So some people believe that if they believe in God, shtriga will be helpless and youll have immunity against her. Another super-easy way that is done by Albanians in some regions of the country, is having garlic at home and using it to keep the evil eye away from you. [11], From Albanian literature translated by Robert Elsie -. Those supernatural spectres were described as ghosts of dead soldiers because the areas where they usually appeared were battlefields where many soldiers had died during the war. Believe in God and youre protected! Her skills include shape-shifting, predicting the future, andwitchcraft. He compiled his collection with Spiro Risto Dine who emigrated to Egypt in 1866. Not that you should suspect your yoga instructor and professional dancers of being dhampirs, but still an interesting thought. Drop a comment in the box, wed love to hear from you! The Albanians of the Balkan Peninsula associate these creatures with female characters, whose names differ from one district of Albania to . Unlike sampiro, however, lugat leaves its victims to deal with very serious consequences. The good Norns who are well born would shape a good life, while the bad Norns are responsible for misfortune in peoples lives. According to Maximilian Lambertz (1882-1963), he is the relic of an ancient Illyrian god. 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. Because of this, the Prince threatened to murder Manole and his team. The eldest sister died first so the other two bricked up her sea facing window. Jubani's own first collection of folklorethe original Albanian texts of the folk songs published by Hcquardwas lost in the flood that devastated the city of Shkodra on 13 January 1866. The German physician Karl H. Reinhold collected Albanian folklore material from Albanian sailors while he was serving as a doctor in the Greek navy and in 1855 he published Noctes Pelasgicae (Pelasgian Nights). The zana e malit is an Albanian mythological creature (Albanian: Zane or Zre in southern Albania) ("fairy of the mountain" in English), zana (as a definite noun), or zan (plural) of pre-Roman Paleo-Balkan origin. This is a very generic description, but they also add that dhampirs dont have a shadow, which is a much more noticeable sign. [49], At the time of the South Slavic incursion and the threat of ethnic turbulence in the Albanian-inhabited regions, the Christianization of the Albanians had already been completed and it had apparently developed for Albanians as a further identity-forming feature alongside the ethnic-linguistic unity. Any kind of partnerships and even a simple interaction could turn Albanians into vampires. In fact, according to the local lore, Shtriga can cure her victims by spitting in their mouths. Calygreyhound: Creature with torso of antelope, head of a wild cat and claws on an eagle (Medieval Heraldry) 48. Within Albania, people believed the Ora would protect them, while others believed the Ora were dangerous creates with evil purposes. And yes, vampire hunters were a thing in Greece and likely in Albania too. Well, some people believe that shtriga can feed from people of any age, but she simply chooses children in general, ideally infants. Clearly, the superpowers come from the vampire parent but we all know that vampires have weaknesses too. Mount Tomorr is a mountain range in central Albania. It is said that lugat tends to lure its victims to its dark home and can even murder people in their sleep. Most believe he is visible only at night, especially during thetwelve days of Christmasand in the earlyspring. Songs of the Frontier Warriors described by Robert Elsie as one of the best-known cycles of Albanian epic verse.[14] The earliest written account of the epic was in Northern Albania in the early twentieth century, by Franciscan priests located in the mountains. But her care and love for him was stronger than the storm, and she kept walking. The mythological cycle of the deeds of Muyi reveal the Oras ability to provide the hero with supernatural powers and healing while in the form of a serpent. She did not die and re-emerged on a different isle. Jerko, from Herceg Novi, could not choose between the sisters and, instead, he set off on a long sea voyage which he hoped would make the decision easier. More specifically, dhampirs are known for their immortality, sharp senses, extremely efficient regeneration abilities, ability to control animals, detect invisible vampires and other supernaturals, and they even have the ability to practice sorcery. But what bothers me is the part of scaring children into not crying. Mount Shpirag is marked with deep streams of water running down its face and lies across the valley. 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. [15], Extract from Songs of the Frontier Warriors (Mujos Oras), translated by Robert Elsie -, Oh oras, to whom do you render assistance?. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. The German Scholar M. Lambertz wrote: "Zana is the religion and the muse of the Albanian mountains." Mountain fairies in folk literature are reflected as guardians of the warriors. Albanian creepy urban legends will have 2 parts with a focus on Albanian mythology creatures. Short on time? Thats right, the one that lugat feeds from can become tainted by its own desire to feed off other people. I would advise you to be careful, though. Bauk is described as hiding in dark places, holes or abandoned houses, waiting to grab, carry away, and devour its victim; it can be scared away by light and noise. Yes, you read that right. Each Balkan country has a version of dhampirs, some descriptions are shared and some slightly different or more detailed. 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. (Osborn, 2015, p.14). zana) comes from Illyrians to the present day. I love hearing mythology and folklore stories, especially ones Ive never heard from new places. Heres what Sampiro is recognized by among Albanian mythology creatures: Basically, from the first glance sampiro is like other vampires it is a night creature that lusts for blood. They also have the tail of a snake, golden wings and incredible physical strength. On his journey he encounters an Ora who assists him and guides him towards Tanusha. The same motifs were kept with identical cultural-religious symbolism on various monuments of the early medieval culture of the Albanians. The town of Berat sits in the foothills of Mount Tomorr and is closely guarded by Baba, as its his favourite city and great source of pride. Giving him back all his might and his power. The bad news is that sampiro might be back for more eventually and if its a very hungry one, it could lead to death after many frequent visits. [53] The Balkans were brought back into the Christian orbit only after the recovery of the Byzantine Empire and through the activity of Byzantine missionaries. The Ora ( Albanian: or, definite form: ora, pl. Thanks for sticking to the end, I hope you enjoyed the Albanian creepy legends and Albanian mythology creatures so far! [9] Ora travel with their person and provide protection. A shtriga ( Albanian: shtrig) is a vampiric witch in Albanian mythology and folklore that sucks the blood of infants at night while they sleep, and then turns into a flying insect (traditionally a moth, fly or bee ). But thats not all. The kucedra or kulshedra is a mythological creature in Albanian mythology that is usually depicted as a large, multi-headed dragon with 7 heads. I cant wait to visit the Balkans one day and just love learning about this area . And the creature is always heavily covered in flowing fabric or its own grave shroud. Am I the only one wondering how those heads are placed on the body? You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But, one by one, they all plummeted to the ground and died. [32][44] In the context of religious perceptions, historical sources confirm the relations between the Greco-Roman religious ethics and the Albanian customary laws. She published in 1909 her notable work High Albania, regarded as one of the best English-language books on Albania ever written. 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). These relations can be seen during the rule of the Illyrian emperors, such as Aurelian who introduced the cult of the Sun; Diocletian who stabilized the empire and ensured its continuation through the institution of the Tetrarchy; Constantine the Great who issued the Edict of Toleration for the Christianized population and who summoned the First Council of Nicaea involving many clercs from Illyricum; Justinian who issued the Corpus Juris Civilis and sought to create an Illyrian Church, building Justiniana Prima and Justiniana Secunda, which was intended to become the centre of Byzantine administration. [11] The cult of the Sun and the Moon also appears in Albanian legends and folk art. Sometimes she manifests as a dark mass, or a shadow, which can be seen on a persons chest or neck during the night. Yup, thats it! The Zana are thought to have observed the speeches at theLeague of Prizren at 1878. It keeps its eyes closed . Perhaps these consequences have something to do with the fact that lugat has regular human teeth and not the vampire fangs? In various tales there is a certain degree of Pellazgian influence, some mythological figures derive from pellazgian mythology. Extract from Songs of the Frontier Warriors (Halili Avenges Mujo), translated by Robert Elsie . But yeah, its that simple. Obviously, no one wants to have dealings with shtriga in the first place. WOW! Also, why would shtriga go to a church? The first boogeyman I want to tell you about is actually a boogeywoman and her name is Lubia. Some people find it funny, others are creeped out by it. Most commonly shtriga is described as a woman with intense and undeniable hate in her eyes. Since this age demographic is more targeted by shtriga, Albanians normalized this as protection against the evil eye. Her favorite target is infants and she typically hunts during the night when infants (and their parents, for that matter) are sleeping. [26] Albanian folk songs and tales were recorded by the Austrian consul in Janina, Johann Georg von Hahn, who travelled throughout Albania and the Balkans in the middle of the 19th century and in 1854 he published Albanesische Studien (Albanian Studies). This is really interesting! But lets start with its appearance. Want to read a bit more folklore and discover more mythical creatures? Great was the rage that the shkja felt for Mujo! This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Kind of like a drunk sexual predator. [4], With the birth of each child many Oras gather in the night towards the cliffs to decide upon the qualities that child would receive. Both the Ora and Vitore are widely represented as a serpent with golden horns who brings gold.[9] Albanian stories describe beliefs associated with the protective serpent Oras. Zmey are specifically attracted to female beauty and have been rumoured to capture young maidens and take them to their remote lairs. He is visualised as a wise but strong old man with a full, white beard. The Zana is a mythological figure within Northern Albanian Gheg folk beliefs and oral epics. Read More. Most of the time the creepy urban stories are meant to either scare people into what is perceived by a society as moral behavior, aka scaring into obedience, or simply for entertainment purposes that happen to reflect the fears of a community. (Father) Tomor is seen as an old man with a long white beard flowing down to. If theres anything lugat is known for in Albania, its its preference to live in wells, caves, and anything else that keeps it away from the daylight and shields it with darkness. 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. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. [20], The Albanian National Awakening (Rilindja) gave rise to collections of folklore material in Albania in the second half of the 19th century. In fact, it is said that women who submit to envy and for some reason dont bear children are the ones who turn into shtrigas. And honestly, people are guessing, but no one really knows for sure why this vampire includes the kissing sounds in all of this. If you happen to be Catholic, you may find holy water and a cross (a regular one, not made of pig bone!) Naturally, every country has its own version of the word, though its easy to tell that they are referring to the same creature. Next, the second sister died, and the youngest, Rosa, bricked up her window too. In other words, lugat in Albania is basically a type of a boogeyman and interestingly enough, it is not the only one. A well of clear water, named after Manole, is believed to mark the spot where Manole himself fell. Such motifs are particularly related to the ancient cults of the Sun and Moon, survived until recently among northern Albanians. If youre unlucky enough to be chosen by sampiro, however, there is a bright side. However, I couldnt be more wrong. So we have a little bit of background now, but every good storyteller knows that a story needs a face. 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. Children may have a coin tied to their forehead, or blue glass beads could be attached to the hair of both children and horses. There was no one to wall it up after she died. Vrykolakas would find someone who is asleep and then crush and suffocate them by sitting on them. Id just like to add that I cant justify trans people and homosexuals being on this list, its completely undeserved. 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