The Legend of Kuchisake-Onna: Japan’s Slit-Mouthed Woman

If you’re a fan of Japanese urban legends, you may have heard of Kuchisake-Onna, or the slit-mouthed woman. This vengeful spirit roams the night, looking for victims to harm or mutilate by slashing their mouth from ear to ear. In this article, we spoke to urban legends expert Sydney Bermudez to teach you all about this terrifying legend, including who the slit-mouthed woman is, the legends associated with her, and when these legends originated.

The Story of the Slit-Mouthed Woman

Urban legends expert Sydney Bermudez says that Kuchisake-Onna is a slit-mouthed woman from a Japanese urban legend. She was a beautiful woman who had her mouth slashed by a jealous woman or lover. She returned as a vengeful spirit who asks her victims if she’s pretty and kills them regardless of their answer.

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Who is Kuchisake-Onna?

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Kuchisake-Onna is a spirit with a slit mouth from Japanese folklore. Kuchisake-Onna translates to “slit-mouthed woman” in English. According to Japanese urban legends, she is the ghost of a woman who had her mouth mutilated while she was alive. She appears to lone travelers at night and covers her mouth with a surgical mask, fan, or handkerchief to hide the bloody gash. She often carries a sharp weapon, like a knife, scythe, or pair of scissors.^{[1]
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- In most legends, Kuchisake-Onna approaches her victims while covering her mouth and asks them if she’s beautiful. When they answer, she reveals her face. Usually, she kills the person no matter what their answer is. We’ll explain more about the legend in the section below.
Meet the wikiHow Expert

Sydney Bermudez is a horror content creator and urban legends expert who shares paranormal cases, internet mysteries, and psychological horror on social media. She has over 400k followers.

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The Legend of the Slit-Mouthed Woman

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In most legends, Kuchisake-Onna was attacked by a jealous woman. According to Bermudez, Kuchisake-Onna was a very beautiful woman, and many people were jealous of her: “One of the stories is that a woman [who] she worked with was so jealous of her that she decided to cut her mouth open, so she has this really big, stitched smile.”^{[2]
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Sydney Bermudez
Urban Legends Expert

Expert Interview} The story typically takes place during Japan’s Edo period. In some versions, it’s her sister who slits her mouth from ear to ear.
- In another version of the legend, Kuchisake-Onna’s husband was very jealous of her getting attention from both men and women, explains Bermudez. So one day, he decided to take the beauty away from her.^{[3]
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- Sometimes, the husband is a samurai who is frequently away from home, so Kuchisake-Onna gets lonely and begins having affairs with other men. The samurai slices her mouth as punishment.
- In rare instances, stories say her appearance was caused by a botched plastic surgery or dental procedure. In other versions, her mouth is filled with sharp teeth.
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She returned as a vengeful spirit who kills or mutilates people. After her death, Kuchissake-Onna became an onryō, or vengeful spirit. She covers her mouth with a mask or fan and carries a sharp weapon like a knife, scythe, or large pair of scissors. “They say that if you’re walking late at night in Japan, she’ll come up to you and ask you if you think she’s pretty,” says Bermudez.^{[4]
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Sydney Bermudez
Urban Legends Expert

Expert Interview} If you say no, she’ll kill you immediately.
- If you say yes, however, she takes her mask off and asks again. If you say no this time, she kills you, and if you still say yes, she slashes your mouth to look like hers.
- In some versions of the legend, if you answer “yes” to both questions, she’ll leave you alone. In other versions, though, she’ll later sneak into your house and murder you while you sleep.

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Can you survive an encounter with the slit-mouthed woman?

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Yes, it's possible to survive an encounter if you ignore or distract her. Bermudez says in some versions of the story, if you ignore Kuchissake-Onna, she’ll go away.^{[5]
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Sydney Bermudez
Urban Legends Expert

Expert Interview} In other versions, you can say you’re running late, bow, and apologize, and she’ll allow you to pass. Another option is to confuse her by saying her appearance is average. This may give you enough time to run away (although, according to some stories, she also possesses supernatural strength and could chase after you).
- Still other stories say you can distract her by giving her money or candy or by saying the word “pomade” three times.

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Origins of the Legend

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The Edo period spanned from the 17th to the 19th century, and most versions of the legend claim that the slit-mouthed woman lived during this time. Some say that Kuchisake-Onna attacks during this time were blamed on shape-shifting kitsune playing pranks on young men. However, it’s likely that the legend of the slit-mouthed woman as we know it today has more modern origins.
In 1979, many Japanese publications began reporting on rumors that a slit-mouthed woman wearing a surgical mask had been chasing children. These were, of course, just scary stories the children told each other, but people believed the rumors and panicked. Many schools organized group walks to ensure the children had an adult escorting them home, and police increased patrols.^{[6]
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The Slit-Mouthed Woman in Pop Culture

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The slit-mouthed woman has appeared in movies, manga, and games. Kuchisake-Onna is an extremely popular urban legend in Japan, so it’s no surprise she’s been featured in a ton of media. If you want to see more of the slit-mouthed woman, check out the following:
- Even if You Slit Your Mouth: A manga by Akari Kajimoto.
- Kuchisake-Onna: A 1996 live-action short film directed by Teruyoshi Ishii
- Carved: The Slit-Mouthed Woman: A 2007 film directed by Koji Shiraishi
- Carved 2: The Scissors Massacre: The 2008 sequel to Carved.
- The Slit-Mouthed Woman 0: The Beginning: The 2008 prequel to Carved.
- World of Horror: A video game featuring an antagonist called Scissor Woman, inspired by Kuchisake-Onna
- The character also appears or is mentioned in Studio Ghibli’s Pom Poko, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dandadan, DC’s Constantine, and the game Ghostwire: Tokyo.

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Is Kuchisake-Onna real?

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Though people took the rumors of the slit-mouthed woman seriously in 1979, most people agree that the slit-mouthed woman is nothing but an urban legend. Some people may claim to have seen her, but there is no definitive proof.

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More Urban Legends & Myths

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Can’t get enough scary stories? You’re in luck! There are plenty of other wikiHow articles about Japanese urban legends, yokai, and folktales, as well as articles about creepy urban legends in general. Check out these articles to learn more: