Cuco is a bogeyman from Latin America. I couldn't find any descriptions of what it looks like, so I just had fun and hope I didn't mess it up too bad.
According to the stories it's not what it looks like that scares people, but what it does. It hides in shadows and on top of houses at night, waiting for naughty children to walk by. Said children are of course kidnapped and eaten.
It also has a female version called Cuca, but they look the same and are impossible to tell apart.
The Cuco is basically, from my understanding, a personalization of the shit that dwells in the dark, and is said to find and eat children who won''t go to bed, or something similar.
Im from Rio, and for as long as I can remember, "Cuca" was a huge crocodile in a dress n stuff that took children to sleep. For some reason this made an excellent lullaby that goes
"Nha nha nenem, que a cuca vem pegar. Mamae foi pra roca e papai for trabalhar"
"Sleep baby, because cuca is coming to get you. Mom went to the country side and dad went out to work"
woow I never knew there was a "cuca" too. Always heard about the Cuco, and it's true it didn't have a physical representation, it was just an amorphous thing.
I'm from Misiones, Argentina. And we have myths about some sort of dwarves or little creatures with powers, that can be playfully annoying (or even dangerous) when people do things they don't like, or just because they feel like it :P
One is the Pombero, is blonde and has a golden stick that attracts disobedient children that go out and play during the "siesta" (when their parents tell them not to) and often plays with them as toys, and when it gets bored, the Pombero would just leave them anywhere, a bit lost in the jungle. The other is the Yasi Yatere, and it's quite ugly haha, he also is mischievous but as the other one, it's not that bad if you leave tobacco or other offerings.
This of course, are stories told for children so they don't get in trouble when parents aren't around.
13 F
Cuca is nice though and saves the children (right? im just guessing,#Ukranianroots)