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BANSHEES The Old Irish bean sνdhe or ben sνde means "fairy woman", or "woman of the hills," and differs considerably from the Scottish bean nighe, or "little washer by the ford." The Irish manifestation is a beautiful fairy (see Fairies) woman who cries underneath the window of a house in which a man will die. In Ireland, only families of repute and antiquity (particularly those with names beginning with Mac or O) had a banshee, each qualifying family having a banshee devoted to them alone. The banshee's cry was sweet but could be heard for miles around, and was called keening, which is from Old Irish caoinim meaning to weep or wail for the dead. In Scotland, the banshee (or bean nighe) was a horrible creature with one nostril, a large protruding front tooth, red webbed feet, and long pendulous breasts. According to legend, she is a ghost of a woman who died giving birth and must haunt the earth washing clothes by the river until it is her natural time to die. She washes the clothes of a man or men that will die. Some myths say that if she is caught, she must tell her catcher the name of the man and grant three wishes.

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