Manananggal
Encyclopedia
The manananggal is a mythical creature of the Philippines. It resembles a Western vampire
, in being an evil, man-eating monster
or witch. The myth of the manananggal is popular in the Visayan region
of the Philippines
, especially in the western provinces of Capiz
, Iloilo
, and Antique. There are varying accounts of the features of a manananggal. Like vampires, Visayan folklore creatures, and aswang
s, manananggals are also said to abhor garlic and salt. They were also known to avoid daggers, light, vinegar, spices and the tail of a stingray, which can be fashioned as a whip
. Folklore of similar creatures can be found in the neighbouring nations of Indonesia
and Malaysia.
), capable of severing its upper torso in order to fly into the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women in their homes; using an elongated proboscis-like tongue, it sucks the hearts of fetus
es or the blood of an unsuspecting, sleeping victim. The severed lower torso is left standing, and it is said to be the more vulnerable of the two halves. Sprinkling salt or smearing crushed garlic or ash on top of the standing torso is fatal to the creature. The upper torso then would not be able to rejoin and will die at daybreak. The name of the creature originates from sinalalala used for a severed torso: manananggal comes from the Tagalog
tanggal (cognate of Malay
tanggal), which means "to remove" or "to separate". Manananggal then means "the one who separates itself" (in this case, separates itself from its lower body). It is a saying that a manananggal's attack can be avoided by death. The most prominent characteristic of a manananggal is its ability to dispatch its torso from its legs.
is the subject or focus of many manananggal stories, as with the stories of other types of mythical creatures, such as ghost
s, goblin
s, ghoul
s and aswang
s.
Herbert Bautista plays a teenager in a faraway province in an episode of this horror anthology movie series. A manananggal is said to live within the vicinity and is out to eat people. He is given the task by his grandmother to kill this creature. Having found a way to prevent it from returning to its body, he must now survive the night to protect his family from the creature's attacks. This story is one of the most popular and suspenseful episodes of the entire series.
Cast: Irma Alegre, Herbert Bautista, Mary Walter
Jean Garcia plays the role of a young girl whose mother is a manananggal, and when she turns 18, she will transform into a wild bloodsucking creature at night by the eerie sound of a bat and sucks the blood of any living person she can find.
Cast: Jean Garcia, Richard Gomez, Aga Muhlach, Gloria Romero, Nida Blanca
A homeless family and their neighbors in the city of Manila are plagued by attacks from a manananggal. A little boy (IC Mendoza) suspects a nun (Aiko Melendez) to be that creature, but no one believes him. He finds himself racing to prove his suspicions before he becomes the monster's next victim.
A brief scene where Marjorie Barretto plays a young lass who turns into a ravenous manananggal at night who hunts for unsuspecting victims.
Cast: Angelu de Leon, Rica Peralejo, Bobby Andrews, Marjorie Barretto, Red Sternberg, Amanda Page
An English-speaking manananggal (Alma Concepcion) spreads terror in Manila.
"Manananggal," a three page wordless comic.
In Episode five of the Anime project between Madhouse and Marvel featuring Blade, he and his partners encounter a mutated version of the Manananggal and its victims while hunting down Deacon Frost on the island of Siquijor, an island province in the Philippines.
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
, in being an evil, man-eating monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
or witch. The myth of the manananggal is popular in the Visayan region
Visayas
The Visayas or Visayan Islands and locally known as Kabisay-an gid, is one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Mindanao and Luzon. It consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea, although the Visayas are considered the northeast...
of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, especially in the western provinces of Capiz
Capiz
Capiz is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Roxas City and is located at the northeastern portion of Panay Island, bordering Aklan and Antique to the west, and Iloilo to the south. Capiz faces the Sibuyan Sea to the north...
, Iloilo
Iloilo
Iloilo is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Iloilo occupies the southeast portion of Panay Island and is bordered by Antique Province to the west and Capiz Province and the Jintotolo Channel to the north. Just off Iloilo's southeast coast is Guimaras Province,...
, and Antique. There are varying accounts of the features of a manananggal. Like vampires, Visayan folklore creatures, and aswang
Aswang
An Aswang is a mythical creature in Philippine folklore. The aswang is an inherently evil vampire-like creature and is the subject of a wide variety of myths and stories, the details of which vary greatly...
s, manananggals are also said to abhor garlic and salt. They were also known to avoid daggers, light, vinegar, spices and the tail of a stingray, which can be fashioned as a whip
Buntot Pagi
Buntot pagi or Sting ray tail is a type of Filipino whip like weapon. Famous weapon in fighting and warding off aswangs and its like. In actual combat a Buntot Pagi is often used with a balaraw or a short knife or sword....
. Folklore of similar creatures can be found in the neighbouring nations of Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and Malaysia.
Features
A manananggal is described as being a hideous, scary vampire-like creature (as opposed to an aswangAswang
An Aswang is a mythical creature in Philippine folklore. The aswang is an inherently evil vampire-like creature and is the subject of a wide variety of myths and stories, the details of which vary greatly...
), capable of severing its upper torso in order to fly into the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women in their homes; using an elongated proboscis-like tongue, it sucks the hearts of fetus
Fetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
es or the blood of an unsuspecting, sleeping victim. The severed lower torso is left standing, and it is said to be the more vulnerable of the two halves. Sprinkling salt or smearing crushed garlic or ash on top of the standing torso is fatal to the creature. The upper torso then would not be able to rejoin and will die at daybreak. The name of the creature originates from sinalalala used for a severed torso: manananggal comes from the Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
tanggal (cognate of Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
tanggal), which means "to remove" or "to separate". Manananggal then means "the one who separates itself" (in this case, separates itself from its lower body). It is a saying that a manananggal's attack can be avoided by death. The most prominent characteristic of a manananggal is its ability to dispatch its torso from its legs.
Capiz
The province of CapizCapiz
Capiz is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Roxas City and is located at the northeastern portion of Panay Island, bordering Aklan and Antique to the west, and Iloilo to the south. Capiz faces the Sibuyan Sea to the north...
is the subject or focus of many manananggal stories, as with the stories of other types of mythical creatures, such as ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
s, goblin
Goblin
A goblin is a legendary evil or mischievous illiterate creature, a grotesquely evil or evil-like phantom.They are attributed with various abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constantly annoying little...
s, ghoul
Ghoul
A ghoul is a folkloric monster associated with graveyards and consuming human flesh, often classified as undead. The oldest surviving literature that mention ghouls is likely One Thousand and One Nights...
s and aswang
Aswang
An Aswang is a mythical creature in Philippine folklore. The aswang is an inherently evil vampire-like creature and is the subject of a wide variety of myths and stories, the details of which vary greatly...
s.
Appearances in film and other media
- Shake, Rattle and RollShake, Rattle & Roll (Filipino film series)Shake, Rattle & Roll is a Filipino horror film series dating back to 1984. It is currently produced by Regal Films. Most of the series are official entries for the Metro Manila Film Festival with the exception of the sixth installment which premiered in January 1997...
(1984)
Herbert Bautista plays a teenager in a faraway province in an episode of this horror anthology movie series. A manananggal is said to live within the vicinity and is out to eat people. He is given the task by his grandmother to kill this creature. Having found a way to prevent it from returning to its body, he must now survive the night to protect his family from the creature's attacks. This story is one of the most popular and suspenseful episodes of the entire series.
Cast: Irma Alegre, Herbert Bautista, Mary Walter
- Impaktita (1989)
Jean Garcia plays the role of a young girl whose mother is a manananggal, and when she turns 18, she will transform into a wild bloodsucking creature at night by the eerie sound of a bat and sucks the blood of any living person she can find.
Cast: Jean Garcia, Richard Gomez, Aga Muhlach, Gloria Romero, Nida Blanca
- Shake, Rattle & RollShake, Rattle & Roll (Filipino film series)Shake, Rattle & Roll is a Filipino horror film series dating back to 1984. It is currently produced by Regal Films. Most of the series are official entries for the Metro Manila Film Festival with the exception of the sixth installment which premiered in January 1997...
IV (1992)
A homeless family and their neighbors in the city of Manila are plagued by attacks from a manananggal. A little boy (IC Mendoza) suspects a nun (Aiko Melendez) to be that creature, but no one believes him. He finds himself racing to prove his suspicions before he becomes the monster's next victim.
- Takot Ka Ba Dilim? (1996)
A brief scene where Marjorie Barretto plays a young lass who turns into a ravenous manananggal at night who hunts for unsuspecting victims.
Cast: Angelu de Leon, Rica Peralejo, Bobby Andrews, Marjorie Barretto, Red Sternberg, Amanda Page
- Manananggal in Manila (1997)
An English-speaking manananggal (Alma Concepcion) spreads terror in Manila.
- KrasueKrasueThe krasue is a certain female spirit of Southeast Asian mythology.This ghost has been the subject of a number of movies in the region, including Konm Eak Madia Arb , a Cambodian horror movie which has the distinction of being the first movie made in the People's Republic of Kampuchea after the...
, 2002 film by Bin Bunluerit
- Lose #3, 2011 comic by Michael Deforge
"Manananggal," a three page wordless comic.
- BladeBladeA blade is that portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with a cutting edge and/or a pointed tip that is designed to cut and/or puncture, stab, slash, chop, slice, thrust, or scrape animate or inanimate surfaces or materials...
(2011)
In Episode five of the Anime project between Madhouse and Marvel featuring Blade, he and his partners encounter a mutated version of the Manananggal and its victims while hunting down Deacon Frost on the island of Siquijor, an island province in the Philippines.
Other terms and versions
- AswangAswangAn Aswang is a mythical creature in Philippine folklore. The aswang is an inherently evil vampire-like creature and is the subject of a wide variety of myths and stories, the details of which vary greatly...
: Manananggals are popularly referred to as aswangs. However, aswang is a generic term and can refer to all types of ghouls, mananangals, witches (mangkukulam), etc. - Tik-tik: Manananggals are sometimes referred to as tik-tik, the sound it makes while flying. Folklore dictates that the fainter the sound, the nearer the manananggal is. This is to confuse the victim. Black cats and crows often signal a tik-tik's presence, and deformed faces or bodies in children are allegedly signs of the aftermath of a tik-tik attack.
- LeyakLeyakIn the folklore of Bali, the Leyak is a mythological figure in the form of flying head with entrails still attached. Leyak is said to fly trying to find a pregnant woman in order to suck her baby's blood or a newborn child...
See also
- Philippine mythologyPhilippine mythologyPhilippine mythology include a collection of tales and superstitions about magical creatures and entities. Some Filipinos, even though heavily westernized and Christianized, still believe on these tales...
- TiyanakTiyanakThe Tiyanak is a vampiric creature in Philippine mythology that imitates the form of a child. It usually takes the form of a newborn baby and cries like one in the jungle to attract unwary travelers. Once it is picked up by the victim, it reverts to its true form and attacks the victim...
—Blood-sucking creature in a form of a baby that turns into what is known to be the child of the devil - KrasueKrasueThe krasue is a certain female spirit of Southeast Asian mythology.This ghost has been the subject of a number of movies in the region, including Konm Eak Madia Arb , a Cambodian horror movie which has the distinction of being the first movie made in the People's Republic of Kampuchea after the...
—Floating vampiric female head and entrails that is similar to a manananggal - ChonchonChonchonFor other uses, see Chonchon The Chonchon is a mythical bird from Mapuche religion also present in Chilean and southern Argentinan folk myth.-Legend:...
-mapuche creature that also detaches its head - NukekubiNukekubiare monsters found in Japanese folklore. By day, nukekubi appear to be normal human beings. By night, however, their heads detach at the neck smoothly from their bodies and fly about independently in search of human prey. These heads attack by screaming , then closing in and biting.While the head...
—Japanese creature that also detaches its head to feed on victims