Nure Onna - 濡女 - [Yokai]

NureOnna - 濡女 - the "Wet Woman"

• About this Yokai:

A Serpentine yokai who live in deep bodies of water with the face of a beautiful woman, but the body of a 30ft long snake. (some have arms and claws while others simply do not have limbs at all.)

They prefer to use trickery to lure people towards the water's edge: often pretending to be in distress (drowning) or waiting by the shoreline washing her hair. Nure onna often uses a bundle disguised as a baby as a sort of lure. (a trick seen across many female yokai.) it's said to be sticky, hard to let go of, and weighs a person down. The Nure Onna will trap their victim, paralyzing them with their snakelike gaze & drinking all of their blood with her sharp forked tongue. - some accounts say that their tails are strong enough to snap a tree clean in half! - Occasionally a Nure onna team up with other local yokai & go on hunts: One frequent partner is the massive bull demon, Ushi-Oni, its often said that they 'belong to each other.'

• History: Mine is inspired by the one that appears in Toriyama sekien's gazu hyakki yagyo [1776] though, nure onna as a yokai does appear in much earlier picture scrolls & legends

Sticker Art by @Samkalensky (yo thats me!) - Part of my Night parade of 100 Demons - Yokai & Japanese folklore sticker collection, weather-resistant 4" Glossy sticker. Check my shop & follow @samkalensky for many more!