Ibiza has always been an island that has survived and sustained on its agriculture, traditionally a poor and humble island. Years ago people did not have books, radio, or television like we see in almost all households today.
During these years, it was the imagination that prevailed in Ibiza and people started telling stories with invented characters that have survived to this day.
These stories, Rondaies in Eivissenc, compiled by Joan Castello Guasch, starred several curious mythological beings that make up the magical folklores of Ibiza.
Among the main characters of these tales we find the Fameliar and the Barruguet…
The Barruguet is the most frequently represented and popular character in Ibicenco mythology. He is said to be small in stature, elongated, very strong, almost always invisible and has the ability to appear in the form of any animal. The main purpose of the Barruguet is to create mischief to make life more difficult for those around him, such as putting salt or ash on food making it bitter or tickling young children to make them cry.
The Fameliar is supposedly a little elf with a big ugly head, a big mouth and a terrible voice, which can only be found in the islands of Ibiza and Formentera. If you want see a Fameliar, there’s only one chance a year. On the night of San Juan you have to go under the bridge of Santa Eularia. At midnight you can find a very special herb, but as it grows, it also disappears. If you are quick enough to grab some, you have to put it immediately inside a black bottle and close it, and after 3 months it will become a Fameliar.
In addition to the Fameliar and the Barruguet, there are a some other fantastically magical creatures in Ibiza that we’d love to tell you about…
The Follet is not a spirit nor a person. It is a gift or a power. They say, that those who have Follet have the ability to be able to move from one place to another instantly. That’s why, still to this day, when a child is very restless the Ibicencos say that it has Follet.
The Crespells were believed to be monsters that lived inside Sa Cova des Crespells in Buscastell, located in the center of the island. Inside the cave lived seven tiny Crespells and all with wrinkled skin full of large warts. The Crespells used to grunt and throw fire through their eyes at the ones that tried to get close to their cave or steal the sweet oranges from their land.
The witches of Ibiza, or Bruixes, apparently did not travel on a broom or were bad at all. According to the mythology of the island they knew all the herbs, flowers and shrubs and were able to perform magic spells. The legend says that they were the ones who created the famous Ibizan herb digestive drink to enchant humans and thus dispose of their will when they drank it. Ibicencos discovered that the only way to protect themselves from the Bruixes and evil spirits was to paint the windows of their houses with a white cross.
If you keep an eye when you visit the island, you will still be able to see these white crosses, amongst many other signs of these magical mythological creatures…
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