10 SURPRISING URBAN LEGENDS OF JAPAN - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The urban legends of Japan are a series of stories that are an important part of the oral tradition in the country, although they have also had a boom –in terms of their dissemination- thanks to email and the Internet.

According to some scholars, an important aspect of urban legends and other Japanese stories is that they are the product of a popular imagination that takes into account the fantastic, supernatural, and terror, aspects that are certainly part of traditional folklore.

Although this type of legends always combine fact and fiction, the degree of veracity of the same is unknown. However, thanks to their diffusion and their complexity, some locals even consider them to be true (to the point of not mentioning them and thus avoiding the invocation of evil spirits).

The curse of the red room

At the beginning of 2000, a series of animations that appeared as pop-up windows to Internet users went viral. In them, only a red box was seen with the following question: "Do you like it?" Shortly after, this message disappeared for another to appear: "Do you know the red room?"

There is a version of the legend that indicates that these animations were accompanied by the voice of a girl. In any case, the user was in the situation of not being able to close the windows until the monitor turned black. Soon after, a list of his friends and family was presented.

In the end, the person, unable to move or speak, realizes that he has an entity that watches him and that leads him to suicide.

Aka Mantle

One of the most frequent places for the creation of urban legends are public toilets, perhaps in part because of the level of vulnerability in which the victim is.

In this case, it is the spirit of a young man who in life had been harassed and persecuted by women due to his impressive physical beauty. Although there is no clear connection between his appearance and the women's restroom, legend warns women of an entity with a desire for revenge.

He will appear with his face hidden with a mask and will present his victim with two types of toilet paper: one red and one blue. Regardless of the choice, death will be the only sure thing.

The girl on the corner

This spirit is said to lodge in corners or in dark places (such as drawers or behind doors), in order to wait for the slightest opportunity to get close to humans.

If the first contact occurs, the girl may proceed to make an invitation to play hide and seek. However, if she meets for a second time, some claim that she is capable of taking her victim to another dimension or even Hell.

Okiku doll

This legend tells the story of Okiku, a two-year-old girl who received a beautiful doll as a gift from a relative.

However, the girl died shortly after due to a complicated flu, so her family decided to protect the doll on an altar to present offerings and prayers. Soon after, the members noticed that her hair had grown noticeably, so they concluded that the Okiku's soul had lodged in the doll.

In the late 1940s, the family changed residence and left the doll in the care of the Mannenji Temple. It is said that to this day, Okiku's hair continues to grow, so it must be cut from time to time.

Kuchisake-onna or the woman with the cut face

It is another of the most popular stories in the country and continues to fascinate locals and lovers of terror and the supernatural. There are two versions of it:

-One indicates that there was a beautiful woman who was mutilated by the savage of her husband, as a result of his jealousy.

-The other makes mention of a woman whose face was cut due to a traffic accident.

The legend says that the spirit always covers its mouth with a surgical mask and that it also appears to children. As she does so, she asks them, "Do I look beautiful to you?" And then discovers their eerie appearance. Regardless of the answer, a fatal outcome awaits the victim.

Tomimo's Hell

The story speaks of the poem "Tomimo's Hell", which is part of Yomota Inuhiko's book, "The heart is like a rolling stone." The verse, in general terms, is about Tomimo, who dies and goes straight to hell.

Although the origin of the legend is not exactly known, it is said that the poem should only be recited in the mind because, if it is done aloud, a series of tragic events will happen to whoever defies the warning.

It should be noted that due to the popularity of the story, hundreds of users dedicated themselves to recording themselves to test the level of veracity of the legend.

The Kiyotaki tunnel

This tunnel was founded in 1927 and has a length of 444 meters, a figure that by the way is considered cursed in Eastern culture (in fact, it is an equivalent to number 13 for Westerners).

Due to the terrible security conditions, hundreds of workers died during construction, so it is estimated that the place is charged by the energies of the deceased. It is even said that spirits are capable of causing accidents and inconvenience to people who cross it.

The Inunaki people

This place is far from any city or town, so it practically represents a mystery. So much so, that even some seriously question the existence of this town.

However, the legend indicates that Inunaki is a place that is not governed by Japanese law, so it is possible to find cannibalism, incest, murder and all kinds of crimes and misdeeds.

As if that were not enough, electronic devices - such as cell phones - cannot be used for no apparent reason. Because of this, it is practically impossible to communicate with the outside world and leave the place.

Hitobashira

This word can be translated as "human pillars" and dates from the time of the emperors. At that time, it was believed that to satisfy the gods and thus have their blessing, it was necessary to offer a person's life as a sacrifice during construction.

In this way, in addition, the structure would be strong enough so that it could withstand the passage of time. Therefore, someone was chosen and then buried alive near the pillars of the building. If the gods were satisfied, the structure would last forever.

This practice, apparently, also resulted in the screams and laments of the dead trapped in the walls of those places.

Gozu, the cow's head

Although it is one of the scariest stories in Japan, it is incredibly popular. It has even been an inspiration for film productions and even video games.

The story starts from a school excursion trip where a teacher, seeing that his students did not seem to have much enthusiasm, decides to tell the story of Gozu.

The teacher grew more and more enthusiastic about the sordid and ghoulish details as the story progressed, so the students began to despair and ask for him to stop. When it did not happen, the bus they were in crashed.

It is said that shortly after, both the teacher and the boys went into a deep trance, unable to react. It is worth mentioning that one of the versions of the story claims that they died a few days later.

The game of hide and seek

According to some locals, this is a forbidden game in Japan since it entails a series of terrifying situations for those who play it. The reason? It involves calling the spirits from beyond.

Generally speaking, the game requires the person to be alone, in an empty place, and at night. In addition to this, have a stuffed animal or doll, scissors, red thread, knife, scissors and rice, all this in order to invoke a spirit.

Legend has it that if the person hides properly or successfully confronts the doll, they will be able to escape unscathed. Otherwise, you should bear the consequences.

Noppera-bo

In Japan, spirits that do not have a face are called this way, so it is only possible to find smooth skin instead of it.

There is a very popular story in this case: the spirit approaches a person to ask a kind question. If you establish a conversation, nothing will happen. But if this is ignored, you are sure to suffer an unprecedented scare.

References

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