Yuki-onna
Also called Yukionna.
In Japanese folklore, Yuki-onna, the "snow woman," is a spirit of winter storms who appears as a beautiful, unearthly pale woman and freezes travelers to death in the snow.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Japanese folklore
- Region
- Japan (place of origin)
- Trait family
- The False Hosts
Near this figure
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Ghost is image-domain A ghost is the returning dead made present to the living, apparition of unfinished business and unresolved grief, by turns vengeful, pitiable and tenderly protective.
why
Some accounts describe her as a ghost or the spirit of a woman who died in the snow, while others treat her as a nature spirit or yokai in her own right, unconnected to any specific human death.
- Hair bears image-domain Hair denotes vitality and the state of the head it grows from, ordered or wild, shorn in renunciation, and red for ardour and suspicion alike.
why
Yuki-onna is typically described as a tall, strikingly beautiful woman with long black hair and skin so pale it is nearly translucent or the color of snow itself, sometimes said to be effectively invisible against a snowy landscape except for her dark hair and eyes.
- woman is Woman denotes a complex feminine principle linked to moon, earth, water, instinct, nourishment, protection, and destruction; folklore also embeds patriarchal creation anxieties.
why
In Japanese folklore, Yuki-onna, the "snow woman," is a spirit of winter storms who appears as a beautiful, unearthly pale woman and freezes travelers to death in the snow.
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Form
- Pale skin blends with snow
why
Yuki-onna is typically described as a tall, strikingly beautiful woman with long black hair and skin so pale it is nearly translucent or the color of snow itself, sometimes said to be effectively invisible against a snowy landscape except for her dark hair and eyes.
Behaviour
- Vulnerable to heat or fire
why
Weaknesses attributed to her vary by region: in some tellings hot water, fire, or the warmth of a bathhouse can destroy her or force her to flee, reflecting her fundamental nature as a being of cold that cannot coexist with heat.
Omens
- Associated with winter and cold
why
She is a supernatural being tied specifically to snow and blizzards, said to appear on snowy nights, often during or just after a heavy snowfall.
Offensive powers
- Lethal breath
why
Yuki-onna's central and most consistently attested power is killing through cold: she freezes travelers to death, often by breathing on them or by simply appearing before them until they succumb to the freezing temperature, and victims are commonly found afterward as though they had frozen where they stood.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Anima carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Michael Dylan Foster, The Book of Yōkai, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Toriyama Sekien, translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt, Japandemonium Illustrated, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Death carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Michael Dylan Foster, The Book of Yōkai, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Toriyama Sekien, translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt, Japandemonium Illustrated, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Hero meets
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Michael Dylan Foster, The Book of Yōkai, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."
- Toriyama Sekien, translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt, Japandemonium Illustrated, s.v. "Yuki-Onna."