29 What is the Wendigo? (Folklore / Ghost Stories)
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This article is from the Ghost Stories FAQ, by obiwan obiwan@best.com with numerous contributions by others.
29 What is the Wendigo? (Folklore / Ghost Stories)
"The wendigo is a Canadian entity, half phantom, half beast, who
lives in the forests and preys on human beings, particularly chil-
dren. The belief in this horror dates back to the earliest Indian
legends and it is said that the wendigo will eat the flesh of its
victims. According to R.S. Lambert in "Exploring the Supernatural"
(1955), 'Wendigos (who might be women as well as men) were believed
to have entered into a pact with evil spirits, lurking in the for-
est, who helped them kill their victims.' The legend of this crea-
ture has been immortalized in Algernon Blackwood's short story "The
Wendigo" (1907). In W.T. Cox's "Fearsome Creatures of the Lumber
Woods" (1951) a number of other Canadian "wood horrors" are listed,
including the hodag, the whimpus, the hoop-snake, the celofay, and
the filamaloo."
--A Dictionary of Ghost Lore, by Peter Haining
Noah Broadwater (lseifer@usa.net) adds:
"The posting on 'Wendigos' or 'Wendegos' (there are two spellings) is
quite interesting and accurate from a folk point of view. Anthropologic-
ally, however, a different definition exists. 'Wendigos' are people who
have a psychological problem. This occurs to people who starve out in the
sub-arctic region. This hunger often causes a psychological imbalance.
The person becomes cannibalistic and tries to eat other humans or
anything that will provide food, including rotting animals. This often
begins at night during sleep where the afflicted will turn in their
sleep and attempt to eat whomever is next to them. The Inupiak (sp?)
Native Americans are the most affected by this due to their migratory
lifestyle and harsh environment. Currently Canadian hospitals are
treating people affected by this phenomena."
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