The Philippine Urban Legends

Monsters and Creatures
in the Philippine Myths and Folklores

There are 93 recorded lower Philippine mythical creatures here. There are more than 30 more creatures untold. Some of these beings originated from other Southeast Asian countries especially Malaysia and Indonesia, like the Tiyanak and Manananggal. While others told by the Spaniards to scare the Filipinos to go out at night, like the Tikbalang. But some of them are uniquely ours.

Actually the 30 more creatures I said are still not written or known by the urban people. Some of them are still recorded orally not printed, thus it was changeable in names, the same reason as to why some of them have more than one terms. These 93 creatures are the most popular of more than a hundred entities. It's more or less impossible that the archipelagic country with different traditions and culture, like the Philippines, have a similar belief in spirits and unknown living things. If you add them all, they may sum up to a thousand. Another reason why these creature still accumulates is that, because of communication of every tribe, they may create another kind of being, more scary and/or powerful.

Some of these creatures are still present in many folklores, especially in Philippine urban legends. The story of Manananggal in Tondo is one of the example. But perhaps the most known creature that is believed to be roaming through haunted roads is the White Ladies. They are the most influential modern creature from other countries. The White Ladies in Balete Drive and Loakan Roads are the most popular.

[Note: Some of the linked entries below can be the other name of the primary creature. The unlinked entries are still under research for description.]

Table of Contents

A Ada Aghoy Agta Alan Amalanhig Amomongo Anggitay Arnani Aswang B Bakunawa Balbal Barangan Batibat Bawa Berbalang Berberoka Bruha Bungisngis Buring Catanda Busaw Buso Buwaya C Calanget Calag D Dalaketnon Danag Dila Diwata Duwende

E Ebwa Ekek Engkanto G Gawi-Gawen Gisurab H Hantu Higante I Ikugan Impakto K Kaperosa Kapre Kataw Kibaan Kikik Kisapmata Kumakatok L Lakay Lampong Lambana Langsuir Lulid

M Mahentoy Mahomanay Mamalanang Mambabarang Mameleu Manananggal Manaul Mandurugo Manggagaway Mangkukulam Mangmangkit Mantahungal Manti-anak Markupo Matanda Mawas Minokawa Multo N Nuno sa Punso Numputol O Orang Omayan P Palasekan Pasatsat Pugot Pugot Mamu

S Sagay Santelmo Sarangay Sarimanok Sigbin Sirena Siyokoy T Tahamaling Tigmamanukan Tikbalang Tiktik Tiyanak Tumao U Ungo W Wakwak White Lady Wirwir

A

Ada

Description: A fairy
Equivalent/Similar to: Lambana; English Fairy; Germanic Elf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Aghoy

Description: An elf that helps people find their lost things.
Equivalent/Similar to: Germanic Elf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Agta

Description: A hairy giant living in the forest, mostly in large trees as Balete Tree. They are similar to Kapres but they are romantic beings. Snatches up females after being lured by flower petal shower. They feed on wicked spirits of men after driving them crazy then seduce them to suicide.
Equivalent/Similar to: Kapre; Ungo; English Giant
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Tree-dwelling Creature
Etymology: N/A

Alan

Description: Deformed spirits with wings, takes the blood from miscarriages and transforms it into human child.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Air Creature
Etymology: N/A

Amalanhig

Description: A vampire that rises from the dead and feeds upon humans by biting their necks. Their power is transferable, just like that of Aswangs, by the use of a black stone. The heir will swallow the stone, and protrude it for the next generation of Amaranhigs.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang; Caribbean Zombie
Other Names: Amaranhig
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Amomongo

Description: A hairy, wild, man-sized ape with long nails that terrorizes solitary villages.
Equivalent/Similar to: American Bigfoot; Himalayan Yeti
Other Names: Orang; Mawas; Ikugan
Category/Kind: Lang Creature
Etymology: N/A

Anggitay

Description: A beautiful half-female, half-horse, also has a horn like that of a unicorn, appears when it rains in a cloudless sky.
Equivalent/Similar to: Greek Centaur
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Aswang

Description: Shapeshifting demon, humanlike by day but transform into different monstrous form at night. By day, they look like a beautiful, silent maidens dwelling in a simple nipa hut, but by night Bird they become a terrible fiend that feeds to human flesh and blood. They can make humans be like them whenever they serve flesh food (which is actually human flesh) and whenever you swallow something inflicted by their saliva. Their power can be also transferred just like that of Amaranhig.
They harass and eat awake humans at night, especially pregnant women who are about to give birth. Aswangs can change from a human to an animal form, usually as a bat, a pig or a black dog. Some aswangs can change form at will, others through the use of foul oils concocted by evil magicians. Aswangs appear at night to prey upon unwary travelers or sleeping people. It is said that they have a peculiar liking for the taste of human liver. The myth of the Aswang is popular in the Visayas, especially in provinces such as Capiz, Antique, and Iloilo. Aswangs also have a peculiar liking for the fetus of pregnant women and are said to find their quarry by the scent of the mother, which to the aswang smells like ripe jackfruit. Upon finding the house of the pregnant mother, the aswang alights on the roof from where it stretches its tongue until it is as thin as a thread and uses it to enter the womb and feast on the fetus.
The term Aswang can also be considered as a generic name for Filipino vampiric creatures, such as Manananggal, Tiktik and many more.
Equivalent/Similar to: Danag; Mandurugo; European Vampire
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: The word aswang has many origin. One example is the combination of the words Asin and Bawang (Salt and Garlic). The second one is the deity named Asuang. The third one, which etymologists believe, is the Malay word Asuwang which means Big dog.

B

Bakunawa

Description: Actually a deity that was represented as a serpentine dragon, according to Filipino mythology. He has two sets of wings, whiskers, a red tongue, and a mouth ‘the size of a lake.’ The Filipinos once thought that the Bakunawa lived in the sea at a time when the world had seven moons that the dragons, being fascinated by their light, would rise out of the sea into the sky and consume the moons. Thus, the dragons were the cause of lunar eclipses. To prevent the world from becoming dark the people would run out of their homes, taking their pots and pans, to make the most noise they could in order to scare the Bakunawa so they would stop eating the moons, and give them the moonlight back. But in some versions, these dragons also devour the sun in which case also cause the solar eclipse.
Equivalent/Similar to: Chinese/Asian Dragon
Other Names: Bakonawa; Bacunaua
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: Bakunawa can be translated into Moon-eater or Man-eater

Balbal

Description: A monster that steals corpses from its grave, and has a foul breath.
Equivalent/Similar to: Berbalang; Busaw; Arabic Ghoul
Other Names: Maninilong
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Batibat

Description: It takes the form of an old, fat woman residing in trees, and is very vengeful. Most punishments they endure includes suffocation. They punish people who cut the tree to where they dwell. Whoever rests or sleeps on the wooden bench or bed which came from the wood of her tree, will die by sitting over that person. The only way to escape her is to press hardly the thumb toe of that human sleeping on it.
Equivalent/Similar to: English Nightmare
Other Names: Bangungot
Category/Kind: Tree-dwelling
Etymology: N/A

Bawa

Description: A Hiligaynon creature living in a sky cave. It flies out and swallows the moon when the food is scarce.
Equivalent/Similar to: Bakunawa; Chinese/Asian Dragon
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Air Creature
Etymology: N/A

Berbalang

Description: A winged monster with slanted eyes that digs up the graves then eat the corpses of the dead person.
Equivalent/Similar to: Balbal; Busaw; Arabic Ghoul
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Air Creature; Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Berberoka

Description: A swamp creature that lures victims by sucking water in the pond to pool fish together, attracting fishermen, who then drown in the process.
Equivalent/Similar to: Kataw; Scandinavian Nix
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: N/A

Bungisngis

Description: One-eyed giant who is always laughing, is strong, but dim-witted. This Philippine folklore giant lives in forest and woods. It is a happy and a playful cyclops.
Equivalent/Similar to: Greek Cyclops
Other Names: Davao Mahentoy
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Buring Catanda

Description: It is similar to Agta and Kapre, who were dark-complexioned, hairy-skinned giant, and looks like either an old man or woman with a very long hair. The behavior of this creature depends on how people treat them. If you do unpleasing things to them, they can be vengeful while if you do good to them, they can give you a reward.
They are also depicted like engkantos with a distinct black skin.
Equivalent/Similar to: Giant; Agta
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Giant
Etymology: N/A
Source: Anonymous (June 28, 2014 at 1:10 AM)

Busaw

Description: The Busaw was a ghoul and corpse thief. An evil spirit who looked and behaved like ordinary human beings by day, it listened for sounds of death in the evenings and dwelled in large trees near cemeteries. It has pointed teeth, hooked nails, and a long tongue. It took banana tree trunks to replace the dead as it stole the corpses out of their coffins. Then, spiriting the corpse off after first turning it into a pig, the Busaw would feast on it and even try to feed it to their human neighbors during the day in order to turn them into ghouls like itself. To ward the Busaw off, all corpses should be washed completely with vinegar and strong-smelling herbs. Salt is also a Busaw repellent.

In the television series Amaya starring Marian Rivera, Busaws are considered the name for monsters in old Tagalog, synonymous to the word halimaw and laman-lupa.
Equivalent/Similar to: Balbal; Berbalang; Arabic Ghoul
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Evil Spirit
Etymology: N/A

Buwaya

Description: It was a Tagalog saurian, mottled-skin, monster with coffin-like saddle on its back. It usually lives in a cave in the deep sea. Whenever it catches a victim, the coffin-like saddle serves as its bag.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: Buaia
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: Buwaya in Tagalog is crocodile or alligator.

C

Calanget

Description: A dwarf dwelling in ground, mounds and fields. Whenever an albularyo makes a call, it creates a weasling sound.
Equivalent/Similar to: Germanic Dwarf
Other Names: Calanget is the Ifugao name; Gaddang Caranget; Ibanag Carango; Kama-kama
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A.

D

Dalaketnon

Description: A beautiful elitists, said to control the Aswang, Manananggal, Amalanhig, Tikitik, Bal-bal, and Wakwak, and are powerful and evil spirits. They dwell in the so-called Dalaket.
Equivalent/Similar to: Engkanto; Diwata; English Fairy
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: The place where they live is Dalaket, and the inhabitants of the place were called Dalaketnon. (-non is a Filipino suffix which means inhabitants of.)

Danag

Description: A blood-sucking creature.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang; European Vampire
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Dila

Description: A spirit that passes through the bamboo flooring of provincial houses, then licks certain humans to death.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Evil Spirit
Etymology: Dila in Tagalog means Tongue.

Diwata

Description: An environmental spirits with ability to take on human form, forest spirits or elves. Mostly females who dwells in trees, mountains, seas, etc., also believed to be gods or demigods (the Marias - Maria Makiling; Maria Sinukuan; and Maria Cacao)
Equivalent/Similar to: South American Encantado; Greek Nymph
Other Names: Engkanto; Engkantada (female) or Engkantado (male)
Category/Kind: Nature Spirit
Etymology: The word Diwata came from a Sanskrit word devata which means God.

Duwende

Description: Mischievous little creatures who can shower good or bad luck to mankind. Duwende are goblins, hobgoblins, elves or dwarfs. They are little creatures who can provide good fortune or bad fate to humans. In the Philippines, duwendes frequently live in houses, in trees, underground, termite like a mound or an ant hill (punso), and in rural areas. They are known to be either good or mischievous, depending on how homeowners treat them. They usually come out at 12 noon for an hour and during the night. Filipinos always mutter words ("tabi-tabi po" or "bari-bari apo ma ka ilabas kami apo") asking them to excuse themselves for bothering the Duwendes. Filipinos would leave food on the floor so that the duwende residing (or guarding) the house would not be angry with them.They also take your things and laugh at you when you try to find it.They give it back when they feel like it, or when you tell them to please give it back.
Equivalent/Similar to: Nuno sa Punso; Germanic Dwarf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature; Tree-dwelling Creature; Land Creature
Etymology: Spanish: duende "golbin, elf, charm"; and "duen de (casa)", owner of the house. At present, Filipinos consider duwende as a common word to refer to a dwarf.

E

Ekek

Description: Ekek are creatures who are bird-like humans. They are winged-humans who at night search for victims. They hunger for flesh and blood. In American Literature, it is like a vampire, after 29 years it eats its friends and family.
Equivalent/Similar to: Wakwak; European Vampire
Other Names: Ekik; Kikik
Category/Kind: Air Creature
Etymology: N/A

H

Hantu Demon

Description: A evil spirit or demon, notorious for possessing people and driving them to insanity (many types of hantu).
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Evil Spirit
Etymology: N/A

Higante

Description: Huge man
Equivalent/Similar to: Greek Gigantes
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: N/A
Etymology: Higante is a Spanish word for Giants. At present, Filipinos use the word to refer to people with enormous size and/or giant itself.

K

Kapre

Description: Kapre is a filthy, black, hairy giant who likes to smoke huge rolls of cigars, and hide within and atop large trees, particularlyBird the balete and old acacia or mango trees. A Filipino bigfoot, it scares away little children who play at night. If you're stuck in a place and you keep going around in circles, you're said to be played around by a Kapre. To escape its control, you must remove your t-shirt, and wear it inside-out. They usually depicted with a cigar as large as the trunk of a tree.
Equivalent/Similar to: Agta; Ungo
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Tree-dwelling Creature
Etymology: The name Kapre came from the Arabic word Kaffir which means Non-believer of Islam. The early Arabs and the Moors used it to refer to the non-Muslim Dravidians who were dark-skinned. The term was later brought to the Philippines by the Spanish who had previous contact with the Moors. Some historians speculate that the legend was propagated by the Spanish to prevent Filipinos from assisting any escaped African slaves.

Kataw

Description: Reigning rulers of the oceans, and has ability to manipulate water.
Equivalent/Similar to: Berberoka; Sirena/Siyokoy; Greek Sirens
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: N/A

Kibaan

Description: Mischievous yam thief with reverse feet.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Kumakatok

Description: Three-hooded spirits that knocks on your door which signals that someone will die the other day after. One of them resembles that of a female, and the other two looks like old people.
There's one point in time when residents of Luzon and Visayas painted white cross or write a cross using a white chalk on their doors to scare or to ward off these trio.
Equivalent/Similar to: Multo; English Ghost; Moirai
Other Names: Kumakatik
Category/Kind: Ghost
Etymology: The word Kumakatok came from the Tagalog root word katok which means to knock; thus the word means Knocking.

L

Lambana

Description: A small fairy-like creature living in the forest. There are many depictions of them: a gruesome small goblin with a dragonfly wings at their back, and a little fairy sometimes of dragonfly or butterfly wings with or without a firefly's glow. They look like the fairies in the movie Peter Pan - Tinkerbell.
Equivalent/Similar to: Ada; English Fairy; Germanic Elf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Spirit.
Etymology: N/A

Langsuir

Description: A Malay vampire that originates from women who had laboring sickness (meroyan) as a result of suffering the death of their children and who themselves died afterwards.
The langsuir appears as a woman with long nails and flying black hair. She may also shapeshift into a night owl with long claws.
Just like the pontianak, the Langsuir also sucks the blood of living infants. The Langsuir can be stopped or, more precisely, 'domesticated 'if the right means are adopted. For if you are able to catch her, cut short her nails and luxuriant tresses, and stuff them into the hole in her neck, she will become tame and indistinguishable from an ordinary woman, remaining so for years.
Cases have been known, indeed, in which she has become a wife and a mother, until she was allowed to dance at a village merry-making, when she at once reverted to her ghostly form, and flew off into the dark and gloomy forest from whence she came.
Though not actually Filipino, people living near the border of Philippines and Malaysia share the belief of this creature, thus I enlisted it here.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang; English Vampire
Other Names: Lang suir; Langsuyar
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Lulid

Description: They are sprite-like creatures having NO arms and lower torso and lives on anthills or under one's nipa hut. They are usually depicted like a toddler having dark complexion. This creature is malignant when accidentally harmed by stepping on it since it's invisible. They crawl and roll as their means of transportation. One could detect if there is a lulid nearby when hearing a giggling and laughing sound of children unseen.
Equivalent/Similar to: Diwata; Sprite; English Fairy; Germanic Elf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Spirit.
Etymology: N/A
Source: Anonymous (April 13, 2015 at 11:29 AM)

M

Mahomanay

Description: A forest animal guardian. Some picture her a beautiful diwata just like Maria Makiling, with a long hair and a Filipina feature.
Equivalent/Similar to: Diwata; Engkanto; English Fairy; Germanic Elf
Other Names: Mahumanay
Category/Kind: Forest Spirit.
Etymology: N/A

Mambabarang

Description: You will know if you are Nabarang (cursed by Mambabarang) if you will see a white centipede in your house. Albularyos are called to reverse their curse.
Mambabarang (summoner) is a witch who uses insects and spirits, and any material to enter the body of anyone they hate and come out disgustingly. A Mambabarang is a kind of a mangkukulam. Mambabarangs are ordinary human beings with black magic who torture and later kill their victims by infesting their bodies with insects. They are different from Mangkukulams - the latter only inflict pain or illness. Mambabarangs use a strand of hair from their chosen victim and tie it to the bugs or worms which they will use as a medium. When they pick the bug, the victim immediately experiences the intended effect.
Equivalent/Similar to: Mangkukulam; English Witch
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human Witch
Etymology: N/A

Mameleu

Description: A Hiligaynon sea serpent with body and head as large as that of a water buffalo. It also possesses two white horns, and its body stretches up to thirty fathoms long. It has eyes torch-like, fire jets in them; long teeth; and large resistant scales.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: N/A

Manananggal

Description: A flying fiend, and carries only half its body, bodies are cut in half at night. Some says, like Aswang, by day, they are beautiful maidens living in a nipa hut, by night, they rub a kind of oil to their whole body which gives them the power to separate themselves into two - the upper part which she carries with bat-like wings, and the lower part which they live, then goes back to connect its upper part before the dawn.
Manananggal is an aswang that can fly after separating itself from the lower half of its body. It eats babies and fetuses from a mother's womb. It eats babies by means of passing their long tongue through a small hole from the roof of a house. The sharp end of the tongue touches the mother's navel to suck the blood of the fetus or unborn child.
A manananggal can also be a sorceress that visits villages and barrios. To feed, the self-segmenter chooses an isolated place where she will leave her lower torso while she hunts at night.Bird When she separates from her lower torso, she then gains her ability to fly. She then goes off in search of houses where pregnant women reside. Upon choosing a suitable victim, the Manananggal alights on the house and inserts her tongue through the roof. The tongue is long, hollow and extremely flexible. She uses it to puncture the womb of the sleeping woman and to suck out the fetus. At other times, she seduces men with her beauty and lures them to a private place before eating them alive. She usually eats the insides, like the heart, stomach or the liver. Sunlight is deadly to the Manananggal when she is in her monstrous form. Should her two halves still be separate with the coming of dawn, she will be destroyed. According to legend, to destroy the Manananggal, one should search for the lower torso that she leaves behind during her nightly hunts. Salt, ash, and/or garlic should then be placed on the exposed flesh, preventing the monster from combining again and leaving it vulnerable to sunlight. Small containers of salt, ash, and raw rice, and the smell of burning rubber are said to deter the Manananggal from approaching one's house.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater; Air Creature
Etymology: This creature's name was derived from the Filipino word, tanggal, which means "to separate" because of the manananggal's ability to separate itself from its lower body.

Manaul

Description: The manaul is a mythical king who became a bird. He was believed to have caused the seas and the skies to fight against each other. The clash between the seas and skies resulted to the formation of the Philippine islands.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Air Creature
Etymology: N/A

Mangkukulam

Description: They are witches that cast evil spells to cause harm to human and/or plagues. They use a doll (Booddoo Doll) with a hair strand on it then cast spells to for a curse.
Mangkukulam or bruha are witches, wizards, bruho, or sorcerers who cast evil spells to humans. This kind of witch uses dark magic.
The difference between a mambabarang and a mangkukulam is that the mambabarang uses magical insects to bring harm to his victims. These insects are released after incantations, when they will search for their supposed victim and burrow under the skin, impregnating her. After some time, matruculans return to the house to kill the pregnant mother, open her abdomen, and eat the growing fetus.
Equivalent/Similar to: Mambabarang; English Witch
Other Names: Bruha/Bruja; Manggagaway (However, Manggagaway are also named to female albularyo or shaman.)
Category/Kind: Human Witch
Etymology: N/A

Mangmangkit

Description: N/A
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Spirit.
Etymology: N/A

Mantahungal

Description: A boar-like cow.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Markupo

Description: It is a large snake, with prominent red crest, long tongue with thorn-like hairs, sharp tusks and forked tail. It dwells in mountain tops.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: Markupo; Macupo; Makupo
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Minokawa

Description: A large bird, said to feed on the moon where there are no other sources of food around.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Air Creature
Etymology: N/A

Multo

Description: A Ghost.
For Visayans, Multo are called Kalag.
Equivalent/Similar to: English Ghost
Other Names: Visayan Calag; Kalag
Category/Kind: N/A
Etymology: Tagalog word for Spirit and Ghost.

N

Nuno sa Punso

Description: Nuno sa punso (literally, goblin of the mound) are goblins or elves who live within mysterious lumps of soil (ant hills). They can provide a person who steps on their shelter with good luck or misfortune, in some case, inflicting harsh punishments to those who offend them. People who are punished are called Namatanda, and must be brought to an Albularyo (Shaman), to heal the punishment.
Superstitious Filipinos, when passing by a mound, will ask the resident nuno's permission to let them pass with the phrase, "Tabi-tabi po". Strange and sudden illnesses that befall a person are sometimes attributed to nunos
Equivalent/Similar to:Calanget; Duwende; French Goblin; Germanic Dwarf; Norse Wight
Other Names: Lakay, Matanda, Sagay
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: Nuno can be translated as Goblin; and the Punso means Ant Hill.

P

Palasekan

Description: N/A
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Pasatsat

Description: A ghost of a dead person who died in a tragic way, especially those who died in Japanese Era (World War II). This kind of ghost usually shows to passersby in a solitary paths in the forest or even in cities. In order for the ghost to stop haunting, someone should stab the coffin or the reed mat where the body of this ghost was buried. It will show no sign of the body but a putrid flesh can be smelled.
Equivalent/Similar to: Multo; English Ghost
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Ghost
Etymology: Comes from a Pangasinense word satsat meaning to stab.

Pugot

Description: Headless, shape-shifting creature, usually that of a black, gigantic headless ghost, can move at great speeds, feeds on snakes and insects, usually harmless to humans. They said it was a friar of Spanish Era, beheaded once and still searching for its head.
Equivalent/Similar to: Pugot Mamu; English Bogeyman
Other Names: Numputol
Category/Kind: Ghost
Etymology: Pugot is the Tagalog word for headless.

Pugot Mamu

Description: They are similar to Pugot, both are headless creatures. However, the difference between them is, the Pugot Mamu are bogeymens who eats children with the hole in their neck while Pugots are headless ghosts.
Equivalent/Similar to: Pugot; English Bogeyman
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

S

Santelmo

Description: It is a fireball seen by dozens of Filipinos, especially those living in the Sierra Madre Mountains. It was scientifically explained as electric fields which have diverged from the lines. However, the sightings were reported since the Spanish era (16th-19th centuries). There were also sightings in the Alps and Himalayas.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: Santo Elmo; Fire Ball
Category/Kind: Evil Spirit
Etymology: Santelmo - Saint Elmo

Sarangay

Description: A half-human, half-bull, with a jewel attached to ears, will kill if jewel is stolen.
Equivalent/Similar to: Greek Minotaur
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Sarimanok

Description:A Sarimanok is a magical, mythical flaming bird who brings good luck to anyone who are able to catch it. Some say it is a pet of Engkantos.

A Sarimanok known as Magaul is associated with the legend of Malakas and Maganda. Magaul was the Sarimanok bird that pecked the bamboo from where Malakas and Maganda were born from.
Equivalent/Similar to: Egyptian Phoenix
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: I'm not sure about the word Sari; but the Manok is the Tagalog word for Chicken.

Sigbin

Description: A cross-breed between goat, dog, and kangaroo said to suck blood out of its victims from shadows.
There was an urban legend connected with this creature, it was said that Sigbin is a cure for AIDS/HIV.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: Segben
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Sirena

Description:Sirena is a mermaid, a sea creature with a human upper body and a fish tail instead of lower extremities. They attract fishermen and tourists. Sirenas are reportedly often seen ashore by fishermen, especially in the towns bordering the Pacific Ocean.
Equivalent/Similar to: Kataw; Mermaid; Greek Siren
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: Sirena is actually Siren.

Siyokoy

Description: A sea creatures with fish-like bodies and long, green tentacles that drown mortals.
Siyokoys are mermen, sea creatures that have a human form and scaled bodies. The Siyokoy is the male counterpart of the Sirena. The lower extremities of a Philippine merman can either be a fishtail or scaled legs and webbed feet. They could also have long, green tentacles. They drown mortals for food. Siyokoys have gill slits, are colored brown or green, and have scaly skin, comparable to that of a fish.
Equivalent/Similar to: Kataw; Merman
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Water Creature
Etymology: N/A

T

Tahamaling

Description: A red complexioned dwarf.
Equivalent/Similar to: Duwende; Calanget; Nuno; Germanic Elf
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Forest Creature
Etymology: N/A

Tigmamanukan

Description: A bird of omen, usually letting travelers know to expect good or bad luck.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Tikbalang

Description:A half-man and half-horse creature, terrorizes women. Actually, they are summoned by shamans or landlords to secure and protect their house.
It has a horse's head, the body of a human but with the feet of the horse. It travels at night to rape female mortals. The raped women will then give birth to more tikbalang. They are also believed to cause travelers to lose their way particularly in mountainous or forest areas. Tikbalangs are very playful with people, and they usually make a person imagine things that aren't real. Sometimes a Tikbalang will drive a person crazy.
Legends say that when rain falls while the sun is shining or in a clear sky, there is a wedding between two Tikbalangs.
Since horses only arrived in the Philippine archipelago during the Spanish colonization (thus, the borrowed term 'kabayo'), there is a theory that the image of a half-horse, half-man creature was propagated by the conquistadors to keep the natives afraid of the night. There are stories claiming that the Tikbalang are actually half-bird, half-man creatures, much like the Japanese tengu.
It is sometimes believed to be a transformation of an aborted fetus which has been sent to earth from limbo.
Equivalent/Similar to: Greek Centaur
Other Names: Tigbalang
Category/Kind: Land Creature
Etymology: N/A

Tiktik

Description: A kind of Aswang. There are two kinds of Tiktik. The one who eats fetuses, and the one who warns people of the presence of Aswang in their place.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang; Wakwak; Ekik
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

Tiyanak

Description: An infant-like creatures that eat the living and terrify children. There origin (some says) are aborted fetuses from mother's womb who took revenge of not giving them birth, or babies who died before receiving baptism.
After death, they go to a place known as Limbo, a chamber of Hell which unbaptized dead people fall into and are transformed into evil spirits. These phantasms return into the mortal realm in the form of goblins to eat living victims. The tiyanak can also be the offspring of a woman and a demon. It can also be an aborted fetus which comes back to take revenge on its mother. Most Tiyanaks are said to live in forests. If they see a human, they transform into what looks like a normal baby. When the person notices the Tiyanak and comes near to take a look at it, the Tiyanak changes back to its true form and eats its prey.
The true origin of Tiyanak came from the Malaysian creature, Pontianak or Mantianak - a female viscera. They share many similarities, but the Pontianak is the mother who died while pregnant, Tianak is the ghost of the child, not the mother herself.
Whenever we hear Tiyanak, the first thing which come to our mind is an innocent-looking baby, but according to some, they look like dwendes (dwarf). You can kill this monster by means of any pointed instruments, more specifically pointed metal made of silver.
Equivalent/Similar to: N/A
Other Names: Impakto
Category/Kind: Human-eater
Etymology: N/A

U

Ungo

Description: A hairy giant.
Equivalent/Similar to: Kapre; Agta
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Tree-dwelling Creature
Etymology: N/A

W

Wakwak

Description: A human, bird-like creatures flying in the night sky in search for flesh and blood. It could be a witch itself, or night bird belonging to a witch. Also said to be a vampire like creature who can take the form of a night bird.
Equivalent/Similar to: Aswang; Portugese Bruxsa
Other Names: N/A
Category/Kind: Human-eater; Witch
Etymology: N/A

White Lady

Description: A modern kind of ghost, particularly those living in Balete Drive in Quezon City.
Equivalent/Similar to: Multo
Other Names: Kaperosa
Category/Kind: Ghost
Etymology: White Lady

Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/
http://magicrealms.tripod.com/folklore/survey.html