South America is a land of legend; his literature has always leaned towards the fantastic, whether on the Caribbean coast, in the Andes or in Mexico. And it’s true that the interbreeding of Latin cultures and Amerindian peoples was conducive to the eruption of a very rich syncretic mythology where ghosts rub shoulders with the gods and where haunted stones recall the dark hours of conquest.
1. The Haunted Stone
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This Inca legend tells the story of Túpac Yupanqui, son of the sun, who enjoyed carousing after winning a battle. One day when he was putting down a rebellion, he was given a pretty little captive to rape her in a cool way. Except that the prisoner already had a lover and did not have a mad desire to be raped. At night, she flees with the guy she is in love with and the two are caught up. Tupac sets them on fire. Since then, a stone has been found in this place, the shape of which is exactly similar to the girl’s body. Do not go there at night, for fear of being tormented by the spirit of the haunted stone.
2. The Mourner
The legend dates back to the 16th century. In Tenochtilan, Mexico, the inhabitants took refuge in their homes at night, so as not to be tormented by the spirit of a woman who wandered in tears through the streets. The mourner wandered all over the city, before stopping in the central square to pray. Every night, the woman disappeared around Lake Texcoco. Those who dared to approach him disappeared in troubled circumstances. The legend has variants throughout South America.
3. El chupacabra
Literally the goat sucker. A strange being from Puerto Rico who therefore eats animals, or rather the blood of animals, vampire style. Apparently there are reports of some kind of biped that would attack at night and never leave a trace. The animal has supposedly been seen all over South America: legend has it that it is of extraterrestrial origin or the result of a failed scientific experiment.
4. The Tunda
This legend from the Colombian Pacific coast evokes a mysterious, semi-monstrous woman who would lure the locals into the jungle to keep them captive and kill them. She disguises herself as a loved one of her victim before making him swallow poisoned langoustines which force him to remain eternally in a state of trance. It mainly attacks children.
5. El Imbunche
A small Chilean child entrusted to sorcerers and become monstrous. His face is fixed on the back of his head, his fingers and ears are hooked. El Imbuche imitates animal sounds and practices black magic. It feeds on fresh meat.
6. The Penitent
A little old woman who takes taxis in Mexico to go to church. She asks the taxi to wait for her, goes to the church, comes back and asks to go to another church. From church to church, the taxi driver finally takes the old woman home: as payment, she gives the driver a ring and asks him to come back the next day to get his money. The next day, when the driver returns, he is told that the old woman in question has been dead for several years.
7. La Cegua
A supernatural being who pursues and punishes unfaithful and/or picolo men. It would be the spirit of a young Costa Rican woman condemned to wander on deserted roads and seduce men: she gets hitchhiked, lets herself be flirted with a little, then exchanges her pretty face for the head of a dead horse. with rotting skin hanging everywhere. There, generally, the men shout.
8. The Whistler
You have to be careful in the Venezuelan jungle, at night. We could well come across the whistler, a giant 6 meters high who moves as discreetly as an ant and who chooses his victims among the lost walkers. To know that he is around, it’s simple: he whistles non-stop and his huge bag contains the clashing bones of his victims. It sucks the blood of drunks and flirty people returning home after a good night’s sleep.
9. El Pombero
This Paraguayan legend relates to a little elf, Pamberito, who is rather friendly with the peasants to whom he agrees to render services in return for receiving offerings every night for 30 days. But if a peasant forgets to make the offering, he exposes himself to uncool reprimands, such as death, for example.
10. House of Ramps
In Mexico, an abandoned, half-built house lines the foot of a mountain. The house has ramps and is said to have been built for a little girl in a wheelchair. This little girl would have died falling from the second floor, paving the way for a long series of accidents and deaths of all kinds: two workers died during the construction of the house. At night, we would hear screams in the house and we would see silhouettes.