So you have all heard of Dracula, but we would not quite consider him a Romanian legend. The novel Dracula was actually written by an Irishman (Bram Stoker) who had never visited any part of Romania, much less Transylvania. However, Romanians do have quite a few monsters and creatures stashed away in ancient folklore.
In fact, Romanians have plenty of superstitions about the undead, about bloodsucking creatures, and plenty of other horrendous nightmares. In this way, they were able to turn their fears of things they could not control, like illness, unhealthy crops or far-off enemies into mythical sprites that would be chased away with signs and symbols and even garlic!
Capcaun
The Capcaun is a creature with the body of a man and the head of a dog. He goes around kidnapping innocent children and innocent young women. Sometimes the Capcaun has too many limbs or an extra head. He is clever and tricky, so there are many tales of men trying to save a damsel in distress, kidnapped by a Capcaun.
These men often die because the Capcaun is so cunning. This is an unhappy ogre-like creature who lives by himself in a musky pigsty of a den and is ready to kill anyone who walks past him.
The exact origin of the Capcaun is unknown, but the name might come from an eastern term meaning “chieftain.” Separating the word into “cap caun” or “Great Khan” might show us that this creature was Romania’s embodiment of their fear of the Mongols or other eastern enemies.
Urias
The Urias are the people from the beginning of time. They are colossal giants so big that we cannot even fathom such a being. Their heads were as big as mountains and they could walk across continents with just a few steps. Even though they were obscenely huge, they lived among people of our stature and humans got along well with the Urias.
However, this peace did not last long. Soon, humans found themselves at odds with the Urias and a great war developed between the two. Heinous crimes were committed by both humans and giants and it seemed like this would be a war without end. God (also known as “the Brother”) had to intervene.
He determined that both sides were at fault and that there was no peaceful way to end this. He decided to flood the entire earth. Almost no one survived, other than Noah and his family, who were safe aboard his Ark.
Although the Urias are no longer alive with us today, their burial mounds can still be found throughout the world. It is believed that they are buried with great amounts of treasures, so if you find one of their burial grounds then you have pretty much won the lottery! However, their tombs are hard to find.
The way to find them is to be on the lookout during certain days of the year. On Christmas Eve, Easter, and St. George’s Day, their tombs are lit with a magical fire that burns above their graves.
Strigoi
The Strigoi is pretty much the ultimate monster! Like the Pricolici, it is another undead creature, but this one can shape-shift into any animal. More than that, it has the ability to turn invisible and has an unquenchable thirst for blood. This is quite an old legendary monster, and it is likely that vampires and werewolves are based off of the Strigoi.
And like the Pricolici, the Strigoi are not just characters in scary stories, many Romanians swear these are real. Check out this article written in 2004 about a “vampire” slaying. She was visited by her uncle, who had already died and been buried.
She told her family, and they did what anyone who believes in vampires would do: they dug up his body and cut out his heart. The idea is to kill the undead being that is somehow still alive. After that, the young girl and her family burned the uncle’s remains, mixed his ashes with water, and drank it.
This is how you destroy a Strigoi. As the article explains, it is illegal in Romania to dig up dead people, even if they are your family members, and the official stance of the Romanian government is that vampires and Strigoi are not real. But if you are being haunted by a Strigoi, wouldn’t you do all that is necessary to destroy it for good?
Ielele
The spelling of this magical creature might be funny, but their mythical powers are anything but! The Ielele are very similar to the Sirens of Greek mythology. These are fairie-like creatures that shine in the moonlight, dancing naked with soft bells to make gentle music that lures in men.
This might seem innocent, but we said that the Ielele are like the Sirens – they lure these men to their death. When men follow the Ielele they disappear into thin air – no one knows where they go!
Pricolici
These are undead monsters that take the form of wolves. Romania has long had the largest wild wolf population in Europe, so it is not hard to imagine why the Pricolici is a mythical monster that has lasted through the ages. As part of the legend, the Pricolici are men who die but come back to life as a wolf.
And these are not just harmless men finding a new life through a wolf, no. Think more of werewolves: these are wolves that come back from the grave with evil intentions.
These monsters are vicious, murderous and ready to attack at any moment. And these monsters are more than just legendary – indeed, Romanians in recent times have claimed to have been attacked by irregularly large wolves that they believe are Pricolici!
You don’t have to believe in this one, but do be on the watch if you decide to visit the beautiful (and perhaps slightly haunted) country of Romania!
There you have it, some of the most popular mythical monsters of Romania! We hope you enjoyed learning about these monsters and that this article has inspired you to learn more about Romanian mythology!