Understanding that the concept of djinn being holdovers from Mesopotamian beliefs and “demonized” by Islam (similar to how ancient deities were also “demonized” by the Catholic Church), are there other cultures and religious structures that recognize spiritual/extraplanar entities such as these that have similar attributes?
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Djinn are present culturally in India, Western Africa, Persia, and are illusively present in Rome as well (the concept of fauns are comparative to the middle-eastern se’irim). You could also say that some of the Persian outlooks on djinn bleed into Celtic lore as well.
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Given the bleed into Celtic, are you aware of any Norse versions?
Throughout my research I haven’t found anything that correlates djinn with Norse folklore. The only reason why djinn tie into Celtic folklore at all is due to the Persians at times equating djinn with fae and even then, there were many occasions where they were seen as separate too.
I forgot to add that the Berbers, Guanches also have djinn concepts within their lore as well (Northern Africa, Canary Islands).
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To your knowledge, does any of the indigenous people of North or South America have a similar construct?
In South America there are some beings within their lore that carry similar traits as djinn but it isn’t enough for them to be classified as such. In North America (as well as most western countries), the only thing djinn that they have is the bastardized version of the book of One Thousand and One Nights.
Appreciate the feedback. I’ve doing a bit of research into Djinn and how (if) they correlate into other entities in other cultures with similar properties.Needed some more insight from others who are a bit closer to the topic.