Ashinagatenaga

Ashinagatenaga are folkloric yōkai catalogued in Japanese encyclopedic works (notably the Wakan Sansai Zue) and treated in later anecdotal and artistic sources. Tradition often portrays them as complementary populations or stock figures—one characterized by elongated legs, the other by elongated arms—and they appear in lists and visual representations rather than as the focus of an extended mythic genealogy. Some popular accounts describe them as inhabitants associated with specific "long-legged" or "long-armed" peoples in folklore, but primary sources emphasize their portrayal as descriptive folkloric types rather than a fixed ethnic origin.

Presented as humanoid but with extreme limb proportions: the Tenaga (手長), also attested as chōhi (長臂), is described in the Wakan Sansai Zue as having arms up to three jō in length (roughly 9.09 m), while the Ashinaga (足長) is given legs of about two jō (just over 6 m) in that source. Variant anecdotal reports exist: an eyewitness account recorded in the Kasshiyawa describes an ashinaga with nine shaku–long legs (about 2.7 m), indicating variability in reported measurements. Visual depictions (netsuke, museum pieces) show them as elongated, humanlike figures without consistent monstrous traits such as horns or fangs in the cited material.

Cited sources attribute no overt supernatural powers such as possession, curses, or shapeshifting. The primary attested motif is cooperative fishing: the tenaga climbs onto the ashinaga's back while the ashinaga wades into shore waters using long legs to remain above waves and the tenaga uses long arms to gather fish. An anecdotal association in the Kasshiyawa records that sightings of an ashinaga were followed by deteriorating weather, suggesting a folkloric omen function in some local beliefs. Beyond these behaviors, the consulted sources do not record additional powers or hostile supernatural activities.