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Like&subscribe 🙏👍🌸💖1. Phoenix
The phoenix is a mythical bird associated with Greek roots that is known for its cyclical regeneration. It ignites at the end of its life cycle, regenerating and emerging as a new creature–sometimes as a newborn version of itself, and sometimes as a new creature entirely. Phoenixes are where we get the cliche “rising from the ashes.”
2. Centaur
A centaur is a creature with the head, torso, and arms of a human, but the legs and body of a horse. They also come from Greek mythology, with various possible origins, all of which involve a human breeding with a horse, to confirm your fears. Dragon
Everyone knows what a dragon is, because there’s a version of them in every culture. This might be due to individual nations discovering the remains of dinosaurs and drawing conclusions.
An anthropologist (David E Jones) suggested that the fear of snakes is so common in humans due to an evolutionary fear recognition of dragons. That might seem like a silly assertion, but consider that it’s also very fun.
4. Selkie
Selkies are creatures that can shift from human form to the form of a seal. They come from Norse and Celtic mythology, featured in many stories and folktales.
The most popular stories involve a man finding the selkie’s skin (sometimes taking the form of a fur coat or another type of outerwear), hiding it, and forcing her to stay human and marry him (gross). Song of the Sea is an animated film featuring a selkie character.

5. Griffin
Griffins are another mishmash creature, with the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle. Some griffins may also have eagle talons. The griffin is a powerful creature in mythology, because the lion and eagle are both seen as kings of the animal kingdom.
They appear in most tales as guards of treasure or other highly valued things. Some myths include that the griffin lays its eggs underground, and if you dig them up, you’ll find they’re surrounded by nuggets of gold. If I didn’t want people disturbing my eggs, I personally wouldn’t bury them with gold nuggets, but who am I to judge the choices of a griffin.
6. Bandersnatch
I’m including this gangly doofus because he has a specific and clear origin–Lewis Carroll. Carroll became famous for works like Alice in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass. The first mention of the bandersnatch is in Carroll’s poem, Jabberwocky:
“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!”

7. Mermaid
Everyone knows what a mermaid is because, just like the dragon, there are iterations of the mermaid myth in nearly every culture. With the tail of a fish and the torso of a human, the mermaid has found herself in countless iterations and stories. One early sighting rumor was made by the infamous bandersnatch, Christopher Columbus, who mistook manatees for mermaids.
8. Werewolf
Speaking of creatures that multiple cultures independently invented, the werewolf is a creature who shifts back and forth between a human and a wolf. The rules and circumstances of that transition depend on the story. Some werewolves can control their shift, some turn on full moons or other key times without control, some only start shifting after they’ve murdered someone to enact a curse (shoutout Vampire Diaries).
9. Dryad
The dryad is a tree spirit or nymph. Sometimes they present as ghostlike figures of women, as lively trees, or as a person made of petals or leaves that can blow through the wind and reform whenever they please (shoutout Narnia). They’re usually quiet and shy, with people only catching glimpses of them in the deep forest.

10. Golem
The golem finds roots in Jewish lore. They are human-like creatures, typically presented as clunky, clumsy beings that lumber around like Frankenstein’s monster. The golem is made of clay, mud, or other earthy substances. Their underdeveloped nature is probably due to Biblical influence, where “golem” is used to reference the unfinished person in God’s eyes.
Golem Fantasy Creature
11. Chupacabra
The Spanish translation of “chupacabra” is “goat-sucker.” If you think that means this silly little guy sucks on goats, you’ve nailed it.
Chupacabra’s main hustle is its vampiric treatment of treasured farm friends. Some tales represent it as a furry, doggish creature, while others describe it as reptilian. While there have been sighting reports of the goat sucker all over the world, the majority originate in South and Central America.
Fantasy Creature - Chupacabra
12. Fur-bearing trout
This is a goofy little guy you might hear about in Icelandic and American lore. It’s exactly what it sounds like–a little fishy with a fur coat. Why?
To keep warm, to be fashionable. Like most fantasy creatures, the fur-bearing trout has multiple origin stories–from the water being so cold that they rapidly evolved, to hair tonic being spilled in the river. Either way, I think he’s charming.