Leshy

Leshy (Polish: Leszy, in English sometimes spelled Leshii or Leszi) is a mythical creature that appears in Slavic mythology. It is also the subject in “The Witcher” Saga written by Andrzej Sapkowski.

A Leshy is male and human in shape and can assume any form.^[1] A Leshy can change in size and height.^[2][3] In some accounts, the leshy is described as having a wife (leshachikha/leszachka/lesovikha) and children (leshonki/leszonky). Because he is known to lead travelers astray and abduct children, which he shares with Chort, or "The Black One," the Leshy is believed by some to be evil. Others view him as more of a temperamental being like a fairy.^[4]

1. ↑ Ushakov,Dmitry. (1896) Материалы по народным верованиям великоруссов, Этнографическое обозрение [Materials on the folk beliefs of the Great Russian, Ethnographic Review]. (Vol. 8), no. 2-3, pg. 158.
2. ↑ Maksimov, S. V. (1912) Нечистая сила. Неведомая сила // Собрание сочинений [The Unclean Force, The Unknown Force, Collected Works]. pp. 79-80.
3. ↑ Tokarev, Sergei Aleksandrovich. (1957) Религиозные верования восточнославянских народов XIX — начала XX века [The religious beliefs of the peoples of East 19th – early 20th centuries]. AN SSSR Moscow and Leningrad. p. 80.
4. ↑ Ivanits, Linda J. (1989) Russian Folk Belief. Routledge. p. 68 ISBN 0-873-32889-2