Folktales
Illustrated yokai folktales
Panel-art retellings from Japanese folklore. Each tale lives on its creature’s page.
21 illustrated stories
Browse by type
Hairy Kappa
毛河童
Kappa
In the misty mountains of Hyōsube's ancestral home, where the rivers flowed with a gentle song, there lived a young girl...
Read the tale →
Hakutaku
白沢
Yokai
In days long past, when the misty mountains still shrouded the villages of old Japan, there lived a humble yet wise youn...
Read the tale →
Hakuzōsu
白蔵主
Yokai
In a village nestled between two great mountains, where cherry blossoms bloomed in spring and autumn leaves rustled with...
Read the tale →
Hannya
般若
Yokai
In the mist-shrouded mountains, where cherry blossoms bloomed with an otherworldly glow, there lived a young geisha name...
Read the tale →
Harionago
針女
Yokai
In the mist-shrouded hills of Otsuchi, where the path to the hot springs winds through cypress groves, there lived a you...
Read the tale →
Hayatarō
隼太郎
Yokai
In days when autumn leaves rustled with an eerie silence, and villagers whispered secrets beneath the moon's watchful ga...
Read the tale →
Heikegani
平家蟹
Yokai
In the whispering darkness of the Inland Sea, where the moon dipped into the waves like a silver sickle, the Heikegani c...
Read the tale →
Hibagon
ヒバゴン
Yokai
In the misty mountains of Hiba, where the dawn broke late and the sun hid behind veils of cloud, there lived a creature...
Read the tale →
Hiderigami
日照り神
Yokai
In a small village nestled between two great mountains, the rice fields lay parched and barren. The sun beat down relent...
Read the tale →
Hihi
狒々
Yokai
In the mist-shrouded mountains of old, where wild beasts roamed and trees creaked with an otherworldly voice, there live...
Read the tale →
Hitodama
人魂
Yokai
In the small village of Kamakura, where the misty dawn kissed the mountains, there lived an elderly woman named Kikuno....
Read the tale →
Hitotsume-kozō
一つ目小僧
Yokai
In the depths of autumn, when the wind whispers secrets to the trees and the moon casts an eerie glow on the streets, a...
Read the tale →
Hō-ō
鳳凰
Mythical Creature
In the misty dawn of a long-forgotten era, when cherry blossoms bloomed in every corner of the land and the air was aliv...
Read the tale →
Hoji
霍之
Yokai
In the depths of autumn, when the maple leaves whispered secrets to the wind, a young weaver named Emiko wandered into t...
Read the tale →
Hōkō
彭侯
Yokai
In the depths of Aki Province, where the autumn leaves rustled like golden whispers and the misty veil of dawn clung to...
Read the tale →
Hone-onna
骨女
Yokai
In the village of Akakawa, where cherry blossoms bloomed in every season and moonlight glistened on rice paddies, there...
Read the tale →
Hotoke
仏
Spirit
In the village nestled between two great rivers, there lived an elderly woman named Okuni. She was known for her kindnes...
Read the tale →
Hyakki Yakō
百鬼夜行
Yokai
In the twilight hours when shadows grew long and darkness was yet to claim the world, a lone traveler made his way throu...
Read the tale →
Hyakume
百目
Yokai
In the depths of autumn, when mist shrouded the mountains and leaves rustled in the stillness, there lived an old yamabu...
Read the tale →
Hyōsube
兵主部
Kappa
In a small village nestled between two great rivers, there lived an innkeeper named Kaito. His family had run the humble...
Read the tale →
Hyōtan-kozō
瓢箪小僧
Yokai
In the sleepy village of Akakawa, where the mountain mist veiled the valleys below, there lived an elderly woodcarver na...
Read the tale →