Within the fantasy and fiction we can find a numberless list of creatures or beings that have lived throughout history and its myths. Some say they are real and believe to have seen them; others are just not that into them. So, this time around the OBS Staff brings you a list of some of the most recognizable “Mythical Creatures” for our A to Z edition. Enjoy!

Mythical Creatures

A: Angels
(A supernatural being found in many religions, whose duties are to assist and serve God. They typically act as messengers, as believed in the main three monotheistic religions.)

Afanc
(A lake monster from Welsh mythology. Its exact description varies; it is described alternately as resembling a crocodile, beaver or dwarf-like creature, and is sometimes said to be a demon.)

B: Bigfoot
(An alleged ape-like creature purportedly inhabiting forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid.)

Banshee
(A female spirit, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld.)

C: Cyclops
(A giant, with one single eye in the middle of his forehead.)

Centaur
(Has the head, arms, and chest of the centaur are human while the rest of its body, including four legs, hindquarters, and a tail is like that of a horse.)

Cherubs or Cherubim
(In Modern English they are strictly known as baby or toddler angels. Originally they are described as winged beings, a tetrad of living creatures, each having four faces: of a lion, an ox, an eagle, and a man. They are said to have the stature and hands of a man, the feet of a calf, and four wings.)

Chimaera
(A monstrous beast which is part lion, goat and snake.)

D: Dragons
(A legendary winged creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits.)

Demons
(Powerful supernatural beings without the dignity of gods. Ancient demons could be good or bad. Traditionally demons have been said to reign on some other planet, usually some form of hell, and are creatures of fire.)

Dwarves
(Described as shorter and stockier than Elves and Men, able to withstand both heat and cold. Though they are mortal, Dwarves have an average lifespan of 250 years.)

E: Elf
(Originally thought of as a race of divine or semi-divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind. In pre-Christian mythology, they appear to have been divided into light elves and dark elves. In early modern and modern folklore, they were known to live underground in hills or rocks, or in wells and springs.)

Erinyes
(They are crones with snakes for hair, dogs’ heads, coal-black bodies, bats’ wings, and bloodshot eyes. In their hands they carry brass-studded scourges.)

F: Fairies
(Generally described as human in appearance and having magical powers, in modern culture they are often depicted as young, sometimes winged, humanoids of small stature, they originally were depicted much differently: tall, radiant, angelic beings or short, wizened trolls.)

Fae
(Able to see the future, or touched in the head. In popular culture the fey, if recognized at all, have been reduced to small, winged, humanoid, female creatures that are frequently portrayed in the nude.)

G: Gargoyle
(In contemporary fiction, gargoyles are typically depicted as a winged humanoid creature with demonic features.)

Goblins
(A legendary evil or mischievous creature, described as a grotesquely evil or evil -like phantom, have been classified as constantly annoying little creatures, can come in any color but are mainly depicted as green or brown, and are very crabby.)

Griffins
(A legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. As the lion was traditionally considered the king of the beasts and the eagle was the king of the birds, the griffin was thought to be an especially powerful and majestic creature. Griffins are normally known for guarding treasure.)

H: Hydra
(A many headed monster which terrorized visitors near the lake of Lerna in Greece. Killing the Hydraproved to be quite a challenge, as two heads would grow back whenever one was cut off.)

Harpy
(Mainly winged death-spirits, best known for constantly stealing all food from Phineas, they could also bring life.)

Hobbits
(Are between two and four feet tall, the average height being three feet six inches. They dress in bright colours, favoring yellow and green. Nowadays, they are usually very shy creatures, but are nevertheless capable of great courage and amazing feats under the proper circumstances.)

I: Itcuintlipotzotli
(Better known as the Chupacabra – strange Mexican creature the size of a small dog. It has hairless skin, a wolfish head, no neck, a short tail, and a large hump down the length of its back.)

J: Jack Frost
(Is an elfish creature who personifies crisp, cold weather. Jack is said to leave patterns in the autumn leaves and the patterns in the frost that are left on windows.)

K: Kraken
(Is an enormous sea monster in Norwegian sea folklore, which would sometimes attack ships and feed upon the sailors. It was said to be capable of dragging down the largest ships and when submerging could suck down a vessel by the whirlpool it created. It is described as part octopus and part crab, occasionally as a giant squid or cuttlefish.)

Kampe
(A monstrous centaurine creature who, from the waist up, had the body of a serpentine-haired woman. Below she had the body of a scaly dragon with a thousand vipers for feet and sprouting from her waist the heads of fifty fearsome beasts–lions, boars and other wild animals. Dark wings rose from her shoulders and above her head she lifted a furious scorpion’s tail.)

L: Loch Ness
(A cryptic that is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. The most frequent speculation is that the creature represents a line of long-surviving plesiosaurs.)

Lamia
(Lamia was once the beautiful Queen of Lybia and was seduced by the great king of the Greek gods himself – Zeus. His jealous wife, Hera, reacted by killing Lamia’s children and turning her into a hateful monster – a woman above the waist and a serpent below.)

M: Medusa
(Was a monstrous chthonic female character, essentially an extension of an apotropaic mask, whose gaze could turn onlookers to stone. In other versions she was a human with blonde hair and she had no sisters. She slept with Poseidon in Athena’s temple, so Athena punished Medusa by turning her into a monster with hair made of snakes.)

Minotaur
(Was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man.)

N: Nymph
(Is any member of a large class of female nature entities, either bound to a particular location or landform or joining the retinue of a god or goddess.)

O: Orcs
(Portrayed as physically stronger or weaker than humans, but always high in numbers. They often ride wolves or wargs. They are also often depicted with pig-like faces.)

Ouroboros
(A self-eating, circular being as the first living thing in the universe—an immortal, perfectly constructed animal. The living being had no need of eyes when there was nothing remaining outside him to be seen; nor of ears when there was nothing to be heard; and there was no surrounding atmosphere to be breathed.)

P: Pegasus
(It is said Pegasus sprang from the blood of the Gorgon Medusa after Perseus beheaded her. Pegasus is described as a winged white horse. They live in the forest and live in small herds. Very rarely one pegasus will befriend a human, or elf and become his/her companion.)

Phoenix
(Is a mythical bird and associated with the Egyptian sun-god Re and the Greek Phoibos)

Pixie
(Are usually depicted as wingless, with pointed ears, and often wearing a green outfit and pointed hat. Sometimes their eyes are described as being pointed upwards at the temple ends.)

Q: Quanlier
(In Cherokee legend, a Quanlier has the head of a wolf, the torso of a man, the arms of a dog and the legs of a jackal. It feeds on human flesh and most small animals. Living in a small area there are very few, in fact there may be only one. It’s a close relation to a werewolf, only it can’t change into a human and when it’s killed it doesn’t turn into a human. It can run at speeds of up to 300 MPH.)

R: Roc
(A legendary gigantic bird from Arabian legends. These birds were so big that they could carry off elephants for food. The Roc is featured in various stories of the “Thousand and One Nights” and they have also featured in historical texts of Marco Polo on his travels.)

S: Sprite
(A broad term referring to a number of monstrous creatures. The term is generally used in reference to fairies, like the elf or dwarf, and the likes of it; but can also signify various monstrous beings, including ghosts.)

Sphinx
(Was the riddler who was part woman part lion. She killed anyone who couldn’t answer her riddles, but wouldn’t let anyone through the gates she stood in front of unless they could.)

Succubus
(Is a demon who takes the form of a woman to seduce men in dreams to have sexual intercourse.)

Selkie
(Are able to transform to human form by shedding their seal skins and can revert to seal form by putting their selkie skin back on. When in human form, both sex are described as handsome and seductive. Male selkies typically seek those who are dissatisfied with their romantic life. This includes married women waiting for their fishermen husbands.)

Satyr
(Are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus.)

Skin Walker
(In some Native American legends, a skin-walker is a person with the supernatural ability to turn into any animal he or she desires)

T: Troll
(Is a fearsome member of a mythical anthropomorph race from Scandinavia. Their role ranges from fiendish giants – similar to the ogres of England – to a devious, dwarf-like folk of the wilderness, living underground in hills, caves or mounds.

U: Unicorn
(A legendary creature usually depicted with the body of a horse, but with a single – usually spiral – horn growing out of its forehead. The unicorn’s blood and horn supposedly have mystical healing properties. A unicorn’s horn also is known as the “bane of evil” in that it has the ability to dispel anything malignant in water and can also kill most truly evil creatures it comes in to contact with.)

V: Vampires
(A preternatural being, commonly believed to be a reanimated corpse, that is said to suck the blood of sleeping persons at night. Or according to Eastern European folklore, a corpse, animated by an undeparted soul or demon, that periodically leaves the grave and disturbs the living, until it is exhumed and impaled or burned. Or  alternatively a person who has made a pact with the devil, selling his soul to him in exchange for nearly eternal life as long as the person sucks the blood from other people.)

W: Werewolves
(Love to eat babies and corpses. Only silver bullets or arrows can kill a werewolf. After death, a werewolf resumes his human identity.)

X: Xelhua
(Always female, she is a fairy nymph of extraordinary beauty believed to live in fountains, rivers, waterfalls or forested regions with pure water.)

Xing Tian
(Meaning “punished one” or “he who was punished by heaven” is a Pre-Qin Dynasty mythological headless giant.)

Y: Yale
(The Yale is a four legged beast from Ethiopia and India, its colour is a tawny brown or black. It is about the size of a horse; it looks much like a deer but has the lower jaws of a boar with its tusks. The Yale has movable horns that it can control.)

Yeti
(A hybrid of man and ape, standing well over two meters tall and having a fur of a dark brown to black color. Or to some they’re described as smaller than an average man with a reddish-brown pelt.)

Z: Zombies
(The living dead – reanimated corpses brought back to serve a sorcerer. Once given salt, they realize what’s happening, and return to their grave. Once the touch they dirt of their grave, they go back to being dead.)

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