Orang Bunian are fairies similar to elves in Malay folklore.
Description
Orang bunian are invisible but those who were lucly enough to saw them and survive say they are alike human beings. It is not unknown for them to intermarry with humans.
They can be heard in the forest, whistling sounds like 'ghaib' or 'halimunan'.
Behavior
Orang Bunian are said to exist in large communities, mimicking human social structures, with families and clans. They inhabit the deep forests, far from human contact, but some solitary individuals are also known to live near human communities, and are even said to share the same houses as human families.
Powers
Orang bunian possess great supernatural powers, and have been known to befriend and assist humans, in particular pawangs or bomohs (malay shamans). Orang bunian are known to abduct human children, and are often blamed for leading people astray in the deep forest. Some hauntings are attributed to orang bunian.
Orang bunian live far longer than human beings (or in a different time). Stories are recounted of men who married orang bunian, but pining for their families they left behind, decided to leave the orang bunian. Upon their return to human society, they found that everyone they once knew has died, and that many years have passed- similar to the tales of Rip Van Winkle and of the Elves of Germanic and Celtic folklore.