[Korean Culture & Language] Nine tailed Fox

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Photo by Yuriy Chemerys on Unsplash

Foxes in tales are usually described as cunning, deceptive, and clever. In some European and East Asian countries, they are also believed to have magical powers. 구미호(nine-tailed fox) in Korean folktales can transform into a person, usually into a beautiful lady, and seduces men to eat their livers or hearts.

Following is famous Korean folklore titled ‘여우누이(fox sister)’:

Once upon a time, there was an elderly couple with three sons but no daughter. They went to the mountain to pray to the 산신(mountain god) for a daughter, but a fox that was around heard them praying. The elderly couple returned home and finally gave birth to a daughter not long after.

Strangely, their livestock began to die. The parents asked their boys to investigate over the night. While watching, the oldest son fell asleep. He discovered a dead cow in front of his eyes only the next morning. He was afraid to tell his father the truth that he had fallen asleep, so he lied and said that he hadn’t seen anything. The second son also fell asleep while watching, and told his father he hadn’t seen anything. 

The youngest son stayed up all night. He witnessed his sister come out of her room, transform into a nine-tailed fox, and then eat the cow’s liver. She hid her tails after eating and returned to her room. The next day, he told his father what he had seen. The old man became enraged, believing that the son was saying that only because he was jealous of his little sister who was overly adored by the family. The youngest son got kicked out of the house.

While walking, he saw some kids strangle a turtle. He gave the kids money to let the turtle go. Then suddenly a man appeared on a white horse and thanked him for saving his sister. The turtle was a princess from a 용궁(dragon palace).

The Dragon King‘s son (용왕의 아들) on a white horse took him to the 용궁(dragon palace). The 용왕(Dragon King) also thanked him. Shortly after, the dragon princess and the youngest son got married. They were happy, but he started missing his family back home. He decided to visit the town, and the dragon princess gave him a horse, a white bottle, a blue bottle, and a red bottle.

She advised him to toss the bottles when he’s in danger. When he returned to the village, he saw that everyone had died. While he was experiencing shock and sadness, the door cracked open and his ‘sister’ dashed toward him. “Where have you been, brother?” said the fox.

He got on his horse and bolted. She began to chuckle and turned into a nine-tailed fox. She was lightning quick and came dangerously near to capturing him. He hurled a white bottle in the air. It grew into a thornbush, trapping the fox inside. However, she was able to get out of it pretty easily and continued to pursue him. 

He hurled a blue bottle, which transformed the ground into a sea. The fox was still able to catch up. He hurled the red bottle, and it ignited the fox. “I only needed two more meals to become a human,” The fox screamed as she died. 

The youngest son safely returned to the 용궁 and lived happily ever after with the princess.


구미호(Nine-tailed fox) is a creature that appears frequently in Korean folklores and tv shows. They transform into a stunningly beautiful woman who seduces men only to kill them and eat their livers. So the word ‘구미호’ is still used as a metaphor for someone who is extremely flirtatious and dangerous.


Do you know of anyone who could be a nine-tailed fox? 

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