Barghest

Barghest, Bargtjest, Bo-guest, Bargheist, Bargeist, Barguist, Bargest or Barguest is the name often given in the North of England, especially in Yorkshire, to a legendary monstrous black dog with huge teeth and claws, though in other cases the name can refer to a ghost or household elf, especially in Northumberland and Durham (see Cauld Lad of Hylton).

Origin of the name

The derivation of the word barghest is disputed. Ghost in the north of England was once pronounced guest, and the name is thought to be burh-ghest: town-ghost. Others explain it as German Berg-geist (mountain spirit), or Bär-geist (bear-spirit), in allusion to its alleged appearance at times as a bear. Another mooted derivation is 'Bier-Geist', the 'spirit of the funeral bier'.

Domain and description

One notable case is said to frequent a remote gorge named Troller's Gill. There is also a story of a Barghest entering the city of York occasionally, where, according to legend, it preys on lone travellers in the city's narrow Snickelways. Whitby is also associated with the spectre.

In the 1870s a famous Barghest was said to live near Darlington who was said to take the form of a headless man (who would vanish in flames), a headless lady, a white cat, a dog, rabbit and black dog. Another was said to live in an "uncannie-looking" dale between Darlington and Houghton near Throstle Nest, and yet another haunted an area of wasteland between Wreghorn and Headingley Hill near Leeds.

Besides taking the form of a large black dog with fiery eyes, it could also become invisible and walk about with the sound of rattling chains. At the death of any notable person the barghest would appear, followed by all the other dogs of the local region in a kind of funeral procession, and begin howling and baying. It may also foretell the death of an individual by lying across the threshold of his or her house. It is sometimes said that like the vampire the barghest is unable to cross rivers.

In popular culture

Many stories, perhaps most notably The Hound of the Baskervilles, feature ghostly black dogs. Dogs specifically named as barghests appear in the following:

• In Daniel O'Malley's novel The Rook, barghest is the name given to the elite human commandos of the Checquy.

• The barghest appears in the children's book The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis.

• In Roald Dahl's The Witches, the barghest is described as always being male.

• Neil Gaiman's short story "Black Dog" features a barghest in the form of a huge black dog which has occult powers. See "Trigger Warning" William Morrow 2015, page 265.

• The term "barghest" is not mentioned in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, instead, a variant known as the "Grim" is used. The protagonist, Harry Potter, is told that the apparition of a shaggy, black dog that he keeps seeing throughout the year is a premonition of his imminent death. However, the dog later turns out to be his godfather, Sirius Black, who is an animagus who is able to transform himself into a shaggy, black dog.

• In "The Child Thief" by Brom, barghests are distinctly doglike fairy pets of a powerful witch.

• The 1978 made-for-TV movie Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell features a barghest named Lucky.

• The song "Oblivion" by Patrick Wolf, which is about a young man searching for the Barghest.

• The EP "The Barghest o' Whitby" by the Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride.

• In the video game Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, the barghest is a wolf-like enemy that appears in small packs.

• In the PS3 video game "Folklore", Barghest is the name of a bear-like enemy that can be fought in the Netherworld.

• In the MMORPG "EVE Online", Barghest is the name of a Mordu's Legion pirate faction battleship type with a distinct flat design.

See also

• Black dog (ghost), a list of phantom black dogs by locale
• Black Shuck
• Fox spirit
• Wild Hunt