Illustrated yokai folktales

Kage-onna

影女

Yokai

In the village of Akakawa, where cherry blossoms bloomed in profusion and willows wept for the seasons' passage, there s...

Read the tale →

Kahaku

河伯

Yokai

In the mist-shrouded valleys of our mountains, where the rivers wind and twist like living serpents, there dwelled a Kah...

Read the tale →

Kamaitachi

鎌鼬

Yokai

In the mist-shrouded mountains of Akakawa, where the wind whispers secrets to the trees, there lived an elderly woodcutt...

Read the tale →

Kameosa

瓶長

Tsukumogami

In the village of Ashikaga, where the cherry blossoms bloomed like pink and white silk, there lived an elderly potter na...

Read the tale →

Kamikiri

髪切り

Yokai

In the lantern-lit streets of Edo's pleasure quarter, where geishas with kimonos as red as cherry blossoms strolled unde...

Read the tale →

Kanbari-nyūdō

かんばり入道

Yokai

In the depths of winter, when snowflakes danced outside the windows and the air was crisp with the scent of woodsmoke, i...

Read the tale →

Kanedama

金玉

Yokai

In a small village nestled between two great mountains, there lived a young merchant named Kaito. He was known for his h...

Read the tale →

Kappa

河童

Yokai

In the depths of winter, when the misty veil of dawn still lingered over the river, a young apprentice fisherman named K...

Read the tale →

Karasu-tengu

烏天狗

Yokai

In the mist-shrouded mountains of Akakawa, where the air is sweet with the scent of cherry blossoms and the sound of win...

Read the tale →

Kasa-obake

傘お化け

Yokai

In the village of Shinoda, where cherry blossoms bloomed in the misty dawn, there lived an old man named Kaito. He was k...

Read the tale →

Kasha

火車

Yokai

In the autumn of the year when leaves rustled with an otherworldly voice, a young monk named Kaito tended to the cremati...

Read the tale →

Kashanbō

かしゃんぼう

Yokai

In the depths of winter, when snowflakes danced in the village's streets and fireplace smoke swirled in the air, rumors...

Read the tale →

Katawa-guruma

片輪車

Yokai

In the depths of winter's chill, when darkness fell like a shroud over the villages, there lived a young woman named Emi...

Read the tale →

Katsura-otoko

桂男

Yokai

In the village nestled between two great rivers, there lived a young woman named Emiko. She was a weaver of exquisite be...

Read the tale →

Kawa-akago

川赤子

Yokai

In the depths of spring's awakening, when cherry blossoms first began to unfurl, a young traveler named Kaito chanced up...

Read the tale →

Kawa-uso

川獺

Yokai

In the misty dawn, when the water's edge was still and the villagers slept, a lone figure emerged from the river's depth...

Read the tale →

Kawa-zaru

川猿

Yokai

In a rural valley where the river Nakagawa flowed gently to the sea, there lived a family of farmers who tilled the land...

Read the tale →

Kawatarō

川太郎

Kappa

In the depths of summer, when the sun beats down upon the rice fields and the river's waters seem to shimmer with heat h...

Read the tale →

Kerakera-onna

けらけら女

Yokai

In the depths of winter, when the nights were longest and the moon hung low in the sky, the villagers of Akakawa would h...

Read the tale →

Kesaran-pasaran

ケサランパサラン

Yokai

In the depths of winter's chill, when snowflakes danced in the streets of Akakawa village, an elderly woman named Otohim...

Read the tale →

Keukegen

毛羽毛現

Yokai

In the depths of winter, when the snowdrifts reached the eaves and the wind howled through the streets like a chorus of...

Read the tale →

Kijimunaa

キジムナー

Yokai

In the heart of the ancient forest of Nakijin, where the sunlight filtering through the leaves created dappled patterns...

Read the tale →

Kijo

鬼女

Yokai

In the misty mountains that shrouded the old village of Kiyomizu, there lived a young woman named Emiko. She was as love...

Read the tale →

Kirin

麒麟

Yokai

In a time long past, when the sun dipped into the mountains and painted the sky with hues of crimson and gold, the villa...

Read the tale →