Scream Queens: Yuki-onna

2024-10-29

Yuki-onna is an ancient Japanese yokai, a category of ghosts, spirits, and monsters derived from folklore. The first account of the mysterious woman was written centuries ago, during Japan’s Muromachi period. The legend is popular in the north of Japan and in other places with harsh winters and heavy snowfalls, and it likely appeared in response to missing locals during storms. For Further Reading: A Heart as Cold as Ice? Ancient Tales and Folk-Lore of Japan

Yuki-onna is an ancient Japanese yokai, a category of ghosts, spirits, and monsters derived from folklore. The first account of the mysterious woman was written centuries ago, during Japan’s Muromachi period. The legend is popular in the north of Japan and in other places with harsh winters and heavy snowfalls, and it likely appeared in response to missing locals during storms.

For Further Reading:

A Heart as Cold as Ice?

Ancient Tales and Folk-Lore of Japan

Yuki Onna: Shining a spotlight on a Japanese folklore legend

October is the perfect time to delve into all things spooky. So this month, we're talking about the women who give us goosebumps. Some are real-life creators of spine-chilling works of fiction. Others are the subjects of frightening folklore. Either way, these Scream Queens are sure to give you a scare.

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Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Hannah Bottum, Lauren Willams, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, and Vanessa Handy. Special thanks to Shira Atkins.

Original theme music composed by Brittany Martinez.

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