A Directory of Dwarves

A common sight in any collection of strange creatures are anomalous humanoids. These beings are often taller than humans, and significantly hairier, these creatures seem to stumble in everywhere. You can barely read any cryptozoological book without at least one reference to Bigfoot or the Yeti.

That being said, there seems to be a group of creatures who are akin to the hairy giants, which have largely been ignored. Little People, dwarves, hobbits, whatever you may prefer to call them, you cannot deny that there is an abundance. Seeing this lack of literature on the subject, I decided to try to make a good starting place for research on these little humanoids.

That being said, in order to keep the number of entries under control, I have decided to leave out a few groups;

• Firstly, household spirits such as Brownies and Boggarts are not included.
• These spirits may appear as small humanoids but often shapeshift into other forms or are invisible.
• Secondly, creatures which were only seen once.
• There is an abundance of individual cases where the strange creature was spotted one time and then quickly disappears. Other than a few exceptions, cases such as those are excluded.
• Thirdly, nearly any shapeshifting creatures which occasionally take the form of small humanoids.
• Many creatures, such as goblins, shapeshift and sometimes look like short humans. These are excluded for simplicity. Some creatures which are described as goblins but do not specifically shapeshift remain in the list.

A final note;

Many of the creatures on this list are under the term ‘fairy’. There is a variety of spellings; faery, fay, etc., to be easier to understand, the spelling ‘fairy’, will be used. There is no simple way to explain fairies, and since it is not the focus of this work to do so, I will not go into it. For a further explanation of what fairies are, their origins, and other details, see the works listed in the reference section.

Name	Distribution	Description	Notes	See Also
Abatwa	South Africa	5 millimeters tall Rode ants as steeds Hid behind blades of grass	Also called ‘ant people’
Abonesi	Togo, South Africa	Short, squat, and covered with dark hair Lives in the forest
Agogwe	Tanzania, East Africa	3-4 feet tall Reddish brown hair Yellow-red skin under the hair Graceful Bipedal Supposedly trades with locals Forest-dweller
Albatwitcher	Pennsylvania, USA	Ape-like About as big as a 10-year-old human Tailless Hair covered Mischievous, has been said to steal items
Alp	Switzerland	Dwarfish being Originally metalworkers from under the ground, they eventually were diminished to be disease bringers	Also known as Alb
Alux	Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico Guatemala	2.5-4 feet tall Stout and squat Unusually big head Lengthy dark beard Wears clothes Live in Mayan temple shrines Mischievous Causes diseases Said to use weapons such as a machete or a shotgun		Duende
Apci’lnic	Labrador, Canada	2 feet tall Said to steal children Mountain forest dwellers
Apopa	Upper North America	Short and extremely unpleasant to look at Harmlessly mischievous
Apuku	Suriname, South America	Similar to the European Dwarf Very frightening in appearance		Dwarf
Atnan	Central British Columbia, Canada	1-3 feet tall Fast runner Wears robes in the cold Uses stone weapons
Aziza	West Africa	Small and benevolent Shy and ae considered luck bringers Said to share knowledge of magic with those that travel the forest	Also known as Azizan
Bacoo	Caribbean	Mischievous, known to throws stones Said to be a ‘short man’
Bakru	Suriname, South America	Bodies made of both flesh and wood Look like small children with unusually large heads		Apuku
Ban-Manush	Nepal, India, and Bangladesh	4-5 feet tall Covered in grey hair Aggressive and supposedly kidnaps people	Also known as Bang, Bunmanus, and Van-Manas Females are also known as Lidini
Batutut	Sabah State, Malaysia, Borneo	4 feet tall Bipedal and human-like Extremely aggressive Said to have a habit of killing humans and removing their livers
Berg People	Denmark	Troll creatures who resemble dwarves with white beards Said to do favors, but expect to be repaid	Also known as Berg Folk, Bjerg-Trolde, and Skovtrolde	Dwarf
Biloko	Zaire, Central Africa	Dwarf-like Grass-like hair Huge mouth Attacks humans		Dwarf
Brown Man of the Muirs	Elsdon District, Scotland	Protector of wildlife Dwarf with red hair Glowing eyes Stout body Appears very old Becomes enraged at the act of hunting		Dwarf
Cacy Taperere	Southern Brazil	Similar to a dwarf in appearance One legged Fierce, glowing eyes Wears a red cap and smokes a pipe Mischievous, plays pranks around people’s houses	Also known as Saci and Sasy Perere	Dwarf
Chanques	Mexico and Central America	Dwarf-like Protector of wildlife Causes illness and death Said to steal souls Afraid of tobacco smoke	Also known as Chanekos and Chanes	Dwarf
Cobalt	Germany	Gnome of the mine Said to help find ore or cause problems in the mine		Knocker
Coblyn	Wales	Goblins of the mine Black or bronze faces Very deformed Extremely small Dress like miners Tap on the walls of the mine, showing where ore is	Also known as Coblynau	Knocker,
Coranian	Great Britain	Tribe of dwarves Said to be able to hear anything and are impervious to weapons		Dwarf
Couril	Brittany, France and Cornwall, England	Small fairies who hid in stone circles and megaliths Said to have webbed feet
Curupira	Brazil	3 to 4 feet tall Covered in rust colored hair Produce sounds similar to bird whistles Aggressive, abducts children and sexually assaults women	Also known as Kurupi and Yurupari
Derricks	Devon, England	Look like elderly humans Known to lead people astray when travelling
Dev	Armenia Iran Pamir Mountains, Tajikistan	4-5 feet tall Covered in long, red/brown hair Horned Has claws on its hands Said to have a tail	Also known as Div
Dodore	Solomon Islands	Only have one arm, leg, and eye Has very long, red hair Known to be malevolent, said to kill men with their fingernails Generally regarded to be fairly unintelligent
Doko	Lake Turkana, Kenya, Africa	Said to appear like four foot tall humans View as subhuman by the local tribes
Dover Demon	Dover, Massachusetts, USA	3 to 4 feet tall Tannish peach colored No noticeable facial features other than large, orange eyes which seemed to glow Said to have spindly limbs and has a thin torso	Very well-known cryptid Often connected to ufology because of its similar appearance Some have connected it to the Mannegishi	Mannegishi
Duende	Central and South America	1-4 feet tall Hair covered (the color of which varies greatly) Wears red or green rags for clothes with a red hat Attacks and kidnaps dogs	Many descriptions vary depending on what country the report originates Also known as Dwendi
Duergar	Scandinavia	Said to be very small, black or dark grey in color, with green eyes and long beards They were said to be unable to be touched by sunlight, turning to stone if they did Also, supposedly have the ability to turn invisible Bring corruption and malcontent to humanity Leads travelers away with a flickering torch		Dwarf
Dwarf	Worldwide	Old, wizened, bearded and small humanoids Often connected with mines, metalwork, mountains, and forests
Ebu Gogo	Flores, Indonesia	Small, potbellied, and are covered in grey hair		Homo floresiensis
Eloko	Zaire, Central Africa	Very malicious and cannibalistic dwarves Grass grows on their skin Said to have snouts which can open wide enough to consume a human	Also known as Biloko
Erdluitle	Switzerland and France	Shy dwarves About the size of a 7-year-old child Fond of wearing large clothing to hide their unusual webbed feet		Dwarf
Fantine	Vand Providence, Switzerland	Little people known to protect livestock, particularly cows, and to provide good crops
Fear Dearg	Ireland	Entity resembling a leprechaun Said to bring upon nightmares Dresses in all red Is about 2 feet tall	Also known as the Red Man, Fir Dhearga, Far Darrig and Fear Dearc
Ferier	Suffolk, England	Sandy colored, very small and are fond of wearing green coats Known to replace children with fairy changelings
Gilpin Horner	Eskdale, England	Very short Has large, strong legs Looks like an old woman from the waist up	Also known as Bogle of Todshawhill	Goblin
Gnena	West Africa	About 2 to 4 feet tall Unusually long arms and a large head Covered in greyish black hair or spikes Bright, yellow eyes
Goazi	Brazil and Columbia	Short, human-like	Not much else is written on these creatures
Grig	Somerset, England	Small men who wear green clothes and red caps Fond of apples
Gruagach	Scotland and Ireland	4 feet tall Covered in blond colored hair Help farmers with crops and livestock	Also known as Grugach
Guije	Eastern Cuba	3 feet tall Said to be half monkey, half human Black skin showed under its hair Oversized head Long, sharp claws	Also known as Jigue
Haus- Schmiedlein	Bohemia	Described as a short, old man Oversized head Dressed like miners Known to tap on the walls of mines Said to dwell in mines		Coblyn, Knocker
Hider in the Woods	Bella Vista Itapua, Paraguay	Hairy dwarf Said to hide in thickets	Said to have been encountered multiple times in 1993
Homo floresiensis	Flores, Indonesia	Supposed extinct species of the genus Homo Appeared very similar to humans, except were shorter in stature	Many people have suggested relict populations surviving into modern times as an explanation for the dwarfish cryptid of Flores, Ebu Gogo	Ebu Gogo, Orang Pendek
Hopkinville Goblins	Hopkinsville, Kentucky	About 3 feet tall Luminous silver in color Large, glowing eyes on the side of their heads Tall, pointy ears Fish-like mouths Long fingers which ended in claws Said to float	A staple of UFO lore, this Kentucky tale has quickly become world famous with UFO hunters
Ikal	Chiapas State, Mexico	3 feet tall Skinny Covered in long hair Dark face Said to have cloven hooves
Isnachi	Peru	4 foot tall Said to look like an oversized monkey Covered in dark hair Has a stubby, 6 inch long tail Face extended into a snout similar to a mandrill’s Long, menacing teeth	Sounds more like an undiscovered ape more than a humanoid
Jingara	Queensland, Australia	Short, bipedal humanoid Covered in short, black hair Has an uneven, ambling walk Long, dog-like muzzle is also reported	The muzzle might indicate a shorter Dogman-like creature	Junjadee, Kallicantzari
Junjadee	Australia	4 foot tall, bipedal, and covered in dark hair Footprints vary between five-toed and three-toed	Has many regional names throughout the continent	Jingara
Kakamora	Melanesia	Sized from very small to knee high Long hair, sharp nails Live in caves	Also known as Kakangora
Kakundakari	Democratic Republic of the Congo	2-3 feet tall Covered in thin black hair Has a short mane along spine Fairly technologically advanced, has spears and other weapons, as well as clothes and satchels		Alux
Kalanoro	Madagascar	2 to 3 feet tall Covered with hair with long hair on its head which reaches its waist Sharp, hooked fingernails Three-toed Said to be amphibious, living in lakes and rivers		Tratratratra
Kallicantzari	Greece	Hairy, dwarves with the heads of goats or dogs They are also said to have long tails and cloven hooves	Also known as Kalkes	Jingara
Kenaima	Venezuela	Small humanoids Nocturnal	There is not much written on these creatures
Kenkob	West Africa	3 to 4 feet tall Grey skinned Long beards	There are no known modern reports
Kibaan	Philippines	About the size of a child Covered in hair Gold-colored, sharp teeth Backwards feet Said to play guitars	Possibly the same creature as the Amomongo
Kidoky	Madagascar	4 to 5 feet tall Covered in dark hair with white facial stripes
Knocker	Cornwall, England	Small humanoids that are dressed as miners They live in caves and mines Said to knock or tap on the walls of the mine, either to assist miners or to warn them of danger	Also known as Tommy-Knocker which was an American addition	Cobalt, Coblyn, Haus- Schmiedlein
Korrigan	Brittany, France	Dwarves with long hair and white, flowy clothes Can shapeshift between ugly, old hags, and beautiful, young girls	Known to enchant travelers with their beauty
KurƏk Ia	Russia, Ukraine, and Finland	Knee high dwarves Permanent, mischievous grin Mountain inhabitants and are unkind to trespassers into their territory
Kynokephalos	India and Africa	2 to 3 feet tall Said to have a bearded dog’s head Sharp teeth and claws Has a long tail Communicates through a barking language		Kallicantzari, Jingara
Leprechaun	Ireland	Only a few inches to a foot tall Known famously as a cobbler and protector of treasure Said to look like a wizened old man with a grey beard Wears red and brown clothes with a strange hat
Little Red Men of the Delta	Kentucky and Tennessee, USA	About the size of a ten-year-old child Covered in thick reddish orange hair Has a blackish grey face
Macro	New Zealand	Smaller than a man Covered in hair Has long claws Lives in trees
Mala-Gilage	Chari River, Chad, Central Africa	Short Hair covered ruddy skin Long hair on their heads Tail similar to a monkey’s
Manitou	Maine, USA	Dwarves with small, deer-like antlers Trickster-like attitude
Mannegishi	Eastern Canada	3 to 4 feet tall Spindly, thin creatures Noseless faces Grey hairless bodies Large, orange eyes	Some have proposed this creature to have a possible connection with the Dover Demon	Dover Demon
Mannikin	Europe	Tiny and youthful in appearance Fond of music and food Merry folk who dwell in abandoned area of human origin
Massariol	Italy	Described as a flirtatious dwarf Said to assist farmers Wore red clothing and had a long beard
Mau	Kenya, Africa	4 feet tall Covered in red or black hair Has long hair on its head Inhabits caves Said to use primitive tools		Doko
Mekumwasuk	Southeast Canada and Maine, USA	3 feet tall Dressed in bright clothes Very ugly Hair covered Slightly malicious Causes sickness to those who do not feed them		Nagumwasuk, Memegwesi
Melon Heads	Ohio and Michigan, USA	About 3 to 4 feet tall Pale-skinned Have very large heads and eyes	Urban legends said to be the creation of a mad scientist
Memegwesi	Northeastern USA and Southeastern Canada	3 to 4 feet tall Covered with hair Lack of a nose Long beard, short arms, bowed legs Enlarged head Said to be a trickster type creature		Nagumwasuk, Mekumwasuk
Menehune	Hawaii, USA	2 to 3 feet tall Covered in dark hair Said to be muscular with broad shoulders and a pot belly Protruding brow ridge Large eyes Supposedly communicates primarily telepathically Agriculturally capable Has primitive tools
Mmoatia	Ghana, West Africa	1 foot tall Covered in hair which is red, white, or black in color Backwards feet Whistles or hisses to communicate
Moss People	Germany	Tiny, usually female, forest fairies Wizened humans covered from head to toe in moss Hair is like twigs Clothes are like bark
Mumulou	Solomon Islands	3 to 4 feet tall Dark skinned Long hair that goes down to their knees Claw-like nails Long beard Smells disgusting Cannibalistic
Nagumwasuck	Maine, USA	About 7 inches tall Very ugly Benevolent and are considered guardian spirits Also said to bring good luck		Mekumwasuk, Memegwesi
Nguoi Rung	Vietnam Cambodia Laos	4-5 feet tall Covered in red, grey, brown, or lack hair The elbow is said to have a sharp bone protruding from it Has a long tail Bipedal Proficient at climbing trees Supposedly raids villages Said to eat humans, specifically their intestines (only seen in Laos)
Ninimbe	Southwest USA	2 to 3 feet tall Said to look like a jolly, bearded man Cannibalistic Unusually large head, small feet and legs Has a tail
Nittaewo	Sri Lanka	3 to 4 feet tall Covered in red, shaggy hair Has dark skin Short arms with clawed hands
Ntonou	Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa	Short humanoid Covered in hair Short tail Said to be able to reproduce with humans	Possibly extinct	Sehite
Oakmen	England	Wood dwarves Said to inhabit the stumps of saplings which have been cut down	Dwarf
Orang Gugu	Sumatra, Indonesia	4 to 5 feet tall Covered in red or black hair Has a mane along its spine Said to be aggressive when people enter its territory, to prevent this, some offer gifts	Possible alternative name for the Orang Pendek	Orang Pendek
Orang Pendek	Sumatra, Indonesia	2.5 to 4.5 feet tall Covered in brownish red hair Has a black mane along its spine Ape-like, long arms Said to have a human-like face with unusually long canine teeth Bipedal, they are also skilled tree climbers		Orang Gugu
Pech	Scottish Highlands	Short, old men Covered in red hair Long arms Huge feet, large enough to use them as shelter
Pombero	Argentina	Dark colored dwarf Said to attack innocent people and hide them in thickets Also is apparently conjured through black magic	Also known as Pomberito and Pirague
Pukwudgee	East Coast, USA and East Coast Canada	2 feet tall Covered in brown hair with white skin Said to build huts out of clay and grass
Risengebirge	Germany	Evil dwarves Nocturnal Known to be quite malignant to those travelling at night If caught in daylight, they would turn to stone
Salvaje	Venezuela Columbia	3-6 feet tall Covered in red hair Backwards feet Can make humanlike sounds but no language Monkey-like face Known to kidnap women Smells bad
Salvanelli	Italy	Tiny humans who apparently live in the cracks in tree bark Said to wear bright red overalls
Sansandryi	Casamance River, Sengal	Much shorter than a human Covered in hair Very muscular and strong Walks backwards to prevent being followed Steals from villages
Sehite	Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa	Small in stature Covered in red hair Has an unusually large head Supposedly glows		Ntonou, Agogwe
Seme	Gabon, West Africa	2 to 3 feet tall Covered in red, orange or yellow hair Has very long head hair
Shiru	Andes Mountains	4 to 5 feet tall Covered in brown hair Shy creatures
Surem	Sonoran Desert	About 3 feet tall Nomadic, peaceful in nature Did not know sickness or death Could communicate with animals or plants Said to remain in an ‘uncivilized’ parallel universe	The parallel universe they supposedly dwell in could be related to Ultraterrestrial creatures
Teh-Lma	Himalayan Mountain Range	4 to 5 feet tall Covered in grey or red hair Head comes to a point and has a sloping forehead	Smaller cousin of the Yeti
Temu	Liberia	Smaller than humans Mane of long hair from their head, along their spine Has a beard Makes whistling sounds
Tikoloshe	South Africa	3 to 4 feet tall Looks similar to a baboon Covered in hair Has an unusually long penis, which is usually erect Said to cause many problems Is generally maliciously mischievous	Also known as Tokolosh The name is also used for a type of water demon It is also supposedly connected to black magic
Tratratratra	Madagascar	2-4 feet tall Covered in dark hair Round faced Humanlike face Apelike feet Opposed big toe Bipedal		Kalanoro
Trauco	Chile, South America	1.5 to 2.5 feet tall Covered in shaggy hair Broad chest and back Has no feet Said to assault women
Tuki	Solomon Islands	1 foot tall Covered in long, black hair Has long talons as hands Lives under stones
Uyan	Malaysia	3 feet tall Covered in dark brown hair Supposedly has domesticated dogs Thin arms and legs
Vele	Fiji	2 feet tall Covered in black hair Head ends in a point Said to throw clubs at trespassers	Also known as Veli
Vui	Australia	Short and dark colored Have long, straight hair on their head Have feet and tail like a goat’s
Wa-Mbilikimo	Kenya, East Africa	3 to 4 feet tall Long head hair, down to their shoulders Covered in dark hair
Washipi	Northern Argentina, South America	1.5 to 3 feet tall Covered in hair Face is similar to a monkey’s Long, claw-like fingernails Shy but incredibly strong
Watu Wa Miti	Zimbabwe, Africa	4 to 5 feet tall Covered in dark hair Extremely aggressive, even warlike
Xipe	Nicaragua, Central America	2 to 4 feet tall Covered in dark hair Has backwards feet
Yara-Ma-Yha-Who	New South Wales, Australia	4 feet tall Covered in red hair Toothless Apelike face Unhingable jaw Octopus-like suckers on hands and feet Waddling, bipedal walk Attacks people from trees Drinks blood of humans Swallows humans whole
Yoshi	Chile	2.5 feet tall Covered in yellow-green hair Has a bald patch on the back of its head Is able to furnish weapons and fire	No, this is not named after the video game character
Yunwi Tsundi	Georgia and North Carolina, USA	2 feet tall Black hair which touches the ground Is playful and benevolent

Appendix

• Multiple aspects of dwarves that are dark in color and extremely aggressive
• Some share traits with dogs and/or goats
• Many are connected with caves and mines
• Many are mischievous
• Many have claw-like hands or claws for hands
• Many are guardians of the forest or the wild
• Kidnapping an assaulting women and children is a common behavior
• Many appear like elderly men or women

References

Arnold, Neil. Monster! The A-Z of Zooform Phenomena. Bideford, North Devon: CFZ, 2007. Print.

Arrowsmith, Nancy, and George Moorse. A Field Guide to the Little People. New York: Hill and Wang, 1977. Print.

Coleman, Loren, and Jerome Clark. Cryptozoology A to Z: The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters, Sasquatch, Chupacabras, and Other Authentic Mysteries of Nature. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1999. Print.

Coleman, Loren, and Patrick Huyghe. The Field Guide to Bigfoot, Yeti, and Other Mystery Primates Worldwide. New York: Avon, 1999. Print.

Eberhart, George M. Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2002. Print.

Francis, Scott. Monster Spotter's Guide to North America. Cincinnati, OH: HOW, 2007. Print.

Huyghe, Patrick. The Field Guide to Extraterrestrials. New York: Avon, 1996. Print.

Mack, Carol K., and Dinah Mack. A Field Guide to Demons, Vampires, Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits. N.p.: Arcade, 2011. Print.

Matthews, John, and Caitlin Matthews. The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures: The Ultimate A-Z of Fantastic Beings from Myth and Magic. London: HarperElement, 2005. Print

Newton, Michael. Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology: A Global Guide to Hidden Animals and Their Pursuers. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2005. Print.

Nickell, Joe. Tracking the Man-Beasts: Sasquatch, Vampires, Zombies, and More. Amherst, NY: Prometheus, 2011. Print.

Redfern, Nicholas. The Bigfoot Book: The Encyclopedia of Sasquatch, Yeti, and Cryptid Primates. N.p.: Visible Ink, 2015. Print.

Rose, Carol. Spirits, Fairies, Gnomes, and Goblins: An Encyclopedia of the Little People. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1996. Print.

Shuker, Karl. From Flying Toads to Snakes with Wings: From the Pages of Fate Magazine. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 1997. Print.

Storm, Rory. Monster Hunt: The Guide to Cryptozoology. New York, NY: Sterling Pub., 2008. Print.

Zell-Ravenheart, Oberon, and Ash DeKirk. A Wizard's Bestiary: A Menagerie of Myth, Magic, and Mystery. Franklin Lakes, NJ: New Page, 2007. Print