Found in the folklore of the Shetland Islands of Scotland, is the wulver, which is described as being a humanoid being with a wolf’s head and covered in short brown fur all over. Wulvers were never human to begin with and are a type of spirit being or fairy.

Wulvers dig their homes in the side of a steep knowe (a knoll or hill). The most famous wulver is known for fishing out on a rock in the water known as “Wulver’s Stane.” It was not uncommon for the wulver to leave a few fish on the window sill of a poor family’s home. The last reported sighting of a wulver was in the early 20th century.

Liminal Beings

The ancient Celts believed the wulver to be evolved or descended from wolves and that the wulver represented a transitional stage between wolf and man.

Werewolves!

Nope.

A few websites catering to the lore and study of werewolves have tried to categorize wulvers as a type of lycanthrope or werewolf. The problem with this is that werewolves are shape-shifters and the wulver is most definitely not.

Thanks to folklore and the likes of Universal Studios’ The Wolfman, werewolves are known for a reputation of being mindlessly violent monsters. The wulver on the other hand is known for keeping to itself and is peaceful when left alone. Wulvers are also known for being kind-hearted and guiding lost travelers back to their villages.

Possible Reality Behind The Myth

There is a medical condition known as hypertrichosis in which there is an excessive amount of hair growing all over the body.

It’s possible that sightings of the Wulver may have been those born with this condition given the isolation of the Shetland Islands centuries ago would lead to families marrying into each other and passing on genes that cause this genetic condition.

This would likely explain too a wulver’s kind-heartedness as a person trying to reach out to those who shunned and cast them out due to their appearance through no fault of their own other then the quirk of genetics.