Uthikoloshe/Oothikoloshe

The Uthikoloshe is a mythical creature from Bantu folklore. They’re short hairy hominids with muscular shoulders and chests, sloping foreheads, and bowed legs. They live in small mud huts by rivers or deep in the forest wearing sheepskin clothes and using primitive tools. They may also wear bright and shiny items stolen from their victims. They’re known for dancing and in some areas, it’s thought all women have an Utikoloshe as a secondary husband. They have their own language but can also speak Bantu, albeit with a notable lisp or slur. They often convince the children to play with them. They practice a unique form of witchcraft and commonly have reptiles, specifically monitor lizards, as Familiars. They can become invisible by placing a magic pebble in their mouth, and while invisible they enter the spirit world allowing them to enter the dreams of their victims. They invade the dreams of sleeping people and cause nightmares strong enough to inflict illness or death. Survivors of these nightmares say it feels like being strangled and powerless. They can be repelled if the potential victim drinks a bottle of Uthikoloshe fat refined into oil. A handful of salt to an Uthikoloshe’s face will kill it instantly. 

Citations:

Callaway, Henry. Nursery Tales, Traditions, and Histories of the Zulus: In Their Own Words. Brazil, J.A. Blair, 1868.

Maberry, Jonathan. Vampire Universe: The Dark World of Supernatural Beings That Haunt Us, Hunt Us, and Hunger for Us. United States, Kensington Publishing Corporation, 2006.