John Matthews: The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures: The Ultimate A–Z of Fantastic Beings from Myth and Magic

The creature is also associated with Lake Bala, where a version of the Noah’s Flood story is told. A man named Dwyfan suspected that the monster was going to cause a flood and built an ark to house all the animals he could find. The flood did indeed come, caused by the thrashing of the Afanc. Dwyfan and his wife Dwyfach were the sole survivors and they founded the British race. This story probably originated in the flash floods for which the area is famous. Later, it was said that the Arthurian hero Peredur (Percival) slew the Afanc in single combat, but stories were still told of it as late as the 19th century. In one of these, the setting is Llyn Barfog (the Bearded Lake), where, in an echo of the Unicornstory, the Afanc is captured after it is lulled to sleep by the singing of a virgin. It is then chained and dragged away to a deep lake where it still lies. Another such story refers to the mythical hero Hu Gadarn, who captures the beast and drags it from the lake with his team of mighty oxen.The Afanc is probably related to the Scottish kelpieand the Manx glaistyn.

A tribe of monstrous demons or djinsfound in Muslim and Arabic folklore. Described as gigantic in form, sometimes with cloven hooves and horns, it may well have added details to the description of the Devil in Christian mythology. Incredibly fierce and cruel, the Afrits stole unattended children and dragged them to their deaths. They were feared throughout the Muslim world. Usually found in desert lands, the people of Kenya spoke of them inhabiting muddy pools and shallow rivers, from which they leapt out without warning. According to biblical tradition, King Solomon once bound an Afrit with magic, and forced it to help him find the Shamir.Lord Byron, who travelled widely in the Middle East, was so fascinated by the stories of the Aftrit that he included one in his poem ‘The Giaour’.

Go – and with Gouls and Afrits rave; Till these in horror shrink away From Spectre more accursed than they.

A winged serpentfrom classical Greek and Gnostic traditions. It is especially associated with bringing good luck, and offerings of wine were made to this being to ensure good harvest of the vines. In later Greek tradition, small temples were set up to the Agathodemon, which at this point was now seen as a snake.In some Gnostic sources, Agathodemon is sometimes shown as Aion,the bearer of the zodiac of time, with a lion’s head and man’s body.

The name of one of the Sirensin Greek and Roman mythology.

Female fairiesliving among the Austrian Alps, in northern Italy and the borders of Slovenia. They are shapeshifters but their true form is that of a beautiful young woman with long hair and either goat’s or horse’s feet. They are particularly known as guardians of rivers and mountain streams, and it is advisable to ask their permission before setting foot in any such water. If a man enters the water and stirs up the mud of the stream-bed, the Aguane may come forth and attack him. While they have been known to eat human beings who trespass in their waters, they are also known to be fond of children, whom they carry on their shoulders across rivers.

In the Solomon Islands of Melanesia, the creators of life were the Figonas.The greatest Figona was Agunua who created a male child, but he was so helpless, Agunua made a woman to make fire, cook and weed the garden. Another Figona was the great cosmic serpent Hatuibwari,who features in the traditions of the San Cristobel Islanders of Melanesia.

Represented as either a dragonor a vast cosmic serpentin the Vedic myths of ancient India, the Ahi was so huge that in some versions of the myth it is described as drinking all the waters of the Earth, after which it curled itself around the peaks of a great mountain range. The god Indra found it there and slew it, causing the waters to run free again. It is probable that this story reflects the period in winter when the waters are frozen, to be released again with the coming of spring. The Ahi is sometimes connected with Vrtrasince both withhold water, steal women and cows, and endanger fertility.

The Ahuizotl appears in the folklore and legends of Mexico. So terrifying was this creature that even to see it was to invite death. It is usually seen as a flesh-eating creature that takes the form of a dog,but with the feet of a monkeyand a human hand growing at the end of its prehensile tail. Its name means ‘water opossum’, and it lies in wait for fishermen in the waters and along the banks of rivers. It has a number of tricks by which it catches people, including making small fish and frogs leap about in the water to attract the attention of would-be fishermen. The Ahuizotl then reaches out with the hand at the end of its tail, and drags its victim beneath the water. Within three days, bodies are found floating, and are recognized as victims of the Ahuizotl by the fact that their eyes, teeth and nails are missing – these being delicacies to the monster.

The supreme deity of the Mochicr people of southern coastal Peru. He takes the form of an ancient man with long pointed fangs and the whiskers of a cat.An anthropomorphized feline god once worshipped in the north of the country, Ai Apaec is one of those gods who are known as the teachers of mankind, bringing the skills of farming, fishing, hunting, music and medicine to the people. He also presides over birth and his court included a lizardand a dog.He is represented on the four-faced pottery vessels made by the people of northern Peru as a human being with the face of the cat on the back of his head; the cat’s face has the eyes of a god.

A gianttwo-headed eaglethat perches on the top of a mountain and sheds light over the world in the folklore of the Yakut peoples of Siberia.

A creature resembling a giant serpentor snakefound in Finnish folklore. Known as the ‘Devil of the Woods’, this creature is said to suckle small snakes. These snakes can cause sickness in the person who sees them. In some areas of Finland, especially along the edge of the Arctic tundra, the Aiatar is seen as a destructive female force that brings bad luck to all who encounter it.

A predatory water demon or Afritof Moroccan folklore which lurks along the banks of the River Sebu, around the Aquadel at Marrakesh, and even in the grounds of the Sultan’s palace in the same city. She appears as a beautiful young woman who lures lonely men to their death. Once her victim is within reach, she transforms into a gigantic monsterand drags her victim away to consume him beneath the water. The only way to escape her is to find another human being or an inhabited dwelling, since the Aicha Kandida is apparently able only to attack one person at a time. Occasionally she will relinquish her prey if bribed by a sufficiently generous gift.

The great Rainbow Serpentof Dahomy mythology.

Aida Hwedo carried the creator Mawu from place to place as she went about creating the Earth. Whenever they stopped for the night, in the morning there were mountains – the piles of excrement left by Aida Hwedo. When the creation was completed, Mawu realized that there were too many large objects on the surface of the Earth and that it was likely to break apart as a result. So she brought Aida Hwedo and commanded him to coil around the inside of the earth’s crust. To prevent the serpent from being overcome by the heat, Mawu placed the sea around him to cool his skin. However, if he gets too hot and shifts in his place, he causes earthquakes. Aida Hwedo lives on a diet of iron bars, but when these are exhausted he will begin to swallow his own tail, at which point the world will be destroyed.