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Kejoro
SekienKejoro

Real Name

Kejoro

First Appearance

Japanese Myth

Created by

Japanese Myth

Origin[]

Kejōrō is a yokai that disguises itself as a prostitute whose face and body are hidden behind a curtain of long, matted black hair. She appears in red-light districts and brothels. In most stories, it is only the hair on her head that is disturbingly thick and long, but in some stories, her whole body is covered in thick hair, like some kind of beast.

There is some debate over his original description as to whether the kejōrō has a normal face under the matte of hair, or whether she is a faceless monster, related to the nopperabō or the ohaguro-bettari, with various yokai researches weighing in on either side of the question.

In Toriyama Sekien’s kaidan-shu Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki the story is told of a man is venturing into the Yoshiwara red light district one evening, when he sees a prostitute walking down the street. From the rear, he recognizes her as one of his favorites, and so rushes up to claim her. When she turns around, she reveals her entire body is made up of hair, with no skin visible.

Public Domain Literary Appearances[]

  • Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki
  • Bakemono Haruasobi

See Also[]

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