The Domovyk

Domovyk – the house spirit, also called khoziain, or master of the house.

Every unit of space, the house, the barn and, outside the farmstead, the field, the forest, the lake, is seen as having a spirit. The spirit of the house is very important. His name derives from the word for house and has the same root as found in the English word “domicile.”

The domovyk or house spirit is seen as the guardian of the house. He makes sure that everything is in order. If all of the people living in the house behave well, keep the house neat and tidy, obey all religious holidays, keep the lamp in front of the icons lit, and so on, then the domovyk is very helpful. He can help women with their spinning or weaving. He will pet and groom the livestock. If the people living in the house do not behave well, the domovyk becomes unhappy and will throw things such as dishes and cutlery and make a racket at night.

The appearance of the domovyk is semi-human. He is said to be of human form. He stands on two legs, but he is hairy, covered with fur all over except on the palms of his hands. Many people say that he has pointy ears and round eyes.

The behavior of the domovyk is also semi-human. He lives in the house, but he does not sleep in the main room, the way the family does. Rather, his place is in or near the stove on the kitchen or cooking side. He sleeps during the day and is awake at night. While cakes are special treats for people, his special treat is bread. He is male, but he likes women’s work, such as cooking and weaving.

The domovyk is very much involved in the life of the household and he will visit people at night to warn them of impending danger or misfortune. The visit of the domovyk is like a nightmare experience. The person can see a frightening figure by the door or in the corner of the room. Sometimes the person feels pressure, first on the legs, then on the stomach, then on the chest. In the video, there is a clip of Nadia describing how, one night, she saw the domovyk.

When people move, they try to take their domovyk with them, especially if he has been a good domovyk and the family’s relations with him have been good. To take the domovyk along, the family leaves a suitcase or a box empty and invites the domovyk to get in. Once they move into the new house, they ask the domovyk to come out and join them and set out treats such as food and drink.