Back in 2018, illustrator Rob Cham proposed the hashtag #Maynananggal--a combination of the words May and Manananggal, a vampire-like Filipino mythical creature who can divide her body in half. He said it could be a thing since we have a worldwide trend called #MerMay (Mermaid and May). The hashtag instantly clicked sooner than expected and artists started to post their work online, particularly on Twitter.

Artists instantly uploaded artworks with different themes--from the most serious to the most relatable. This year, we found masterpieces that can pique interest, and maybe you can draw inspiration from them, too!

We know manananggal can divide herself into two, but what if they can cut their bodies in more than just two parts?

Why two when you can do three #Maynananggal#penanggalanpic.twitter.com/08sknHEaAa

— kolo Commissions Open (@kolokomiks) May 12, 2020

And what if we just merge #MerMay and #Maynananggal in one picture? No need to wonder, here are good visualizations.

clear skies, still waters #maynananggal#mermaypic.twitter.com/jTLmsEOtNS

— nic #OUSTDU30 #DEFENDPRESSFREEDOM (@crowtective) May 12, 2020

i was thinking,,, what if they got together #mermay#Maynananggalpic.twitter.com/aYxnidO83C

— seyaa (@eyavvie) May 12, 2020

Or maybe you can just make a mermaid-manananggal hybrid like what this artist did.

since two things are happening the #Maynananggal and #mermay i decided to mix things up. Here you see a half-fish and instead of bat wings, i decided to put mermaid tails
should have put more details to it but yee#artphpic.twitter.com/S3miWeCa8p

— Trash Head (@BoyInsomniatic) May 12, 2020

There are times when we want to rest but we also need to work, even when it’s from home. A nocturnal WFH manananggal is someone we can relate to.

½ nocturnal#maynananggal#artphpic.twitter.com/1TQ57srX5n

— gianope (@gianopes) May 9, 2020

The pandemic also calls for a woke mananaggal for the right reasons. Which reminds us, #MassTestingNow.

wanted 2 join the #maynananggal so here's a sketch pic.twitter.com/7OxU0KhRf9

— maria bianca (@mariapotatoo) May 13, 2020

It’s summer and we’re stuck at home trying to beat the heat. This artist’s work has the same problem.

ang inet pota #Maynananggal#artphpic.twitter.com/MC3eecz4IR

— FranDan (@franceskills) May 13, 2020

Workout? Let your legs do the running and your upper half do the eating. We envy the manananggal that gets the best of both worlds.

"mag excercise tayo tuwing umaga"

another #Maynananggal piece!!! #artphpic.twitter.com/z4bQYI9RST

— bivalvia!! (@bivalviart) May 13, 2020

Filipino creativity has no bounds and we long to see other works of our artists. We expect to see more of #Maynananggal until this month ends!