Reports have mostly been in the Iwate Prefecture, but there are also some scattered across Aomori Prefecture,
Generally, … See more

An example of a very characteristic folk belief is that families with a zashiki-warashi would prosper and families whose zashiki-warashi have gone away would decline. This aspect shows that zashiki-warashi are like gods o… See more

Zashiki-warashi are there in inner guest rooms (zashiki), and their existence is said to have an effect on the direction the family goes in, so there are some families that treat them hospitably and offer them meals every day. … See more

Zashiki-warashi have various regional names such as zashiki-warabe (座敷童), zashiki-warashi (座敷童衆), zashiki-bokko (座敷ぼっこ), okura-bokko (御蔵ボッコ), zashiki-kozō (座敷小僧), and karako-warashi. Th… See more

Kizen Sasaki noted that perhaps they are the spirits of children who were crushed to death and buried at the home. In the Tōhoku region, infanticide was called usugoro (臼殺, or "mortar kill"), and it is said that ch… See more

To the people of Tōhoku, the zashiki-warashi was certainly not a legend that came around after the war, and tales of zashiki-warashi were told even in the times of Meiji, Shōwa, and beyond. According to Kunio Yana… See more