Ebu Gogo
Monster WikiAn artist’s impression of the ebu gogo, a human-like cryptid on this list.
The Nage people of Flores in Indonesia have long told tales about a group of wild, human-like creatures that once lived alongside people. Said to be like cave-dwelling hobbits, the ebu gogo supposedly murmured to each other in their own language, but also sometimes parroted human phrases.
Their name essentially translates to “gluttonous grandmothers,” and by the 1700s, the Nage villagers had begun accusing the ebu gogo of kidnapping children and stealing food. After reportedly tricking the ebu gogo into taking large quantities of palm fibers into their caves, the Nage people tried to set the whole species ablaze, though a few were said to escape.
Warriors of Myth WikiAn artist’s interpretation of what an ebu gogo cryptid may have looked like.
According to Aeon, there may actually be a bit of truth to the legend of the ebu gogo. In 2004, a new branch on the human evolutionary tree was announced after the discovery of bones that belonged to a small, previously unknown human relative on the Indonesian island of Flores.
Given the name Homo floresiensis, these small human relatives shared a striking number of similarities with the legendary ebu gogo. These hominids had small brains, the ability to cross difficult waterways, and honed skills in toolmaking. Evidence suggests they had a fairly primitive anatomy, yet their behavior indicated they may have been somewhat advanced and human-like — hence, researchers gave the hominid species the nickname “hobbit.”
Evidence even suggests that Homo floresiensis may have existed on the island as recently as 12,000 years ago — well after the arrival of humans in the region. In fact, many scientists had believed, until that point, that Homo sapiens was the only hominid species left there at the time.
Naturally, many researchers began to wonder if Homo floresiensis and the ebu gogo were one and the same. And given how recent stories of the ebu gogo had been shared among the local tribes, some were even hopeful they might find Homo floresiensis alive on remote parts of the island.
To this day, though, none have been found.
