Sunakake Babaa, the Sand-Throwing Hag, is a yōkai woman approximately 2,800 years old, with one source citing her age as 1,200 in Episode 107 of the third anime adaptation. Her origins lie in Japanese folklore, specifically the Nara and Hyōgo regions, where she was described as an invisible spirit haunting woods near Shinto shrines, throwing sand to frighten passersby. She first appeared as a cameo in Shigeru Mizuki’s manga "A Walk to Hell" (1961) and made her official debut in "The Great Yōkai War". In that storyline, she died fighting Western yōkai—killed by Dracula in the anime version—but later reappeared without explanation, becoming a recurring character. Across adaptations, she serves as a guardian and adviser to Kitarō alongside Medama-Oyaji, often emphasizing her surrogate maternal role. She manages the Yōkai Apartments (or Yōkai Tenement House in later series), enforcing strict rent collection or negotiating alternative payments like rare sands or labor from tenants. Her personality blends grouchiness and quick-temperedness with underlying kindness and a strong sense of justice. She frequently criticizes humans as greedy and dangerous yet shows compassion toward human children and protects yōkai in need. She shares a constant companionship with Konaki-Jijii; their comedic TV performances fuel fan speculation about a romantic or marital relationship, though she once stated she "never cared about romance". Her primary ability involves throwing sand infused with supernatural effects, causing paralysis, flames, or sealing yōkai energy. She also practices yōkai medicine, alchemy, soothsaying, and hypnosis, and can receive telepathic messages through her hair. In the fifth anime, she uses "Sand Link" for long-distance communication. Her combat skills include a powerful slap and enhanced speed. Character development varies: The fourth anime reimagined her backstory, revealing she was once a human woman who became a yōkai after a romance with a fisherman. This version highlighted her motherly traits, including cooking for yōkai tenants and creating a doll resembling Kitarō’s mother. The fifth anime depicted her managing a dilapidated apartment, aspiring to renovate it while collecting sand for medicinal mixtures. Here, her role as a "mother hen" to younger yōkai like Amabie was emphasized, though her witch-doctor duties were reduced. She was also designated the Nara Prefecture representative in the 47 Yōkai Warriors. Her distant relatives include the antagonistic sand yōkai Ekiseru from Central Asia and the German Sandman, though she never encountered the latter. Folklore accounts describe her as formless, with rare eyewitness reports citing unexplained sand clouds or stones.