"My God! You were a werewolf?" the wife exclaimed.
"Yes, my dear," the husband replied calmly, "thank you for breaking this dreadful curse."
From that moment on, the husband never transformed into a werewolf again.
The Danish believed that if a pregnant woman stretched her limbs daily and crawled on the ground for a short time, she would experience a painless delivery. However, if she bore a son, he might become a werewolf; if a daughter, she could turn into a hare. These children would appear human by day but transform into wolves or hares by night, roaming freely. Only during this nocturnal phase could they be freed from their curse.
A Danish ballad recounts the tale of a boy transformed into a bear by his stepmother. One day, he encountered a knight, and during their struggle, he lamented:
"It was the wicked woman,
Who cursed me into this form,
Placing an iron ring upon me.
Oh, noble knight,
If you can break this wretched ring,
I shall regain my true self."
Indeed, when the knight shattered the ring, the bear immediately returned to human form.
In Schleswig and Holstein, it was said that calling a werewolf by their Christian name thrice would restore their humanity.
One summer, a group of farmers napped in a field. Suddenly, one awoke to see a companion don an iron ring and transform into a werewolf. Shocked, he called the man’s name three times, and his friend reverted to human form.
In Kitzberg, a farmer and his wife were stacking hay when the wife confessed her despair and decided to leave. Before departing, she warned her husband to defend himself with his hat should a beast attack. Soon after, a large wolf emerged from the river, lunging at the farmer. Desperate, he threw his hat at the wolf, but it was ineffective—the wolf shredded it to pieces. As the wolf closed in, a boy appeared, driving a sharp knife into the wolf’s back. The wolf let out a horrific scream and collapsed, reverting to human form—it was the farmer’s wife.
Near Steinar, peculiar families kept iron rings that, when placed on someone, would transform them into werewolves. Once, a man left his ring out, and his young son found it. Out of curiosity, the boy put it on and turned into a bear. Before he could cause harm, his father removed the ring. The boy later described feeling an overwhelming rage and an urge to destroy everything in sight. Witnesses noted the ring was wrapped in human skin and about three fingers wide.
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Historian Schleer recorded a Lithuanian legend: to reclaim their human form, werewolves must kneel in one spot for a hundred years without moving.
In the Netherlands, a tale speaks of an archer on his way to a competition who encountered a wolf attacking a young girl tending cattle. Swiftly, he shot the wolf in the ribs. The next day, the archer heard of a man gravely injured in a nearby inn. Upon investigating, he found the same arrow he had shot lodged in the man—proving he was the wolf.
In Bulgaria and Slovakia, werewolves, called "klaks," share ties with vampires. Their souls leave their bodies, inhabiting wolves to drink human blood. Upon return, their bodies feel exhausted as if they had undergone great exertion. Upon death, these werewolves transform into vampires, preying on livestock or even stealing babies from cradles.
In modern Greek, anyone with peculiar features, such as darkened skin or deformed limbs, is referred to as a "klak." Serbs often conflate vampires and werewolves, calling them by the same name. Werewolves would gather annually, discarding their wolf skins. Those able to retrieve their skins could break the curse.
In Russian, "volkola" refers to those cursed by demons and transformed into wolves. These werewolves would visit their relatives, who treated them kindly. Unlike typical werewolves, they were gentle and helped with household chores, though they had to frequently relocate to avoid growing irritable.
Slovakians liken drunkards to "klaks," noting their beastly behavior, such as growling or attacking others.
Polish lore warns of werewolf activity peaking at Christmas and Midsummer. It is said that placing a circle made of human skin outside a wedding house would transform the bride, groom, and attendants into werewolves upon crossing it. After three years, the sorcerer would offer them a fur cloak that, when worn, restored their humanity. However, one groom found his cloak too small, leaving his tail exposed—he carried it for life.
The Ancient Bohemian Lexicon refers to werewolves as "vilklaks." A tale from Armenia tells of a man who saw a wolf carrying a child. Chasing the wolf, he stumbled upon a cave with a fire and a wolf pelt hanging on the wall. Tossing the pelt into the flames, an old woman screamed as the pelt burned, and she vanished in smoke.
In India, shapeshifting legends abound. A Brahmin’s son in Pakistan was said to be a snake by day, human by night. Another tale tells of a prince whose wife, a female ape, transformed into a beautiful woman during a banquet. Burning her ape skin ensured her beauty remained.
Pierce recounts a story from Abyssinia: while gold and silversmiths were revered, blacksmiths were despised, often seen as werewolves. Blacksmiths wore gold earrings to distinguish themselves, and some claimed to have seen wolves wearing earrings.