Extant sources indicate that, with the exception of the worship offemale ancestors by their descendants, before the third century cults tofemale ghosts were rare. But during the Six Dynasties period (i.e. 3rd-6thcentury) we can find at least four cases of cults to female ghosts (i.e.Ting-ku, Mei-ku , Tzu-ku and Chiang-ku ) in thechih-kvai sources. Most of the devotees of these four female ghostslived in the Chiang-nan area. Similarly, all the authors who recordedtales about these cults were born, grew up and took official posts in thesame area, especially the capital city at Chien-k'ang (modern Nankingll. The supporters of these cults seem to have belonged to various socialstrata, and include a number of officials, but most of them seem to havebeen common people. These four female ghosts were not listed in the ssu-fien )TESS-(the national sacrificial canon), and were regarded as "maliciousghosts" (li-kuei Wi) in medieval China. After death they appeared andmanifested magical powers, as a result of which, they received attentionand sacrifice. Shrines and images were created for them, and shamans (wuZE) acted as media between these ghosts and their followers. These cultswere probably related to a new trend of the shamanic cult (i.e. the cult of malicious ghosts) in the Chiang-nan area during the Six Dynasties period.Tales about these four female ghosts raise interesting questions concerninggender, for the clear and strong demands the ghosts make are often directedat males. The rise of these cults suggests a change in the social role ofwomen during the Six Dynasties period. Stories about female ghosts alsosuggest that the criteria that male scholars used to evaluate women in theSix Dynasties were different from those ofHan scholars.