The Gumiho, the Nine-Tailed Fox
In Korean folklore, a fox that has lived a thousand years can become a beautiful woman, but must feed on people to stay human.
What was reported
The gumiho, 'nine-tailed fox', is a creature of Korean folklore: a fox that has lived a thousand years and can take the form of a beautiful woman. Unlike similar fox spirits in China and Japan, which can be good or wicked, the Korean gumiho is usually dangerous, and in many tales she eats a man's liver or heart to keep her human form.
Some stories say that if she can go a thousand days without killing, or keep her secret from her husband, she'll become fully human.
Explanations offered
The gumiho belongs to a shared East Asian tradition of fox spirits. In recent decades, Korean dramas have often reimagined her as a sympathetic figure longing to be human, and she remains a symbol of desire and danger in Korean storytelling.
- When
- Told for centuries
- Where
- Korean folklore, told across the peninsula
- Witnesses
- Korean tradition
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.