Tsuchigumo: The Giant Earth Spider — and the Dark History Behind Its Name | Japanese Folklore

Every couple of nights, one Japanese yokai — its history, the customs that gave birth to it, the old legends, and its monster-cousins around the world. This time: the Tsuchigumo — a giant spider monster of earthen mounds, caves & old battlefields. Ancient, vengeful, hidden in the earth. In this episode: • The real history and the era-customs that gave birth to it • The old legend, told like a moonlit kamishibai • Its monster-cousins around the world • Where you can still find it today ⏱ CHAPTERS 0:00 Cold open 0:33 What this show is 0:52 Meet the Tsuchigumo 1:31 Where it came from — the customs 4:23 The legend 6:39 Deeper into the lore 8:49 Monster-cousins around the world 10:10 Where to find it today 10:51 Next time 🌍 MONSTER-COUSINS AROUND THE WORLD • Arachne (Greece) — The mortal weaver turned into the first spider — the West's great spider origin. • Anansi (Ghana) — The spider as cunning weaver of fate and stories — wisdom, not just menace. • Iktomi (Lakota (North America)) — A spider trickster who spins webs of trickery — the spider as schemer of the New World. • Grendel (Denmark (Beowulf)) — A cousin of ROLE: the demonized outsider beyond the hall's light - modern retellings ask the Tsuchigumo's own question: was the monster ever a person?. 🎬 YOU MIGHT KNOW THE TSUCHIGUMO FROM Nioh (Tsuchigumo), Megami Tensei (Tsuchigumo), Yo-kai Watch (Tsuchigumo), Nurarihyon no Mago (Tsuchigumo), Sakura Wars (Tsuchigumo), Kakuranger (Tsuchigumo) 📜 ART & SOURCES • Art: Toriyama Sekien, Gazu Hyakki Yagyō (1776) — public domain • Art: Utagawa Kuniyoshi, 'Minamoto no Yorimitsu… Tsuchigumo' (1843) — public domain • Other imagery: public-domain ukiyo-e (Wikimedia Commons) and licensed stock. — 🏮 Yokai Night explores one Japanese yokai every few nights — its history, the customs that created it, the old legends, and its monster-cousins around the world. 🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss the next one. #yokai #japanesefolklore #mythology #folklore #japan #tsuchigumo ———————————————— 🦊 Yokai Night — The monsters old Japan believed in. 🃏 Draw the card. Hear the tale. 🔔 Subscribe for the next card from the deck. 💬 Tell us about the monsters from YOUR country in the comments. #yokai #japanesefolklore #mythology #japan