[German version]

(Γελλώ; Gellṓ) designates the spirit of a girl who died single, which kills unmarried or pregnant women and small children; it is first mentioned in Sappho (fr. 178 L.P. = 168 V.) [1]; G. is also the name of a mythological creature with these characteristics (Suda s.v.). It was still feared in the Byzantine period (Johannes Damascenus Perì Stryngôn, PG 94, 1904 C; Psellos Dihḗgesis perì Gellṓs [2]), something that has survived to the present day in rural Greece [3]. G. has often been associated with  Lamia and  Mormo, two similar spirits, and the strix. Rites to fend off G…