No.027

Yamauba

THE MOUNTAIN WOMAN

For reference: old artSawaki Suushi（1737）
"Yamauba" from Hyakkai Zukan
Public domain (Wikimedia Commons)

Japanese name: 山姥（YAMAUBA）
Type: Mountain spirit
Found in: Deep mountains, a lone house in the hills

◆ The legend

A woman yokai said to live alone deep in the mountains. Long, wild hair and a huge mouth split almost to her ears: in folktales, the yamauba chases travelers caught on mountain paths at nightfall, or children sent out on errands. There are also tales of a yamauba who slips into a household as a man's wife, only to reveal her true self in the end.

Yet the yamauba is not only frightening. Stories in many places tell of her helping people lost in the mountains, or bringing good fortune to those she meets. Scholars of Japanese folklore have pointed out her links to the worship of mountain deities. Perhaps she carries both the gifts of the mountains and their dangers, all on her own.

◆ Stories about this yokai

October 9, 2026The Two Faces of the Yamauba: The Hag Who Gives Chase, the Spirit Who Roams the Mountains, and Kintaro's MotherIn folktales the yamauba chases young monks and ox drivers. Yet in the Noh play "Yamamba" she quietly helps woodcutters, and in ukiyo-e prints she is Kintaro's loving mother. A gentle look at why one yokai wears such different faces.