세모괴(세상의 모든 괴이)

Meaning 'a giggling woman,' this yokai appears as a giant woman who surprises people by giggling, just as her name suggests. When you're walking down a quiet street, a middle-aged woman in a huge kimono suddenly appears over a fence or wall taller than a human, cheerfully waving her hand and opening her thickly rouged, red lips wide to laugh. The sound of her laughter is only audible to one person, unsettling their mind, and it's said that those with weak hearts can lose consciousness. She appears in Toriyama Sekien's Edo-period yokai collection, 'Gaikotsu Hyakki Yūki.' According to Sekien's commentary, she is a yokai originating from the ancient state of Chu in China. In 'Dengudōzihoseki,' a collection of poems from the Northern and Southern Dynasties period in China, there's an anecdote about the Chu poet Song Yu being tempted by the most beautiful woman in Chu but remaining unmoved. Among the descriptions, it mentions that the beauty climbed over Song Yu's fence every day for three years to peek at him. Sekien seems to have speculated that this story was transmitted to Japan and took the form of this yokai.

Its name is presumed to originate from the Buddhist 'Yakwang' (Medicine King), and in pure Korean, it's called 'Yang-gwaengi'. Depending on the region, it's variously called Shinbal-gwisin (Gyeonggi Province), Yagwi-halmeom (Northern Gyeonggi Province), Dalgwi-gusin or Mago-halmi (Chungbuk Province), Ttotjaebi (Geochang, Gyeongsangnam-do), Gomai (Goseong, Sacheon, Gyeongsangnam-do), and so on. It is small, about 130cm tall, with a distorted face and bulging eyes, and usually wears a colorful striped jacket (seokdong jeogori) or clothes with mottled patterns. It is generally known to appear as a child, but as the regional names suggest, tales of it appearing as an old woman also exist. It appears on the first month of the lunar new year, the first full moon of the lunar new year, or the 16th day of the first lunar month, considered the day of ghosts. It wanders into houses, tries on shoes, and if they fit, it takes them and leaves. Those who have their shoes stolen by the Yagwngwi suffer bad luck, such as injury or illness, and in severe cases, may even die. Since the Yagwngwi does not enter the main room (anbang), it is said that hiding shoes in the main room is effective. If a sieve is hung outside, the Yagwngwi, which can only count up to 2 (or 4, depending on the tradition), counts the holes in the sieve, and when the rooster crows, it leaves.

Eodukshini is a Korean yokai that first appeared in the Goryeo Dynasty and continued to be sighted into the Joseon Dynasty. The name 'Eodukshini' is believed to be a combination of 'eoduk-hada,' meaning 'quite dark,' and 'shini,' a presumed variation of 'shin.' It is said to be called 'Eodukseoni,' 'Eodeokseoni,' 'Adokshini,' or 'Adukshini' depending on the region. It fundamentally symbolizes darkness and grows larger the more a person watches it. The more you stare at it or look up at it, the larger it becomes, eventually crushing the person. Conversely, if you force yourself to look down at the growing Eodukshini or completely avert your gaze and ignore it, it shrinks and eventually disappears. Modern interpretations suggest that its characteristic of growing larger the more it is observed is a personification of the human fear of darkness, serving as a warning against escalating fundamental fears of the dark. Ultimately, it is interpreted that Eodukshini is merely an illusion created by the human mind.

'Geuseunsae' is a yokai from Jeju Island. 'Geuseun' means wrong or error, and 'sae' in Jeju dialect refers to evil spirits, misfortune, or vengeful souls. It is said to wear a Jeju-style raincoat called 'jujengi,' fly around in broad daylight, and attack lone individuals for no reason. Those attacked by the Geuseunsae are said to lose their minds and attempt to take their own lives. Below is a related folktale. A farmer in Pyeongdae-ri was plowing his field when his neighbor tied his cow's halter to a tree and tried to hang himself with it. The farmer quickly stopped him, and the friend came to his senses, saying that something resembling a raincoat had flown from the sky and tried to hang him with the halter rope. He expressed his gratitude, stating that he would have died if not for the farmer's intervention. Modern interpretations suggest that the Geuseunsae is a manifestation of the loneliness and resulting hallucinations experienced by laborers working alone in vast pastures or forests. The setting, where individuals recover when someone speaks to them, is also interpreted as reflecting Jeju's unique communal bonds, encouraging neighborly interest and mutual care.

Its name is presumed to be derived from words like 'geuneul' (shadow) and 'geumeum' (new moon), interpreted as 'a large being standing in the darkness.' There are theories that it was a guardian deity during the Goryeo Dynasty but became an evil spirit during the Joseon Dynasty, or that it is a deification of darkness. It usually appears as a child but can freely change its size, and its power grows stronger with deeper darkness. It can startle or kill people with its large body, either by swallowing them whole or by causing those who pass under its legs to fall ill and die. It is weak to light and flees when threatened with torches. If surrounded by multiple people holding torches, it disappears, but it cannot be killed by physical means. According to a related legend, during the Joseon Dynasty, a warrior named Unmongseon tried to kill Geuseundae with his sword, but instead of dying, its body only grew larger. Geuseundae then caught and threw Unmongseon, killing him. It likes crayfish, and it is said that it will not harm those who offer them. Because of this, there's a theory that it's a yokai created to prevent children from going missing while catching crayfish, while simultaneously instilling a fear of the night road.

Bulgasari is a monster from Korean folklore that grows larger the more iron it eats and is said to repel evil spirits and malevolent energy. Its described form varies, with the most famous depiction being a creature with the head of a lion, the trunk of an elephant, the legs of a tiger, the feet of a bear, and the tail of a cow. Depending on the legend, it can also appear as a rat or insect, sometimes with wings. There are two main theories regarding the origin of its name: one suggests it comes from 'bul+gasal' (불+가살, 可殺), meaning 'can be killed by fire,' while another suggests it comes from 'bulgasal' (불가살, 不可殺), meaning 'cannot be killed.' In the latter case, setting it on fire does not kill it; instead, it rampages while burning, causing greater damage. There are many folktales related to Bulgasari, which typically follow this pattern: 1. A doll made from leftover rice by a monk or an old couple comes to life, becoming a monster that eats iron and grows. 2. The army is dispatched due to the excessively large Bulgasari, but they are unable to kill it. 3. The person who created Bulgasari or a passing monk sets it on fire or attaches a talisman, causing it to regurgitate the iron it consumed and shrink back down.

Also known as 'Kappa' or 'Kawata-ro', and written as '河童' in kanji. It's a yokai that lives by rivers, about the size of a 4-5 year old child, with webbed hands. It looks like a mix of a frog and a turtle, and is said to have a lifespan of about 100 years. It has a dish-shaped organ on its head that holds water. If this water spills, it becomes weaker than a child, and if it dries up completely, it is said to die. It likes polite people, so if you greet it first, the Kappa will bow its head in return, causing the water on its head to spill. It likes cucumbers, rice cakes, wrestling, and children. It enjoys wrestling with children, and if you carve a name and age onto a rice cake or cucumber and give it to the Kappa, it will help that person. It's also said to have taught humans bone-setting techniques. According to some legends, it eats the 'shiriko-dama' (in Korean, 'buttock pearl') from the anus of people who enter the water. If a Kappa eats this, the person becomes foolish or drowns. This legend is sometimes interpreted as a story created by adults in later generations to prevent children from playing alone by the water.

This yokai, resembling a weasel with sickles on its feet, primarily appears across Japan, especially on Honshu. Its name is a direct combination of 'kama' (sickle) and 'itachi' (weasel), often translated as 'sickle weasel' in Korea. One theory suggests it's a praying mantis spirit possessing a weasel and becoming a yokai. It appears with a whirlwind and slashes skin with its sickles. According to some legends, they travel in groups of three: the first knocks down passing creatures, the second slashes them, and the third applies medicine, exhibiting a 'give and take' behavior. In ancient Japan, shallow wounds that appeared on the skin without people knowing after going outside were attributed to wind gods or evil spirits. However, from the Edo period onwards, these incidents began to be depicted as the work of the Kamaitachi. The description of applying medicine likely stems from the observation that fine cuts from the Kamaitachi cause less pain and bleeding, are harder to notice immediately compared to other wounds, and heal relatively quickly. People probably thought the yokai was healing them by applying medicine.

Gohuicho, also known as 'Yahaengyu-nyeo' (woman who wanders at night) or 'Cheonje-sonyeo' (girl attended by the heavenly god), is a bird mentioned in ancient Chinese texts like the Compendium of Materia Medica, said to appear frequently in Xingzhou. It is believed to transform into a human form when it sheds its feathered cloak. As it lacks males and cannot reproduce, it is said to abduct human children to raise as its own. If a child's clothes are left outside at night, Gohuicho supposedly leaves a blood mark to indicate it will take the child. There is a legend from the Western Jin dynasty about a man who made a Gohuicho his wife after she shed her feathered cloak and went bathing. This Gohuicho bore him three daughters, but later had her daughters find her hidden feathered cloak, after which she escaped. Eventually, she returned and took her daughters with her, making them wear feathered cloaks as well. Starting from the Tang dynasty, theories emerged that children wearing marked clothes would fall ill, or that women who died during childbirth transformed into yokai. Over time, additional tales were added, such as Gohuicho leaving the abducted children in distant villages instead of raising them, or them being found as corpses in the forest.

A yokai that appears as a pregnant woman, written as '産女' (Sanjo) or '姑獲鳥' (Kakuchou) in kanji. Kakuchou is actually a different yokai from China, but due to similar backgrounds, they became conflated and are now almost considered the same. This article will separate Ubume and Kakuchou, focusing only on the aspect of Ubume (Sanjo). There are theories that she became a yokai due to the sorrow of her baby dying during childbirth, that she died but became a yokai out of a desire to protect her baby who was born safely, or that she died during pregnancy and became a yokai. There are legends where she asks passersby to hold her baby for a moment, and if accepted, Ubume disappears, and the baby turns into a stone or leaves. There are also legends where people are crushed to death by the increasing weight of the baby, or where those who can withstand the weight or are favored by her are gifted with wealth or exceptional physical abilities. Depending on the region, she is sometimes enshrined not as a yokai, but as a guardian deity who helps with the health and childbirth of mothers.