
Jenglot
A tiny, wizened mummy-like figure found across Indonesia, said to be alive and fed with human blood.
Traditional, widely publicized 1997
Java and other Indonesian islands
10-20 centimeters
Inert or dormant
Specimens regularly surface, debated authenticity
The Lore
Jenglot are small humanoid figures, typically 10-20 centimeters tall, found throughout Indonesia. They resemble tiny, dried-out humanoids with long hair, sharp teeth, and claw-like nails. Local tradition holds that jenglot are the remains of people who sought immortality through dark practices and became trapped in a cursed, shrunken form. Owners claim to feed them drops of blood. Scientific analyses of some specimens have found them to be constructed from animal parts and synthetic materials, but their cultural significance remains strong.
Body Type
Folklore Origin
You might also like

Sigbin
MediumA blood-drinking creature from the Philippines that walks backward and hides in the shadows of its owner.

Orang Minyak
HighA slippery, oil-coated humanoid that terrorizes Malaysian towns at night, impossible to catch or hold.

Aswang
HighThe Philippines' most feared shapeshifter hides as your neighbor by day and hunts as a beast by night.

Orang Pendek
LowA short, bipedal ape covered in golden-brown fur walks the jungles of Sumatra, and credible scientists have spent decades trying to prove it exists.

Ebu Gogo
MediumThe people of Flores Island describe small, hairy cave-dwellers who stole food and children, and the story gained credibility when Homo floresiensis fossils were found.

Yeti
MediumThe ape-man of the Himalayas, tracked through snow but never confirmed.

Gashadokuro
HighA towering skeleton formed from the bones of the unburied dead, rattling through the night to bite off heads.

Manananggal
HighA vampire that tears its own torso free and flies through the night on bat-like wings, trailing its entrails below.