The Santelmo
In the Philippines, people say balls of fire float through fields and forests at night, and that they are lost souls.
What was reported
Santelmo is the Filipino name for a fireball, usually yellow or orange, that appears at night in fields, forests and over water, drifting slowly or darting about. The name comes from Saint Elmo, after the glow sailors saw on their masts.
Many people believe the santelmo is a soul that can't rest, often of someone who drowned, or a spirit leading travellers astray. In some places people say that if you see one, you should stay still, or it will follow you home.
Explanations offered
Similar lights are told about worldwide, like the will-o'-the-wisp. Suggested causes include burning marsh gas, St Elmo's fire in stormy weather, and ball lightning. No one has captured a santelmo on film in a way that settles it.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- As told across the Philippines
- Witnesses
- Filipino folklore, and people in the countryside
- 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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