The Wendigo (Windigo, Wiindigoo) - "The spirit of the lonely places" - is a cannibalistic spirit in Algonquin (a native American tribe) mythology. It is said that a human can change into a Wendigo when they indulge in cannibalism, or that a Wendigo can possess a human. Some sources say that the possession causes the transformation, while others say that being bitten by one can cause it.

Some people think that it is another version of the Bigfoot myth, due to some shared physical characteristics, but it seems a bit more complex than that. While hunting, the Wendigo cautiously follows its prey, eventually causing them to fall into hysteria, and once the Wendigo sees an opportunity, it attacks. Anyone who survives a Wendigo attack contracts Wendigo fever: the person will feel an intense burning sensation in their legs, and have relentless nightmares.

As for appearance, it is quite often described as a tall thin humanoid creature, sometimes said to be twisted, bloodstained, or fanged. It has no lips, bares jagged teeth, and hisses with every breath. It's bones are visible through its sickly skin, and its body is composed of ice. Some say that it is a spirit that inhabits evil men.


The Wendigo was one of the appearances in the hit TV shows "Charmed" and "Supernatural"


It is often believed that a Wendigo will get bigger and more powerful with every victim it consumes, growing more and more hungry; It's hunger never fully quenched. In some traditions a person can be possessed by the Wendigo spirit and forced to commit violent cannibalistic acts. In other traditions once a person consumes another person's flesh, whether out of necessity or not, they transform into a Wendigo. It has a heart of ice, thus melting it would kill the Wendigo. Some people say that it can be killed through appropriate use of silver, but this is highly unlikely. An old Ojibwa ghost story depicted a warrior defeating a Wendigo by stabbing it in the head with a regular hunting knife (although it took a few tries).