Nang Tani, the Spirit of the Banana Tree
In Thailand, people say a young woman in green lives in wild banana trees, and appears on full-moon nights, floating just above the ground.
What was reported
Nang Tani is a female spirit of Thai folklore who lives in a kind of wild banana tree, the tani. On nights of the full moon she is said to come out as a beautiful young woman dressed in green, standing or drifting just above the ground beneath her tree.
She is mostly gentle and sometimes gives food to passing monks, but she can punish men who harm her tree or treat women badly. People tie colourful cloth around tani trees as offerings, and many avoid planting them near the house.
Explanations offered
She is one of many tree spirits in Thai belief, part of a world of phi, or spirits, that lives alongside Buddhism in Thailand. She is a folk figure, and appears often in Thai films and comics.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- As told across Thailand
- Witnesses
- Thai folklore
- 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.
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