Jué yuán (玃猿) (in Chinese "Jué yuán", in Japanese "Kakuen") is a legendary animal in the legends of China. They are also called Jué (玃) (in Japanese "kaku"), Jué fù (玃父), Jiā (猳), Jiā guó (猳國) (in Japanese "kakoku" カ国 ), and mǎ huà (馬化) (in Japanese "baka"). They are similar to monkeys, and thus possess a characteristic of carrying away human females and violating them.
Baku (獏 or 貘) are Japanese supernatural beings that are said to devour nightmares. According to legend, they were created by the spare pieces that were left over when the gods finished creating all other animals. They have a long history in Japanese folklore and art, and more recently have appeared in manga and anime.
The Japanese term baku has two current meanings, referring to both the traditional dream-devouring creature and to the Malayan tapir. In recent years, there have been changes in how the baku is depicted.
