We’ve all heard of Bigfoot. The John Wick franchise and the MCU have also helped spread the terrifying legend of Baba Yaga. And HBO’s The Outsider taught us all about El Coco. But what do you know of South America’s La Tunda? They say she’s a hag who can shapeshift into the object of your desire right before she sucks your blood. What about Cuba’s Madre de Aguas? Locals speak of a horned snake both thick as a palm tree and bulletproof.
Every country in the world has a mythical creature every citizen knows the stories of, and a new project has put together a list of every nations’ most famous legendary beast. And you can see them all come to life in some stunning illustrations.
SavingSpot
SavingSpot of CashNetUSA put together a comprehensive list for every country’s most famous mythical creature. Their World of Cryptids series is a followup to their list of every US states‘ most famous legendary resident.
SavingSpot
First SavingSpot compiled a long list of famous mythical beasts using Heather Frigiola’s Monsters and Mythical Creatures From Around the World, Wikipedia, and “numerous independent sites.” To then find each nation’s most popular legend “the research team ranked them by total search results on Google, using the search terms “[Country] + [Mythical Creature].”
SavingSpot
What they found was that many countries share the same monsters, even though they sometimes have slight differences. For example lots of countries fear dragons, but not all dragons look the same.
SavingSpot
The final list is a mix of “fearsome giants and sneaky trolls to scary dragons and magical elves.” Some legends are famous around the globe (dwarves, unicorns, leprechauns), while others will be new to some (popobawa, adze, muki).
SavingSpot
The list itself is great, especially for those who love learning about mythical creatures and other cultures. But what makes this project even better is that the team at SavingSpot worked with illustrator Laimute Varkalaite to create stunning drawings and world maps of every creature.
We want to hang all of them in our homes and offices.
SavingSpot
You can find more information about the lists, along with individual country monster illustrations, at CashNetUSA. And, as always, you might be also able to find Baba Yaga or La Tunda hiding in the shadows waiting to strike.
SavingSpot
Featured Image: SavingSpot