Al
Andi · numen · Andi traditional religion; continuing · Recorded classification
The al is the childbirth demon of Andic and wider Daghestani belief, a malevolent female being who preys on women in labour and their infants; in the widespread version she tears at the mother's liver or lungs and would carry them to water. She is held off by iron, so a knife, needle or scissors was laid in or beside the childbed and the mother was not left alone during the dangerous days. Her name and traits are shared with the al or albasty of neighbouring Turkic and Caucasian peoples, marking a demonological layer common to the whole region.
Domains
- childbirth
- disease
Powers
- afflict women in childbed
Sources
- A female demon of childbirth who harms mothers in labour and newborns and is repelled by iron; part of the shared Daghestani demonology of the Andic peoples.: Сефербеков Р. И. Пантеон языческих божеств народов Дагестана. Махачкала, 2009. (secondary); Мифы народов мира. Ст. «Ал». М., 1980–1982. (secondary)