Suneka (スネカ Suneka) is a bird-like yōkai.
Appearance[]
Suneka is a humanoid with dark-brown skin, a bird-like face, and long, blonde hair. They wear a mino and straw boots, and hold a knife on their right hand.
History[]
Video Games[]
- Suneka appears in GeGeGe no Kitarō: Yōkai Yokochō as an A-Rank yōkai and the local boss yōkai representing the Iwate Prefecture.
Legend[]
Illustration of Suneka
Suneka are Tengu-like yōkai from the Rikuchū Province and Miyako City, specifically near Iwate Prefecture. They're name derives from the phrase, "Sune katcha gi" or "Sune kawa takuri" (脛かっちゃぎ, 脛皮たくり).
They appear on the 15th day of New Year's, peeling off the higata (火班, blisters that from on the shins that are placed near the kotatsu) of lazy people, saying "Are their any sekkoki (lazy people) around?" In Miyako City, Suneka are called Nagomi or Nagomitakuri, and are said to enter from gardens yelling and playing a flute made from a water twig.
The practice people of dressing up as Suneka to visit homes is said to originate from the Edo Period. Similar kami and yōkai from other regions serves the same purpose as Suneka such as Amamehagi, Toshidon, and Namahage.
Trivia[]
- One of the yōkai that participated in the Sukiyaki party at Jindai-ji Temple in the Hakaba Kitarō story A Walk to Hell resembles a Suneka.