Uncanny Japan logo

Japanese Myths, Folktales, Folklore and Language

Episodes

Behind the Curtain: Advice for people coming to Japan (Ep. 39)

I forgo my usual format and invite my friend, fellow long time expat, and Sound Dude, Rich Pav, to join me in answering some listener questions about advice when coming to Japan.
Rich Pav and Thersa Matsuura

Story Time: Cicada by Lafcadio Hearn (Ep. 38)

Listen to Lafcadio Hearn's whimsical take on the cicada (semi) while enjoying some real time cicada singing in the background.
cicada

Oni Kara Denwa: The Ogre App to Discipline Your Child (Ep. 37)

Ever since I saw a mother discipline her child by threatening to call an oni/ogre, I've been wanting to do talk about this. Then I found out it really is a thing, an app called Oni Kara Denwa (A Call From an Oni, or as it's translated in Japanese: Ghost Call)
kappa

The Rock That Cries at Night (younaki ishi) (Ep. 36)

A rock that gets weepy when the sun goes down, a pregnant woman slain alone in the mountains, a newborn baby visited by a ghostly priest who feds him candy to stay alive.

#Uncannytober: Oct 7

Night Crying Rock

Nanafushigi: Seven Mysterious Things (Ep. 35)

A giant hairy foot crashing through the roof of an old house and demanding to be washed. A festive tanuki band that appears in the dead of night and lures you into parts unknown. These are just two of the Honjo Nanafushigi.
nanafushigi

Hidden by the Gods (kamikakushi) (Ep. 34)

I started talking about the tengu in Episode 32 (Heavenly Dogs and Brilliant Swordsmen), but I wasn't able to cover one of my favorite things about this red faced, long nosed, mountain warrior. That being the notion of kamikakushi (神隠し) or being spirited away.
kamikakushi

Story Time: Hoichi The Earless by Lafcadio Hearn (Mimi-nashi Hoichi) (Ep. 33)

After coming to live in Japan (1890), Lafcadio Hearn listened intently to the folk stories and ghostly tales that were related to him. He then wrote them down in English, adding his own unique style and began publishing books of his gathered observances and retellings. This is Mr. Hearn's most well-known story.
Miminashi Hoichi

Heavenly Dogs and Brilliant Swordsmen (The Tengu) (Ep. 32)

There are two types of tengu: the karasu/crow tengu and the hanadaka/long-nosed tengu. They're both awesome martial artists and fearsome foes, among other things.

#Uncannytober: Oct 5

Hanadaka Tengu
1 15 16 17 18 19 21

About The Uncanny Japan Podcast

Speculative fiction writer, long-term resident of Japan and Bram Stoker Award finalist Thersa Matsuura explores all that is weird from old Japan—strange superstitions, folktales, cultural oddities, and interesting language quirks. These are little treasures she digs up while doing research for her writing.

© Copyright 2025 Uncanny Productions
Buy Me a Coffee at Ko-Fi