In the world today, there are still many legends surrounding sea monsters.

The ‘seafaring monk’ or the legend of the terrible monster

In Japanese legend, there is a type of ghost called Umibozu.

Legend also says that this sea monster only has the upper half of its body, is dark gray in color, and its limbs are limp and hanging like an octopus’s trunk.

The Japanese have many explanations about the origin of Umibozu.

Why are Japanese people afraid of Umibozu?

For a country with nothing but sea and islands, people’s lives largely depend on fishing.

Legend has it that Umibozu will use its huge body to capsize stray boats.

Just like the legends surrounding the Lockness Lake monster that have been circulating around the world for hundreds of years, many people claim to have seen Umibozu at sea.

How did Umibozu influence Japanese popular culture?

Today, although people still cannot explain whether Umibozu really exists or not, this monster has stepped out of legend to become the inspiration for many famous anime and manga series.

In Toei’s Mononoke series of films about monsters (which is a sequel to the Ayakashi series – a unique combination of ancient legends, Kabuki theater and anime), Umibozu was mentioned several times.

In the 2005 movie Yokai Daisenso, Umibozu also appeared briefly in many classic battles.

Even more prominent is their presence in two popular anime series One Piece (named Wadatsumi) and Gintama (bald character named Umibozu).

Even the character No Face in Ghibli animation has a similar appearance to Umibozu in the legend.