Skinwalker lore: The real and the Supernatural mythology
The skinwalker was initially mentioned in Supernatural in the second episode. However, it didn’t show up until Season 6 and here’s a look at the lore.
Way back in the pilot episode of Supernatural, the skinwalker was mentioned. It was brought up against over the years but never actually introduced on the screen until Season 6. It’s time to look at the show lore for the creature and compare it against the real mythology.
Skinwalker lore in Supernatural
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While briefly mentioned in passing in the second episode and then again in “Skin,” as the possible monster of the week, the show didn’t introduce the creature until Season 6. We quickly learned more, because Dean said that he needed a quick brief on the lore having never seen the creature in so long.
A cousin of a werewolf, the creature is able to turn at will and into an animal, with the show using a canine on the show but they can turn into any animal. The similarities to the werewolf are in the killing of it. Silver bullets to the chest work.
Also like werewolves, and some other creatures, the skinwalkers like to live in packs. They’ll follow the orders of the Pack Leader and will stick together in a group where possible. This is different to many other monsters that the Winchesters have come across, such as shapeshifters, wendigos, and rugarus.
When the creature is killed in canine form, it will turn back into human form. The “disease” is passed on through a bite, similarly to a werewolf.
But what about the real skinwalker lore? This is where there are many more differences to the werewolf lore.
Real mythology surrounding skinwalkers
In real lore, skinwalkers were traditionally witches in the Navajo (a Native American tribe) culture, according to The Line-Up. They used to be humans and would transform into any type of animal or person. It seems this is where some of the shifter lore in Supernatural could have come from — shifters could “steal” anyone’s face.
What makes skinwalkers different is that they can look into a person’s eyes and start controlling them. However, they are usually seen as wolves, coyotes, or foxes. They can sometimes opt for the crow, owl, or eagle form.
Because the Navajo people don’t like talking about skinwalkers to those outside of their culture (due to superstition of the repercussions), there are a lot of mixed views on how skinwalkers build their packs and how to kill them. One of the theories on killing them is by using their real human name against them, according to Thought Catalog.
When it comes to the real and show lore, it’s clear that skinwalker lore has been used for various other creatures. At the same time, other creatures have helped develop the show’s skinwalker lore to make it something unique.
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What do you love about Supernatural’s skinwalker lore? What did you already know about the real mythology? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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