Aswang

The Account

By day a quiet neighbour, by night a bat-winged thing that lowers a proboscis-tongue through thatched roofs to sip the blood of pregnant women. Bury salt at the door.

From the Public Record

Aswang is an umbrella term for various shape-shifting evil and malevolent creatures in Filipino folklore, such as vampires, ghouls, witches, viscera suckers, and transforming human-beast hybrids. The aswang is the subject of a wide variety of myths, stories, arts, and films, as it is well known throughout the Philippines. Spanish colonists noted that the aswang was the most feared among the mythical creatures of the Philippines, even in the 16th century. Although with no specific motive other than harming others, their behavior can be interpreted as an inversion of the traditional Filipino values. The aswang is especially popular in the southern parts of Luzon, and some parts of Mindanao and Visayas, especially the Visayan province of Capiz.

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