THE CONCORDANCE

Dreamlands

A geography reachable only asleep.

Europe & the North · 1

AlpNight visitor · Germany · AustriaIn German folklore an alp is a typically male night-presser, kin to the elf, that sits on sleepers and sends Alpdruck. Distinct from the mara, though both explain the same crushed waking.

The Americas · 1

PisadeiraNight visitor · BrazilPisadeira is a Brazilian night figure — a gaunt long-nailed old woman who lurks on roofs and tramples or sits on those who sleep face-up on a full stomach. Folklorists and sleep researchers map her to sleep-paralysis experience without erasing the folk being.