The Banshee, Mourning Spirit of the Irish

The Banshee (or "bean-shide" if you know Gaelic) is a female fairy of sorts, of Irish decent, that comes to warn others of Irish decent of their impending death. According to Celtic lore, the Banshee could only be seen at night in one of the forms of the Goddess; a beautiful young woman, a proper matron or a shriveled old hag.

Tradition states that the Banshee could visit and cry only for members of the five major Irish clans, that being the O'Connors, the O'Gradys, the O'Briens, the O'Neils and the Kavenaughs. Since those days, centuries of interbreeding between those clans has made the Banshee and her wailing cry fair game for anyone with even a bit of Irish in their blood.

The Banshee usually appears as hooded figure outside a person's window and her cry is so shrill it can shatter glass. Occasionally, there have been reports of the Banshee appearing in human form to bring predictions of doom to members of a royal Irish family. Such was the case with King James I of Scotland. In 1437 , He was approached by an Irish Banshee in the form of a normal human woman who told him of his murder (and also told him that the Earl of Atholl was at the root of the deed).
Everything she said turned out to be true, but this was not a surprise to the King's court. In those days, the Irish respected the cry of the Banshee.

Keep in mind, a Banshee can warn of the death of a relative or a loved one to come as well, not just of the person who hears the cry. I have heard people in my own family say they have heard the Banshee cry. I am of Celtic descent being Scotts and Irish. I believe them. Have you ever had that feeling when you knew death was near? You could just feel that someone near you was going to die? That's a bit of "the site". That doesn't mean you are a Banshee, but it does mean that on a dark and quiet night you might hear one crying for you.