The Zangi is a water spirit of Talysh belief, said to dwell in the rivers and lakes of the mountain country. She takes the form of a beautiful woman who appears at the water's edge and lures unsuspecting men into the depths, where they are drowned. As a seductive and lethal genius of fresh water she belongs to a widespread Iranian and Caucasian type of water-being, and her tale functioned as a warning against the real hazards of the region's swift streams and standing pools.