The Almas is an ape-like cryptid reported from Central Asia. They are said to inhabit the Asian mountain regions of the Pamir and the Caucasus as well as the Mongolian mountain range of the Altai. Sightings of the Almasty date back as early as the 15th Century.
Description[]
This creature has been sighted walking upright just like a human. In fact, it looks more human than a bigfoot-type creature, it is even said to craft clothes and tools. It is said to resemble a living cave-man. Their bodies are covered entirely with thick brown to reddish-brown hair. The facial region remains uncovered, but patches of skin are dark. The skull structure of the Almasty possesses a protruding brow ridge, a slanting forehead, a flat nose, and a large protruding jaw. Their feet are large and their fingers are long, their appendages are completely covered with hair, except for their hands.
"Almas" is a Mongolian word for "wild man". The plural "Almasty" is derived from Russian, while other variations of the name are Almasti, Almaslar, Bnahua, and Ochokochi, which translates as the name for a forest deity in the West Asian regions, such as Azerbaijan and Georgia. Current accounts of the most recent sightings of the Almas locate it near the southern part of Mongolia, along the Altai Mountains and the Tien Shan pass near the northern border of China.
First described in historical records in the 1400s, an "Almas" is not used to refer to one organism, but a community of many. These individuals are described as a subspecies of hominids, the group humans and primates like orangutans, gorillas and chimpanzees belong to. Almasti resemble the appearance and body framework of Neanderthals, another species of hominid, which roamed western Asia, far north Africa, and Europe, and became extinct about 30,000 years ago.
Almasti are bipedal organisms, which can walk upright on two hind legs. The common height range for an Almas is five feet tall, but adults can be as high as six to six and a half feet. Their bodies are covered entirely with thick brown to reddish-brown hair. The facial region remains uncovered, but patches of skin are dark.
The skull structure of the Almas possesses a protruding brow ridge, a slanting forehead, a flat nose, and a large protruding jaw. Their feet are large and their fingers are long, their appendages are completely covered with hair, except for their hands.
Sightings[]
In the 1800s, a man claimed to have domesticated a female Almas named Zana. The creature, after being held within numerous enclosures for many years, was trained to carry out daily tasks such as grinding grain for flour and hauling firewood. Zana, however, never learned to speak, instead using grunts and mutterings. The Almas was very athletic, fond of swimming and apparently had a taste for wine. Zana later mated with a local man and had four children. A tooth sample from one of the children was tested, so they could be real.
Accounts from Russian historian Professor Boris Porchnev in 1964 explained that the Almas appeared to have a cone-shaped skull, and the teeth structures were similar to humans, except that the canines were wider. Porchnev was even reported to have encountered the descendants of the Almasty, which were grouped in families that dwelled in holes in the ground. Porchnev further describes the human-like beings as having excellent swimming and running abilities, a foul odor, and a diet that consists of small mammals, vegetables, and fruits. The Almasty, as nomadic creatures, have traveled beyond the areas of Mongolia in which they were frequently sighted by farmers and villagers. Stories and reports dating from the last fifty years have located the Almas community around the Caucasus mountains near Russia and the Black Sea. Artifacts and evidence of the existence of Almas communities have also been found in the Pamir mountains of Central Asia.
One of the most recent expeditions that aimed to locate the Almas was led by Russian cryptozoologist Dr. Marie-Jeanne Kofman and Frenchman Sylvain Pallix in 1992. Similar to the findings of Porchnev, the data gathered by Kofman describes the Almasty as large hairy creatures, weighing as much as 500 pounds, and they are nocturnal creatures that can run as fast as 40 miles per hour. However, the only solid evidence Kofman was able to collect was hair samples, footprints and droppings.
Various names for the Almasty in the regions where they are sighted are: barmanu from Afghanistan and Pakistan, golub-yavan from Tajikistan, ksy-gyik from Kazakhstan, and mulen from Tungus in Siberia, among others.
Crossbreeding[]
According to Wojciech Grzelak, people from the small village of Yazula in the Altai mountains have Almas DNA, granting them superhuman sight; this phenomenon was talked about on the Polish paranormal podcast Radio Paranormalium.
In Popular Media[]
- There is a search assembled to find the Almas In Russia on Destination Truth. The full episode focuses on the Almas.
- The Almas appears in the comic book Cartoon Network Action Pack #29: Crying Wolf.