Yeren

Also called the wildman or Chinese wildman, the yeren is an apelike creature that has been reported in China since ancient times. It is also mentioned in Chinese folklore. The precise descriptions of the yeren vary. Some people say that the creature walks on two legs and looks somewhat like a 6-foot-tall (1.8m) man covered in thick but short brown hair (similar to a yeti), but others say it is a four-legged ape-man with long red hair. A similar Chinese apeman, the xing-xing, is described in much the same way, though it is said to be a bit smaller than a human. Cryptozoologists suspect that both creatures might be an undiscovered species of ape related to the orangutan, perhaps existing since prehistoric times.

SEE ALSO:

• Yeti
• Abominable Snowman
• Bigfoot

SOURCE:

The Greenhaven Encyclopedia of Paranormal Phenomena – written by Patricia D. Netzley © 2006 Gale, a part of Cengage Learning