NUNO

A Nuno which is also called Nuno sa Punso is a dwarf-like creature in Philippine mythology. It is believed to live in an anthill or termite mound, hence its name. Literally, nuno sa punso means Ancestor or Grandparent of the anthill. The Nuno is described to be a small old man with a long beard, and differs from a duwende or dwarf of Philippine folklore. The duwende is a playful hobgoblin who shows himself to children, while the Nuno is a goblin easily angered and will do harm to those who damage or disturb his mound. If an invader destroys the Nuno’s home by kicking it, the offender’s foot would become swollen. Nuno sa punso are also believed to inhabit places such as underneath large rocks, trees, riverbanks, caves, or a backyard.

TIKBALANG

Tikbalang is a creature of Philippine folklore said to lurk in the mountains and forests of the Philippines. It is generally described as a tall, bony humanoid creature with disproportionately long limbs, to the point that its knees reach above its head when it squats down. It has the head and sometimes feet of an animal, most commonly a horse. It is sometimes believed to be a transformation of an aborted fetus which has been sent to earth from limbo.

An untrusting skittishness is prevalent among the communites surrounding the mountainous regions of the King Filipinas archipelago. The skewed, furtive glances exchanged when family members ask to be accompanied somewhere are a habit formed from fear of the Tikbalang. Often eerily mimicking the appearance of victims' relatives, this forest spirit will lead lone people out to the heavily wooded depths of the mountain ranges, occasionally breaking the increasingly uncomfortable silence with short bursts of reassurement, and stilted gratitude for the assistance. The suddenly pungent aroma of tobacco and drunken swaying motion adopted by the false family member is noticed before their face blurs into something that resembles more that of a horse's than a human's. Delirious town folk who have stumbled their way into town after long absences tell of how this apparation pushed and slapped them, often knocking them over and not allowing them to right themselves; all the while shaking with nervous, childish giggling. People say that the cessation of resistance or protest will suddenly lead a victim to find themselves alone in the woods, plunged into darkness; the sun long set. The path home, recalled by the few who return after a disappearance, is hampered by a severe sense of disorientation and a forest that seems to curl in on itself repeatedly.

SIGBIN

The Sigbin is a creature of Philippine mythology said to come out at night to suck the blood of victims from their shadows. The creature walks backward with its head lowered between its hind legs. It resembles a hornless goat, emits a very nauseating smell and possess a pair of very large ears which are capable of clapping like a pair of hands. It is also claimed to issue forth from its lair during Holy Week, looking for children that it will kill for the heart, which is made into an amulet.

It is also believed that there are families known as Sigbinan ("those who own Sigbin"), who possess the power to command them. The aswang, the Philippine version of a witch, is said to keep it as a pet, along with another mythical creature, a bird known as the Wakwak. The sigbin is said to bring wealth and luck to its owners.

In the Eastern Visayas they are also known as the Amamayong.

There is speculation that the legend may be based on sightings of an actual animal species that is rarely seen; based on the description of the sigbin in popular literature, the animal species might be related to the kangaroo. With the recent discovery in the island of Borneo of the cat-fox, a potential new species of carnivore described as having hind legs that are lower than its front legs, the animal species that is the possible basis of the legend as well as the reported sightings of sigbin may belong to or is related to the cat-fox species.

TIYANAK

The tiyanak is creature which, in Philippine mythology, imitates the form of a child. It usually takes the form of a newborn baby and cries like one in the jungle to attract unwary travelers. Once it is picked up by the victim, it reverts to its true form and attacks the victim. Aside from slashing victims, the tianak also delights in leading travelers astray, or in kidnapping children.

MANANANGGAL

A manananggal is also called wakwak in some areas Filipino folklore or penanggalan in Malay folklore is a mythical creature. It resembles a Western vampire, in being an evil, human-devouring monster or witch. The myth of the manananggal is popular in the Visayan region of the Philippines, especially in the western provinces of Capiz, Iloilo, Antique. There are varying accounts of the features of a manananggal. Like vampires, Visayan folklore creatures, and aswangs, manananggals are also said to abhor garlic and salt. They were also known to avoid daggers, light, vinegar, spices and the tail of a sting ray which can be fashioned as a whip. Folklore of similar creatures can be found in the neighbouring nations of Indonesia and Malaysia.

A manananggal is described as being an older, beautiful woman (as opposed to an aswang), capable of severing its upper torso in order to fly into the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women in their homes; using an elongated proboscis-like tongue, it sucks the hearts of fetuses or blood of an unsuspecting, sleeping victim. The severed lower torso is left standing and it is said to be the more vulnerable of the two halves. Sprinkling salt or smearing crushed garlic or ash on top of the standing torso is fatal to the creature. The upper torso then would not be able to rejoin and will die at daybreak. The name of the creature originates from an expression used for a severed torso: manananggal comes from the Tagalog, tanggal (cognate of Malay tanggal) which means to remove or to separate. Manananggal then means the one who separates itself (in this case, separates itself from its lower body).

Superstitious folk in the Visayan provinces still hang cloves of garlic or onion around windows, doors, etc. with the purpose of repelling this creature as well as the aswang. They are a favorite theme for sensationalist tabloids. They may be a product of mass hysteria or intentionally propagated to keep children off the street, home at night and wary or careful of strangers, or simply to entertain them.

Different regions have different stories on how manananggals proliferate. One story relates that manananggals have black chicks in their throats, which provide them with their power. A manananggal cannot die until the chick is removed, which be done by smoking the manananggal upside down in a tree or spinning her until she vomits the chick up.[1]

Another story says that heredity or contamination by physical or supernatural means can turn someone into a manananggal. For example, contaminating someone's meal with an old manananggal's saliva or human flesh can pass it on. A third story relates that a girl who later became a mananaggal confided in her human boyfriend that she felt the urge to eat sick people's sputum.

KAPRE

Kapre is a Philippine mythical creature that could be characterized as a tree demon, but with more human characteristics. It is described as being a tall , brown, hairy male with a beard. Kapres are normally described as smoking a big tobacco pipe, whose strong smell would attract human attention. The term kapre comes from the Arabic “kaffir” meaning a non-believer in Islam. The early Arabs and the Moors used it to refer to the non-Muslim Dravidians who were dark-skinned. The term was later brought to the Philippines by the Spanish who had previous contact with the Moors. Some historians speculate that the legend was propagated by the Spanish to prevent Filipinos from assisting any escaped African slaves.

Kapres are said to dwell in big trees like acacias, mangoes, bamboo and banyan (known in the Philippines as balete). It is also mostly seen sitting under those trees. The Kapre is said to wear the indigenous Northern Philippine loincloth known as bahag, and according to some, often wears a belt which gives the kapre the ability to be invisible to humans. In some versions, the kapre is supposed to hold a magical white stone, a little smaller in size than a quail egg. Should any person happen to obtain this stone, the kapre could grant wishes.

DUWENDE

Duwende are goblins, hobgoblins, elves or dwarfs. They are little creatures who can provide good fortune or bad fate to humans. In the Philippines, duwendes frequently live in houses, in trees, underground, termite like mound or hill, and in rural areas. They are known to be either good or mischievous, depending on how homeowners treat them. They usually come out at 12 noon for an hour and during the night. Filipinos always mutter words asking them to excuse themselves for bothering the Duwendes. Filipinos usually leave food on the floor, so that the duwende residingthe house would not be angry with them.

DIWATA

In the Philippine mythology, a diwata or lambana is a mythological figure similar to fairies or nymphs. They are said to reside in large trees, such as acacia and balete and are the guardian sprits of nature, bringing blessing or curses upon those who bring benefits or harm to the forests and mountains. It is a Filipino spelling for the Sanskrit word devadha, but the name is ultimately derived from the Sanskrit word dev, meaning deity. A male diwata is also called encanto, and it resides primarily in the sea. It is customary for Filipino fishermen to offer meat and other delicacies to the encanto by throwing them into the sea, after a day’s bountiful catch.

BAKUNAWA

The Bakunawa, also known as Bakonawa is a deity in Philippine mythology that is often represented as a gigantic sea serpent. He is believed to be the god of the underworld and is often considered to be the cause of eclipses. It appears as a giant sea serpent with a mouth the size of a lake, a red tongue, whiskers, gills, small wires at its sides, and two sets of wings, one is large and ash-gray while the other is small and is found further down its body.

ASWANG

An Aswang (or Asuwang) is a mythical creature in Filipino folklore. The aswang is an inherently evil vampire-like creature and is the subject of a wide variety of myths and stories, the details of which often vary greatly. Spanish colonizers noted that the Aswang was the most feared among the mythical creatures of the Philippines, even in the 16th century.

The myth of the aswang is well known throughout the Philippines, except in the Ilocos region, which is the only region that does not have an equivalent myth. It is especially popular in the Western Visayan regions such as Capiz, Iloilo and Antique. Other regional names for the aswang include "tik-tik" and "wak-wak."
Definition

"Aswangs" are often descrbed as a combination of vampire and witch almost always female. They are sometimes used as a generic term applied to all types of witches, manananggals, shapeshifters, lycanthropes, and monsters. Aswang stories and definitions vary greatly from region to region and person to person, so no one particular set of characteristics are ascribed to the term. However, the term is often used interchangeably with manananggal, which is a particular creature with a specific set of features. The most popular original definition however, is that it is a ghoul, an eater of the dead. After consumption, the ghoul replaces the cadaver with banana trunks.

Superstitions

Before modern medicine and science, aswangs served to explain miscarriages and other maladies. Today, aside from entertainment value, Filipino mothers often tell their children aswang stories to keep them off the streets and keep them home at night.

Like UFO stories, aswang stories are one of the favorites of sensationalist tabloids, especially when there are grave robberies, child kidnappings, strange noises, people with eccentric or peculiar habits, and other incidents that can somehow be attributed to them.

Stories of the aswang are popular in the Visayan region of the Philippines, especially in the western provinces of Capiz (a province on Panay island), Iloilo and Antique. Capiz, in particular, is singled out by tabloids as an area of high supernatural activity: a home to aswangs, manananggals, giant half-horse men (tikbalang) and other mythological creatures. Many of those who live in Capiz are superstitious, and adorn their homes with garlic bulbs, holy water and other objects believed to repel aswang. Since the stories recount aswang eating unborn children, pregnancy is a time of great fear for superstitious Filipinos.

Appearance & Activities

The wide variety of descriptions in the aswang stories make it difficult to settle upon a fixed definition of aswang appearances or activities. However, several common themes that differentiate aswangs from other mythological creatures do emerge: Aswangs are shapeshifters. Stories recount aswangs living as regular townspeople in meat processing professions by day. As regular townspeople, they are quiet, shy and elusive. At night, they transform into creatures that enjoy eating unborn fetuses and small children, favoring livers and hearts. Some have long proboscises, which they use to suck the children out of their mothers' wombs or their homes. Some also make noises, which are louder the further away the aswang is, done to confuse its potential victim. They may also replace their live victims or stolen cadavers with facsimiles made from tree trunks or other plant materials. This facsimile will return to the victim's home, only to become sick and die. An aswang will also have bloodshot eyes, the result of staying up all night searching for houses where wakes are held to steal the bodies.

Some Types of Aswang

A type of aswang, the Kikik/Tik-Tik, turns into a enormous, prowling bat or bird at night, looking for pregnant women. As it sucks the blood from the fetus with its long proboscis, it makes a 'kik-kik-kik' sound. Other stories relate the kikik as an aswang's familiar, its sound masking the aswang's proximity from would-be victims.

The term wak-wak or wuk-wuk is frequently used for the same creature in the Cebu region. The legends of the wak-wak and kikik are much the same, but the wak-wak is specifically supposed to change into its birdlike form by leaving behind its lower body, much like the manananggal. The cry of a night bird which makes a "wuk-wuk-wuk" sound is believed to be the call of this monster and is feared by superstitious villagers. As with the call of the kikik, the wak-wak is believed able to make its cry sound distant when the creature is near.

The sigbin or zegben has been known as another type of aswang, and alternately, as the kikik's familiar. Its appearance is said to be similar to the chupacabra and the Tasmanian devil, although with spotty fur, wide mouth with large fangs.

One of the most popular legends in the Visayas region is the infamous aswang Tiniente Gimo or Lieutenant Gimo from Dueñas, Iloilo. In addition, The most commonly known in terms is something called Tyanak/ Tianak happens to be as the unborn baby's due abortion.

Dealing with Aswangs

Typically, an aswang is revealed by using a bottle of a special oil extracted from boiled and decanted coconut meat and mixed with certain plant stems upon which special prayers being said. When an aswang comes near or roams around the house at night, the oil is said to boil (or froth into bubbles) and continue boiling until the aswang departs.

Buntot pagi or stingray's tails, shiny, sterling silver swords, and images of old crones or grandmothers have been said to dispel their presence. The myth of silver weapons warding off evil creatures is probably taken from western mythology.

Throwing salt at aswangs is also said to cause their skin to burn. This belief may stem from the purifying powers attributed to salt crystals by various traditions of witchcraft.