Banshee
/ˈbæn.ʃiː/noun
In Irish folklore, a female spirit whose wailing warns of an impending death in a family.
Did you know?The word comes from Irish folklore, where the bean sídhe was a supernatural woman tied to the sídhe, the fairy mounds believed to be entrances to the otherworld.
Etymological Timeline
Old Irish
Irish
ben síde
“woman of the fairy mound / woman of the sidhe”
Middle Irish
Irish
bean sídhe
“woman of the fairy mound, a supernatural female spirit”
18th Century
English
banshee
“an Irish fairy woman believed to wail as a death omen”
19th Century
English
banshee
“a wailing female spirit in Irish legend and English usage”
Modern English
English
banshee
“a supernatural woman whose cry foretells death”