Episode 114: Dark Fae: Kishi

The folklore of the kishi in a nutshell and how I reimagined it for my writing.

Written and narrated by Ronel Janse van Vuuren.

Copyright 2024 Ronel Janse van Vuuren — All rights reserved.

Learn more about the kishi in folklore here.

Get the transcript here.

Music: Secrets by David Fesliyan (FesliyanStudios.com) and Dramatic Heartbeat by FesliyanStudios.com

Transcript

You’re listening to the Faeries and Folklore podcast by Ronel.

I’m dark fantasy author Ronel Janse van Vuuren. With over a decade of digging around in dusty folklore books, researching creatures of imagination that ignited my curiosity, I’m here to share the folklore in a nutshell and how I reimagined it for my writing in an origin of the fae.

This is the Faeries and Folklore podcast.

Hi, I’m your host Ronel Janse van Vuuren. You can just call me Ronel. In today’s episode, we’re continuing our exploration of the fae realm.

This episode is brought to you by my Dark Court Sisters book series. Available in ebook, paperback and audiobook. Three sisters. Three destinies. Three ways to destroy the world. Go to ronelthemythmaker.com/darkcourtsistersseries for more.

You can now support my time in producing the podcast (researching, writing and everything else involved) by buying me a coffee. This can be a once-off thing, or you can buy me coffee again in the future at your discretion. Go to buymeacoffee.com/ronel to support me.

We’re continuing our exploration of Dark Fae.

Today’s Faery: Kishi

Folklore in a Nutshell by Ronel

Like most African fae, there’s not a lot written about the kishi. This two-faced creature from Angola has a handsome human face and a hyena face as the back of his head that he hides with long hair. They dwell in the hills and go into villages to seduce young women who they then terrorise and feed on. Just like a hyena, it’s impossible to escape the jaws of a kishi. According to the Amundu tribe of Angola, a kishi killed the cultural hero Kimanaueze. In most lore, the kishi takes a human wife who he then impregnates and once she’s delivered the babe, she is killed – either by her husband or by her kishi baby.

The lesson here: stay away from charming, handsome strangers or they’ll rip your face off with their hyena jaws.

And now for my interpretation of the fae in an Origin of the Fae: Kishi

Singular: Kishi. Plural: Makishi.
Extremely handsome men, they look like airbrushed models.
They have long hair, like in centuries gone by. Their luscious locks hide their hyena faces at the back.
They prefer to live in mountains and hills. Their caves smell awful and is filled with the skeletons of previous meals.
They have a Stone of Power that gives them their magic and has the ability to block or absorb the powers of other magic users.

They enjoy the fear they provoke and feed off it as much as the flesh of their victims. Though there are only male kishi, they mate with humans to bring forth more offspring. The women are eaten by the pack after she’s given birth.

I hope that you’ve enjoyed this episode of the faeries and folklore podcast and that you’ve learned something new about faeries.

Remember that you can get a transcript of this episode in the description. If you’re new to the podcast, why not go and grab your free copy of Unseen, the second book in the Faery Tales series, on my website ronelthemythmaker.com? Loads of folklore, magic and danger await! Take care!

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You can now support my time in producing the podcast (researching, writing and everything else involved) by buying me a coffee. This can be a once-off thing, or you can buy me coffee again in the future at your discretion.