El Naddaha

El Naddaha

Creature
Grouping	Genie; Sea nymph
Data
First reported	Unknown
Country	Egypt
Region	Nile delta region

The legend of El Naddaha (Arabic: النداهة‎) (translated: the caller) is somewhat a modern legend about a female sea nymph-like genie (ginneyya in Egyptian Arabic), known by this title, who calls men to the Nile, most likely to their death. It's quite popular in the Nile Delta, the northern agricultural-based area of Egypt, typically north to Cairo, where the Nile constitutes a main part of the environment.

History

It is unknown when exactly the legend was first told, or what was the incident that caused its rise. The story became popular around the 1950s where Egypt was less urban than it is now, and people would spend more time closer to the Nile. Children would play by its shores after school had released them, and young men would chat there at night. It has become less popular at present though it's still familiar to the youth.

Description

The legends tells the story of an amazingly beautiful female who appears accidentally to men walking by the Nile at night. The men are usually two, where the creature calls one by his first name, rendering him speechless, hypnotized, and totally obedient to her voice which he blindly tracks, while the other man is not affected, and tries to pull the called man back, under severe resistance from the latter. The creature keeps calling in a soft, sleepy, hypnotizing voice until the second unaffected man succeeds in reviving the called man from his hypnosis, and the two run away as fast as they can, hearing her voice still echoing as they run.

Usually the men do not get close enough to the Nile to get a glimpse of what the creature looks like before they run away. In rare instances, they do get close enough. She's described as being a very beautiful white female; tall, slender, and with long flowing hair down her back. She stands steadily very near to the bank of the river, her hands placed at her sides, and wearing a loose long semi-transparent dress. In many instances she's described as having a semi-transparent body. Thus, thought by many people to be a genie. Her voice is calm and soft, yet loud.^[1][2][3][4]

In rural Egypt, the creature may call for men in their homes (being situated along the shore of the Nile) who would then eagerly attempt to go out for her. In other tales, the affected man would not immediately try to go out; rather he'd enter a state of disturbed consciousness for a few nights, after which he would eventually leave late at night. People in rural Egypt believe that a man who is called for by El Naddaha is doomed, curing him from the curse is impossible, and the process irreversible.

Not a single instance has been recorded where a man was seen devoured by her. But many old local citizens believe she consumes or fiercely pulls her victims into the Nile and drown them. And the dead tell no tales.

In Ahmed Khaled Towfik's tale The Legend of Al Naddaha, he mentions that a man who prevents the called man from reaching the creature by any means would be the next to be called.

References

1. ^ The Legend of El Naddaha, by Ahmed Khaled Towfik; an Egyptian novel writer; Original Page: List of titles of Ma Waraa Al Tabiaa series
2. ^ عفاريت شبرامنت (Arabic)
3. ^ A poem based on the El Naddaha legend (Arabic)
4. ^ Discussion on the Legend of El Naddaha in a public Egyptian forum (Arabic)