Banshee. Image by Alena Zhukova
Banshees are the Irish fairies of death, from Celtic legends and mythology.
Her name means «fairy woman» and «woman of the hills», since sometimes she appears wandering through the hills, where she even remains aimlessly for several days.
Her appearance is that of an ethereal woman, sometimes a young maiden and sometimes a disgusting old hag. Her face is pale and her eyes are red, almost bloody, from pain and crying. According to legend, she usually dresses in green or blue and wears a gray cape.
The banshees announce with their crying and their scream that death is near. Its song is shrill and terrifying, other times it is a horrible sob that freezes the blood and can only be heard by the person who is going to die.
Banshee on the hill. Image by Andrea Sodaro
Some banshees that are related or linked to a specific family, and their song is heard every time a member of that family dies. In these cases, they are not only listened to by the dying person but by all the family members.
There are times when you only hear them and others when you also see them. They also appear at funerals, accompanying the soul of the corpse to the plane of the dead.
Banshees that are attached to a family do not disappear immediately upon death, but remain for a few days after death, washing the shrouds of the deceased member in some distant river or stream.
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