Whether you have had a brush with the supernatural yourself, or have just read enough terrifying tales to make you a believer, the idea of coming face-to-face with a ghost is enough to send a shiver down your spine. While there may be everyday ghosts that roam the halls of old ruins, or frequent your local pub, the legends of certain ghosts are embedded in the minds of the people whose hometown these souls supposedly haunt… and the majority of them seem to be women.
The idea of coming face-to-face with a ghost is enough to send a shiver down your spine
To give you an idea of the ghosts you may encounter when visiting another country, experts at language-learning app Babbel (babbel.com) have shared a list of five iconic female ghosts from around the world…
Canada - The Headless Nun
According to legend, the Headless Nun was a resident of French Fort Cove in the 18th Century. She was given the name Sister Mary Inconnue (which means ‘unknown’ in French), and there are various accounts of why she was beheaded. One claim is that she was killed by two sailors who were looking for the location of hidden treasure, while others believe she was murdered by a madman who hid her head in the woods. She allegedly now haunts the area in search of her lost head.
Switzerland - The White Woman of Belchen Tunnel
A more modern ghost tale, reports of The White Woman of Belchen Tunnel, in the Swiss part of Basel, started to circulate at the end of the 1980s. The woman began to appear to motorists in, or around, the tunnel, and sightings were even reported in local tabloid “Blick”.
USA - The Ghost of Olive Thomas
Olive Thomas was a silent film actress at the beginning of the 20th century, and the wife of Hollywood royalty Jack Pickford, and is cited as the original flapper after starring in the film of the same name. Her death at just 25 is one of Hollywood’s earliest scandals, after she ‘accidentally’ consumed (and was poisoned by) bichloride of mercury whilst in Paris. Her ghost now haunts Broadway’s New Amsterdam Theatre, where she got her break as a Ziegfeld chorus girl, and is sighted frequently by staff and actors.
Mexico - La Llorona
An urban legend in South America tells the tale of Mexican spirit La Llorona (The Weeping Lady), the ghost of a woman who drowned herself in a river after she discovered that her husband was cheating on her with a younger woman. The woman cries out in the river looking for the children she left behind, and living children are told the story by their parents as a cautionary tale, as she is said to kidnap wandering children and drown them to replace her own...
Germany - The Ghost of Anna Sydow
Spandau Citadel is a fortress that lies on an island in the capital city of Berlin. Back in the 1500s, Anna Sydow became the mistress of the King of Brandenburg, Joachim II. When he was on his deathbed, the King asked his son, Johann Georg, to ensure that Anna was taken care of. Despite his promise to look after her, once Joachim died, Johann put her in prison in Spandau Citadel. She remained there until she died, and now wanders the galleries there, with numerous members of staff reporting sightings of her.