The legend of the sundel bolong mainly originated from the Javanese mythology. In Javanese culture, sundel is a slang to address people who were in the prostitution business, while bolong means "hole". So sundel bolong roughly translates to "A prostitute with a hole on her back". The legend tells a tale about a beautiful lady who was forced into the prostitution businesses, and was later found dead, with a hole in her back (this is the reason why the hole was created in her back), which is hidden from men by her long black hair.
It is unknown what the cause of death of sundel bolong was. Some stories tell that she died after getting raped, because her back was stabbed multiple times with a butcher knife, which caused her vengeful spirit come back to life to curse all men and seek revenge from the person who is believed to be responsible for her demise. Still others believed that she died while giving birth in her grave, with a strange phenomenon that caused the baby to come out of her back, followed by the death of her baby. Therefore, her curious spirit roams the earth desperately looking for her lost baby.
Sundel bolong appears as a lady in white with a hole on her back. She has very bright red eyes and a worn out, gaunt face. She dons a white gown with the extremities of her robes tattered. Her long, white hair reaches down to her knees. Her movements are very sluggish and her voice is very hoarse.
