The Black Dog in Folkore
If you’re a listener of The Midnight Library podcast, when you read the title of this blog your mind may have wandered to the infamous Black Shuck, or perhaps to even Mr. Darling himself. However, the folklore of the black dog covers many, seemingly, different dogs and a grim picture of a large dog, with shaggy black fur, glowing red eyes, and something not quite natural about it. Let’s explore the myth of the black dog tonight…
Largely focused in British folklore (although black dog foklore certainly exists outside the isle) the black dog haunts the minds of many whether they roam in bustling city alleys in the cover of dark or churchyards in the smallest villages.
What the dog means can be varied, but even if it doesn’t attack…it doesn’t mean it’s good. Largely believed to foreshadow death, sickness, or tragedy seeing this out-of-place dog is a black mark on your future, or a loved one’s future. In some stories, the dog will even go as far as to attack you, so don’t try to approach and ask what exactly you should be worried about. It also seems to largely appear during the night and to a solitary person.
Because of the belief that they may be the devil himself, or some sort of creature from beyond the veil, it is often believed they are sighted by liminal spaces, like crossroads and entrances to villages. Like fairies, some tales describe them emerging from ancient barrows from another realm.
One of those in-between creatures is Black Shuck. Black Shuck, also known as Old Shuck, is a demonically terrifying phantom that haunts England in the shape of a terrifyingly large and wild dog. It is believed the term ‘shuck’ may be derived from an old word for devil or trickster, highlighting the distrust this dog creates. Although dozens of tales of Black Shuck exist, and even more unconfirmed sightings, one of the most infamous occurred on August 4th, 1577 at Blythburg Church in Suffolk. During a terribly violent storm, a church service was taking place. The doors suddenly blew open, Black Shuck appeared, and ran down the aisle killing a man and a boy, burning a man’s hand, and attacking and terrifying various other congregants. For his finale, he brought the church steeple crashing through the roof. When the dog finally left the church, congregant noticed burn marks and incisions from his flaming claws marked the doors.
However, they aren’t all bad. In fact, some tales depict the black dog as protectors of the mortal realm against the veil. Others have them act as guides for departing spirits or lost souls. And even some appear to guide travelers out of danger.
One of these dogs of lore is the church grim, also known as the Kirk Grim in English, Kyrkogrim in Swedish, and Kirkonavki in Finnish. Church Grims are popular in both English and Scandinavian folklore. Despite its ominous and frightening appearance many believe the Church Grim is an attendant spirit, sent…from somewhere, to oversee a church.
The Church Grim may not be as cute and cuddly as our beloved Greyfriars Bobby, but it does not call forth evil. It is a guardian spirit and some people believe this was because early Christians may have sacrificed animals when a new church was built and bury them on the north side of the land. Why would they do this? Well, it was once assumed by several different religious traditions, including early Christianity, that whoever was the first and/or last being interred in the Church’s cemetery would be forced to serve as its guardian for all the years to come. So that this tough existence wouldn't be granted to some poor soul at random, an animal was sacrificed and buried in the churchyard or on the church grounds. Some believe the church grim is either meant to stop this practice, or is the soul of one of the sacrificed animals.
If you do come across any sort of black dog, perhaps the devil himself, it is said to avert your eyes, change directions, and carry-on respectfully. You should never approach them.
Whether you like the gruesome tales, or the ones about protection there is one thing I can guarantee. The next time you see a black dog at night, you might just find yourself taking a closer look.
The blog image comes from Flickr User Picturepest and is liscensed under Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0).
Thanks to Frances James for this blogstonishing suggestion!