Ojancano

With different regional characteristics, it is known by different names. Related to the classic cyclops, in some places it helps to take care of livestock while in others it is a symbol of anger and perpetual hatred. He is the masculine myth, fierce, moody, gigantic, always thinking of destroying cabins, and tearing down trees and bridges. But we must not forget that there are also good, kind Ojancanos, who warn and defend people from the bad guys.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ojanco.jpg

He is one of the best-known characters, especially in places where rockslides are frequent, as they were then attributed to the Ojancanos.

All versions coincide in pointing out that his face is completely round, yellow, with a hard and long red beard, the same color as his hair. His one eye, in the middle of his forehead, shines like a candle and is surrounded by pale wrinkles. He is very loud, with a voice like thunder. The godmothers protect the children from this creature by anointing their fingers with a mixture of holy water and laurel, to which they add flour if they are boys, but not if they are girls.

They were enemies of the anjanas. They chased them when they met them on their way, but these transformed or became invisible and always managed to mock them.

They can be killed by plucking a white hair from his red beard, or by hitting him with a stone in a hole in the center of his forehead. He also dies if he eats mushrooms or wild strawberries, or if he is touched on the head by a flying toad or an owl. If he grows old, it is the young ojancanos who kill and bury them.

Like the anjana, he has the gift of metamorphosis and can adopt various forms to do harm, his preferred ones being those of an old beggar or a tree. Enraged by the strong wind of storms, which entangles his beards in brambles, trees, and bushes, he gets angry and throws and shatters large rocks and trees. They have been the ones who, at times like these, have made the gorges and cliffs, and have broken down the mountains.

 

Sources:

Mercedes Cano Herrera. (2007). Entre anjanas y duendes : mitología tradicional ibérica. Castilla Ediciones.