Penanggalan

vampire · Malaysia · Southeast Asia

The penanggalan is a vampiric spirit of Malay folklore: by night a woman's head detaches, trailing her lungs and entrails as it flies in search of blood, especially of pregnant women. Vinegar in her body betrays her and thorns snare her guts; the figure has been documented since the 1845 Hikayat Abdullah and Skeat's Malay Magic.

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