burning their hands with hot ashes. Despite such harsh punishments, she is perceived as a stern yet fair judge. Joimeritsa dwells in desolate woods, or within the hearts of towering mountains. Martzolia A malefic entity, that lives up in the mountains, and can shapeshift at will. It descends on Tuesday nights to punish women who are working. Martzolia's punishments are harsh. It kills by ripping, or by hanging on nails to the wall in case of unmarried women. For the married women, the punishments, are killing or possessing their babies, or their husbands, who are far from home. Moroyi These are the souls of murdered children, or those who have died unbaptized. They wander tormented between worlds, and suffer perpetually, because they weren't baptized and cannot rest in peace. These spirits come out at night from their graves as ghosts, to inflict harm upon the living. When the mother is the one who ended the child's life, Moroyi tortures her in her sleep. Mumapuduri Translated as the mother of the forest. An old and powerful witch, who guards, and protects the forest, the fauna and flora inside it. She punishes those who do not respect the forest rules, or harm nature, sometimes transforming them into wild animals. But often, Mumapuduri is presented as a much more evil creature, who wanders through forests, seeking to kill solitary travelers, to frighten them, or drive them mad. It is also said that she steals children from their cradles, or makes them sick. This is why in Romanian folklore, there is a large variety of spells used against her.