The Banshee is a spirit who appears shortly before someone dies.

The Banshee takes on slightly different forms in different areas, but generally it is a female fairy or ghost, which is associated with a particular, old family. Occasionally she might also appear to warn of the death of a person who was especially gifted at music or poetry.

The Banshee generally appeared in one of a few forms; either a virgin female of the family who died young, who would sing, or a shrouded, veiled woman who wailed in mourning. Sometimes she would crouch under a tree, and sometimes she would fly by the house, crying bitterly. The cry of the banshee is supposed to be the most mournful sound on earth.

Banshees have been known to follow the family they are attached to abroad to other countries.

Occasionally the Scottish highland banshee is seen washing the clothes of those about to die in battle, and not just warning of the deaths of someone of a particular family.

last updated Feb 20, 2000 by Strawberry