The wild man (German: Wilder Mann, der Wilde Mann), wild man of the woods is a mythical figure and motif resembling a hairy human that appears in the art and literature of medieval Europe. Generally considered large-statured race of humans who are hairy all over its body, living in the wilderness or woodlands. They are often thought to be covered with moss, or wear green or vegetative clothing, and iconically wield a club or hold an uprooted tree as a staff. They also occur in female versions as wild women.
The Wilde Mann (Middle High German: wilde man) is attested in Middle High German literature, particularly German heroic epics while the female Wilde Weib (wildez wîp) figures in the Arthurian works, typically appear as adversaries. These beings are also called by names meaning "wood men" and in older forms of the language, "wood wife". In Middle English a corresponding term for the wild man is woodwose or wodewose.