thumb|300px|Dullahan, the headless horseman
The Dullahan (Irish: Dubhlachan; dúlachán, ) is a type of legendary creature in Irish folklore. He is depicted as a headless rider on a black horse, or as a coachman, who carries his own head. As it is not widely described in native sources, there is doubt as to whether the Dullahan was originally a part of the Irish oral tradition.
Etymology
Dullahan or Dulachan ( [Duḃlaċan]) referring to "hobgoblin" (generic term; cf. Dullahan described as "unseelie (wicked) fairy"), literally "signifies dark, sullen person", according to the lexicographer Edward O'Reilly. Dulachan and Durrachan are alternative words for this "hobgoblin", and these forms suggest etymological descent from "anger" or "malicious" or "fierce". The original Irish term contains the stem dubh, meaning "black" in Irish.
Dullahan was later glossed as "dark, angry, sullen, fierce or malicious being",