ディヴ

ディヴ（Persian: Dīv: دیو）とは、中東の伝承の中の怪物である。ディヴの多くはペルシャ神話に由来し、イスラム教と融合して、アルメニア、トルコ、アルバニアなどの周辺文化に広がった。イスラム教の正典には明記されていないが、他の超自然的な生き物と同じように、多くのイスラム教徒にその存在が受け入れられてきていた。

They are described as having a body like that of a human, only of gigantic size, with two horns upon their heads and teeth like the tusks of a boar. Powerful, cruel and cold-hearted they have a particular relish for the taste of human flesh. Some use only primitive weapons, such as stones: others, more sophisticated, are equipped like warriors, wearing armour and using weapons of metal. Despite their uncouth appearance - and in addition to their great physical strength - many are also masters of sorcery, capable of overcoming their enemies by magic and afflicting them with nightmares.

Their origin is disputed, although it may lie in the Vedic deities (devas) who were later demonized in Persian religion (see daeva). In Ferdowsi's tenth-century Shahnameh, they are already the evil entities endowed with roughly human shape and supernatural powers familiar from later folklore, in which the divs are described as ugly demons with supernatural strength and power, who, nonetheless, may sometimes be subdued and forced to do the bidding of a sorcerer.