Most people have heard about babayka since childhood. However, few people think about what exactly this character is and how exactly he looks. Apparently, so that a capricious child who does not want to sleep could imagine the most terrible option for himself personally, the babayka, unfortunately, is almost never described in horror stories.
So what does a babayka really look like? Actually, the word "babai" is actually found not only in folklore, but also in various dictionaries. For example, according to Dahl, it means a shaggy old man who looks intimidating to young children. Indeed, in many Turkic languages "babay" is translated exactly as "old grandfather".
What does a babayka look like
“Babay” is thus a Turkic word. It spread throughout the world from Asian countries. Some Turkic peoples, of course, also preserved descriptions of this mythical creature. Appears in Asian folklore "babayka" as a short, skewed old man with a bag over his shoulders and a thick disheveled beard. It is believed that it is in this very bag that he hides the naughty capricious children stolen by him.
So who this babayka is is clear. In folklore, this is a mischievous, evil old man. But the grandfather himself, even the shaggy one, may not seem too scary to some not particularly impressionable children. Therefore, very often, for greater intimidation, adults "supplement" this image with some kind of physical disabilities. A babayka who steals naughty children, for example, may not have an arm or a leg. Sometimes this character is lame, etc.
Analogues among other peoples
They scare children who do not want to sleep with a terrible babay, mainly only in Slavic and some Asian countries. Other nationalities have other, no less colorful characters for this purpose. This can be, for example, a boogeyman (beech), about which a film was even made in the USA, or a European horned krampus, which, like a babayka, has a large bag designed specifically for naughty children.
How to see a babayka?
Thus, we found out what a babayka looks like. But where can this terrible mythical creature live? The habitats of this creepy old man are mainly closets, dark corners, attics. And, of course, they just love babies to sit under the beds. It is in such places, of course, that you need to look for this horror.
For the enterprise to be more successful when searching, it is necessary to create a favorable atmosphere in the house for this. That is, to stay alone, turn off the chandeliers and lamps and walk around the rooms in the dark or by the light of the moon. In this case, those who want to look at the "babai" may be lucky and he really will meet this evil creature. And then the curious will find out exactly what a real evil babayka looks like and why many young children are so afraid of him.
