34) Japan - 16. Amabie

This is a yokai that appears in the folklore of Higo Province (present-day Kumamoto Prefecture) in Japan. It is said to appear from the sea with a light, predicting good or bad harvests and epidemics. It has long hair that reaches its feet, a beak-like mouth of a bird, diamond-shaped eyes, and resembles a mermaid with three tail fins (or legs). One night, something luminous appeared in the sea off Higo Province. When local people investigated, they found it said, "I am Amabie, who lives in the sea. For the next six years, there will be a bountiful harvest throughout the land, but at the same time, a plague will spread. Therefore, quickly draw a picture of me and show it to the people." It then disappeared back into the sea. As foretold, when an official showed Amabie's picture to those around him, people who saw the drawing were said to have avoided the plague. According to one theory, Amabie might be a misspelling of the yokai named 'Amabiko (アマビコ)'. Amabiko has a different appearance from Amabie but shares a very similar legend and has been passed down for a longer time.