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Yokai & Folklore Aliases (妖怪 · 本名)
Japanese yōkai (妖怪), the spirits and monsters of folklore, rarely have just one name. The same creature can be called different things in different regions, and that makes for great "real name" lore.
Legend label. Everything on this page is folklore, not history. We are not saying these creatures exist; we describe what the stories and records say.
The naming custom. Yōkai names vary because: - Local dialects named the same idea differently. - Edo-period artists such as Toriyama Sekien catalogued and illustrated yōkai, fixing some names nationally. - Kanji readings change by region. - Shrines and worship gave respectful names to feared spirits.
Modern culture, from Shigeru Mizuki's GeGeGe no Kitarō to Yo-kai Watch and Pokémon, keeps reviving these names. Sources include the International Research Center for Japanese Studies' yōkai database (Nichibunken) and published folklore studies.