Mythology Behind The Windigo

The windigo is a myth of Northern Native American culture, the stories behind them vary wide and far in details, but the one thing that is the same in all of them is how they come to be. They're cannibals. Windigos were once human, but through eating of human flesh they either became the monster themselves or are simply possessed by a demon that transforms them. The word wendigo (pronounced wehn-dee-go) itself comes from the Native American Algonquian language, meaning “evil spirit that devours mankind.” The apperance of Windigos vary through different myths, but two of the most common depictions of Windigos is a tall lanky creature with dark evil eyes and with greyish skin. The other common depiction of a Windigo is an ice giant that appears much like a man except its size is much greater and its skin and hair are white. Some things that both of these depictions of Windigos have in common is that they both have an insatiable craving for human flesh, and the only way to kill them is to burn them with fire.