Widespread
Penunggu
Nature / Ancestral Spirit Danger 3 of 5 · Frightening
- Form
- Guardian spirit of a place
- Origin
- The penunggu — 'the one who waits/keeps' — guardian spirit of a house, tree, bridge, school or office; the single most common category in everyday Indonesian haunting reports.
- Behavior
- Guards its place; objects to renovation, felling or disrespect; school and office hauntings are usually penunggu.
- Deterrents and vulnerabilities
- Offerings and permission before altering the place.
- Diet
- Non-consumptive
- Culture
- Pan-Indonesian
- Region
- Archipelago-wide
- Sampling
- Added in dataset v3–v5; first placed on a tree here.
Coded characters
◆ New entry coded by folklore synthesis. Sex: Unspecified.
| Human-like | Humanoid, witch, or human spirit |
|---|---|
| Sex | Male, unspecified, or variable |
| Death or birth origin | Not death or birth related |
| Incorporeal | Embodied creature or witch |
| Flight | Grounded |
| Burial | None or weak |
| Children | None |
| Blood and organs | None |
| Theft and mischief | None |
| Hair or fur | None |
| Animal form | None |
| Detached head | None |
| Fire or light | None |
| Water | None |
| Forest | Forest, jungle, or mountain |
| Settlement | Village, house, hospital, or road |
| Black magic | Black magic or witchcraft central |
| Widespread | Localized |
| Body plan | Humanoid spirit |
| Diet | Non-consumptive |
Nearest on the tree
Identical coding to Orang Bunian, Hantu Rimba, Waruga Spirit, Dedemit, Lelembut, Peri, Roh Komodo, Putri Gunung Ledang, Wong Samar, Gamang, Putri Mandalika, Hainuwele, so the tree cannot separate them.
