The Dullahan,From Fairy to Undead Tracing the Cultural Hybridization of Irish Folklore in Japanese Games and Their Paratexts

Abstract

This study investigates how the Irish Dullahan—a headless fairy death messenger—came to be recast as an undead monster in Japanese popular culture. Contrary to the trend of Western tabletop role-playing games playing a central role in similar Japanese reinventions, our analysis reveals that the undead Dullahan was an exception. Instead, we demonstrate how it was shaped by the convergence of foreign influences during the 1980s and 1990s, with a central role played by the Japanese Celtic boom in that period. By examining early video games, fantasy dictionaries, and other paratexts, we highlight how cultural brokers (e.g., game artists and editors) actively reshaped imported folklore. Our findings contribute to broader discussions on cultural hybridization and underscore how games and related media powerfully influence the global perception of folkloric motifs across the broader mediascape.