Meanings
- A gigantic cryptid of Central Africa, said to resemble a bat or flying reptile.
As large as a huge eagle, local tribesmen called it an Olitiau.
1998, Robert Nicholson, Great Mysteries5 more examples
"What kind of a bat is it," I asked, "that has wings like this (opening my arms) and is all black?" "Olitiau!" somebody almost screamed, and there was a hurried conference in the Assumbo tongue.
1943, Clifton Fadiman, Sinclair Lewis, Carl Van Doren, The Three Readers...the kongamato like the olitiau is in the habit of diving at men crossing its territory — perhaps trying to drive them away...
1958, Bernard Heuvelmans, On the tracks of unknown animalsSeveral authorities have boldly attempted to equate the olitiau with a pterodactyl, in preference to a giant bat.
2003, Karl Shuker, The beasts that hide from man: seeking the world's last undiscovered animalsKnown locally as the olitiau, the creature that buzzed Dr. Sanderson was similar to dozens of other strange birds said to still inhabit remote corners of Africa.
2006, E. Randall Floyd, The world's 100 greatest mysteriesIn his youth, Sanderson, a Scot, was an explorer who mounted expeditions into some of the world's most isolated jungles, recording numerous thus-far unknown creatures — most notably, the gigantic bat-like creature known as the Olitiau, which attacked his party while he was exploring in the Assumbo Mountains of Cameroon.
2008, Rory Storm, Monster Hunt: The Guide to Cryptozoology
Origin
Probably a fusion of the Ipulo words ole and ntya.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
olitiau. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/olitiau
“olitiau.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/olitiau. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “olitiau,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/olitiau.
Source: olitiau on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.