Here you’ll find 27 Mythical creatures that start with W, organized from “Wakinyan” to “Wyvern”. They span global traditions and include winged spirits, dragons, and sea beasts useful for writers, gamers, and educators.
Mythical creatures that start with W are legendary beings whose names begin with the letter W. Many play clear cultural roles—such as Wakinyan, a thunder spirit in Plains lore—linking stories to nature and belief.
Below you’ll find the table with Name, Origin, Description, Alternate names, and Famous stories.
Name: The creature’s common name so you can quickly identify and reference entries in writing or research.
Origin: The culture or region where the creature appears, helping you place it in historical and mythic context.
Description: A concise visual and behavioral summary so you understand the creature’s key traits at a glance.
Alternate names: Other names or spellings you might encounter, useful when you search or cross-reference sources.
Famous stories: Notable myths, legends, or source titles where the creature appears, so you can follow up for more detail.
Mythical creatures that start with W
| Name | Origin | Alternate names | Famous stories/sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyvern | Medieval Europe | Wivern, Wyver | Medieval bestiaries, European heraldry |
| Wyrm | Germanic/European | Worm, Wurm | Beowulf, Norse sagas, Medieval bestiaries |
| Werewolf | European | Lycanthrope, Werwolf | Bisclavret, European folktales, Medieval trials |
| Wendigo | Algonquian | Windigo, Windigo psychosis | Ojibwe tales, Cree legends, Algonquin folktales |
| Will-o’-the-wisp | European | Ignis fatuus, Jack-o’-lantern | British folklore, Irish folktales, European ghost lore |
| Wight | Anglo-Saxon/English | Barrow-wight, Undead | Old English poetry, Norse sagas, Folklore collections |
| Wulver | Shetland | — | Shetland folklore, 19th-century collectors |
| Wolpertinger | Bavarian/German | Wolperdinger, Wolpertinger | Bavarian tall tales, Hunting-lodge folklore |
| Wanyūdō | Japanese | Wanyudo, Fire-wheel | Edo-period kaidan, Japanese ghost tales |
| Wampus Cat | North American | Wampus, Wampus-cat | Appalachian folklore, Cherokee legends |
| Wani | Japanese | Wani, Sea-crocodile | Kojiki myths, Ryukyuan legends |
| Water Horse | Celtic/Scottish | Each-uisge, Sea-horse | Scottish Gaelic folklore, Hebridean tales |
| Witte Wieven | Dutch | Wittewijven, White women | Dutch folklore, Low Countries folktales |
| Wraith | Scottish/English | Apparition, Phantom | Scottish ballads, Border folklore |
| Wakinyan | Lakota | Thunderbird, Wakinyan | Lakota Sioux stories, Plains mythology |
| Werebear | Norse/European | Bear-shifter, Berserker-bear | Norse sagas, European folktales |
| Werecat | Worldwide | Wer-cat, Big-cat shapeshifter | African folktales, Asian legends, European tales |
| World Serpent | Norse | Jörmungandr, Midgard Serpent | Poetic Edda, Prose Edda, Norse sagas |
| Warg | Norse | Vargr, Wargh | Old Norse sagas, Germanic poetry |
| White Lady | European (global variants) | Lady in White, Dama Blanca | European ghost stories, Local folktales worldwide |
| Water Spirit | Global | Nixie, Naiad | River and lake lore worldwide, Folklore anthologies |
| Wechuge | Athabaskan | Wetchuge | Northern Athabaskan legends, Yukon tales |
| Wekufe | Mapuche | Wekufe, Wechufe | Mapuche mythology, Chilean folklore |
| Wandjina | Aboriginal Australian | Wandjina spirits | Kimberley rock art, Dreaming stories |
| World Turtle | Hindu/Global myth | Cosmic Turtle, Kurma (related) | Hindu Puranas, Mythology compendia |
| White Stag | Celtic/European | White Hart, Silver Stag | Celtic myth, Arthurian tales, Irish legends |
| Waq-waq | Medieval Arab | Waq Waq, Waqwaq | Arabian travel literature, The Book of Wonders |
Descriptions
Wyvern
A two-legged, winged dragon from medieval lore, often shown with a barbed tail; common in heraldry and bestiaries as a fierce, venomous serpent-like beast associated with battle and guardianship.
Wyrm
An ancient serpent or dragon in Germanic myth, typically legless and earthbound; wyrms guard treasure, dwell in roots or sea, and represent primal, chthonic danger in many tales.
Werewolf
A human who transforms into a wolf or wolf-like creature under certain conditions; tied to curses, magic, or rituals across European folklore and featured in many medieval and modern stories about shapeshifting.
Wendigo
A malevolent, cannibalistic spirit of the North associated with winter, starvation, and insatiable hunger; legends warn it corrupts humans into monstrous predators or drives them to cannibalism.
Will-o’-the-wisp
Mysterious lights seen over marshes that lead travelers astray; interpreted variously as spirits, fae tricks, or combustible gases, they feature in countless regional cautionary tales.
Wight
A term for an undead or supernatural being often linked to burial mounds and ancient barrows; wights guard graves and treasure and are portrayed as revenants or restless spirits.
Wulver
A kind, solitary, hairy humanoid of Shetland lore who fishes for his meals and sometimes aids humans; unlike other were-creatures, the wulver is generally portrayed as benign rather than dangerous.
Wolpertinger
A whimsical chimera from Bavarian folklore combining rabbit, deer, bird, and other parts; often a humorous hunting-lodge invention rather than a feared monster, beloved in regional kitsch.
Wanyūdō
A terrifying flaming wheel bearing a human head that rolls through streets, portending death; in Japanese folklore it drags souls to the underworld and is a punishment-laden apparition.
Wampus Cat
A mysterious cat-like cryptid or shapeshifting woman from Appalachian and Cherokee stories; descriptions vary widely from a large spectral panther to a cursed human or guardian spirit.
Wani
A sea monster or crocodilian dragon in Japanese myth often involved in divine tales and abductions; wani appear as powerful aquatic beasts bridging the underwater and human worlds.
Water Horse
A dangerous shapeshifting water spirit that often appears as a horse to tempt riders into its depths; once mounted, victims are dragged into lakes or the sea to be eaten.
Witte Wieven
Misty female spirits from Dutch legend who can be wise healers or malevolent apparitions; associated with foggy moors, burial mounds, and local herbal knowledge in Low Countries tales.
Wraith
A spectral apparition often seen as a death omen or the ghostly double of a living person; wraiths are portents of doom and feature in many British supernatural accounts.
Wakinyan
A powerful thunderbird spirit controlling lightning and storms; in Lakota belief Wakinyan are awe-inspiring sky beings whose actions explain thunder, rain, and sacred power.
Werebear
A human who transforms into a bear or dons a bear’s power in battle; linked to berserker warrior cults and shape-changing motifs in Norse and wider European traditions.
Werecat
A broad category of humans transforming into big cats—leopards, tigers, or panthers—found across cultures and often tied to sorcery, curses, or spirit possession.
World Serpent
The colossal sea serpent that encircles Midgard in Norse myth; its eventual release marks the onset of Ragnarok and the final confrontation with Thor.
Warg
A monstrous, often supernatural wolf associated with chaos and outlawry; vargr appear in Norse myth as fearsome predators and symbolic forces of destruction.
White Lady
A sorrowful female ghost dressed in white who haunts roads, castles, or bridges; tied to tragic love, betrayal, or untimely death across many cultures.
Water Spirit
A general category of spirits inhabiting freshwater and coastal places; water spirits can be benevolent guardians or dangerous seducers who drown or enchant humans.
Wechuge
A monstrous, cannibalistic being from northern Indigenous lore said to be created by taboo-breaking or witchcraft; it is a terrifying transformation of a human into an unstoppable predator.
Wekufe
A malevolent spirit or demon blamed for illness and misfortune in Mapuche belief; the wekufe is an agent of harm that shamans combat in healing rituals.
Wandjina
Ancestral cloud and rain spirits depicted in distinctive Kimberley rock art; Wandjina control weather and fertility and are central figures in regional creation narratives.
World Turtle
A cosmic turtle motif in world mythologies where a giant turtle supports or carries the world; in Hindu tradition the tortoise avatar Kurma is a related creative symbol.
White Stag
A luminous stag that leads heroes into the Otherworld or on quests; the white stag symbolizes the mysterious call to adventure and the boundary between worlds.
Waq-waq
A legendary isle or tree bearing human-headed fruit or monstrous beings in medieval Arab tales; accounts vary between island-people and terrifying botanical monsters tied to wonder-literature.