Isle of Man Gazetteer

The Beisht Kione was said to be a sea monster residing in the Irish Sea south of the Isle of Man. The name which means 'the beast with the black head, in Manx is said to have been feared by the local fishermen and sailors.

The Buggane is a fearsome supernatural creature from the rich folklore of The Isle of Man. It appears in literature in various forms, usually having the power to shape shift. In one of its forms it is associated with water, and is similar to the Cabbyl-Ushtey the Manx Water Horse. Read More »

These are the water horses of the Isle of Man and they are said to be just as dangerous as their Scottish counterparts, the Each Uisge or the Aughisky of Ireland. Read More »

Chibber Undin (Chibbyr Undin) - The Foundation Well or Chibber Undin when written about in the late 19th century was described as being close to the remains of an ancient Keeill which a Manx word for cell or chapel and these remains are often quoted as measuring 21 feet long by 12 feet broad. Read More »

It was in September 1931 that the Irving family of Doarlish Cashen, on the Isle of Man, came to prominence by reputedly being 'haunted' by a talking mongoose. Gef, as the animal preferred to be called, attracted wide media interest - even being investigated by Harry Price and Nandor Fodor. But what was Gef? Read More »

Arthur William Moore in his The Folk-lore Of The Isle Of Man (1891) gave this account of a haunting connected to a Water Horse in the Glen Maye area. Read More »

According to Peter Costello in The Magic Zoo, there were several sightings of a mermaid around the Isle of Man during 1961. One of the witnesses was said to be the Lady Mayor of Peel. In August 1961 the Manx Tourist Board apparently offered a prize to whoever could capture the mermaid alive.

Located on St Patrick's Isle, Peel, Isle of Man, the castle is reached over a causeway. The castle buildings are now in ruin but the outer walls are mostly intact. The first fortifications were built by the King Magnus Barelegs of Norway in the 11th Century. The Viking castle was made of wood, though there were earlier Celtic monastic structures on the island. Read More »

St Trinian's church is the ruined shell of a 14th Century building standing at the foot of Mount Greeba on the Isle of Man. The chapel was the haunt of a Buggane: a fearsome creature of Manx folklore that appears in a number of folktales from the island. Read More »

In The Folk-lore Of The Isle Of Man (1891), Arthur William Moore gives the following account of a chance encounter with a Tarroo-Ushtey or Water Bull (the Scottish name for these creatures is Tarbh Uisge). Read More »

The following popular folktale appeared in Manx Fairy Tales (1911) by Sophia Morrison. Read More »

5 July - An open air meeting on Tynwald Hill, said to have been built from a portion of the soil from each region of the island. Read More »

Stillborn babies and infants that had not been baptized could not always be buried on consecrated ground and a wealth of folklore developed around this delicate subject, some of it with a distinct North and South divide. Read More »

The following story of a Water Horse appeared in The Folk-lore Of The Isle Of Man by Arthur William Moore (1891). Read More »