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BAT : Vampire bats live in dark places such as caves or hollwo trees in many parts of central and outh America. They were named after the bloodsucking vampires of legend as they are nocturnal creatures and live on the blood of other animals. Vampires bats rarely attack humans but as their bites are fairly painless they can often drink the blood of a sleeping nimal without it realizing. BRUXAS : A female vampire from portugal who flew out at night in the form of a bird. She drank the blood of her own children and terified lonely travllers. DHAMPIR : According to ancient Transylvanian legends the son of a vampire, known as a dhampir, was the only person who could see or kill the invisible vampire. Or another name for Dhampir is Blade. DRACUL : This is the Romanian word for devil or dragon. Vlad the Impaler was called Dracula because his father's name was Dracul and putting an 'a' on the end of a Romanian word makes it mean 'son of'. 'Dracula', therefore, actually means 'Son of the Devil'. FAMILIAR : The pet of a witch, kept specially to help her in magical rituals. The most usual kind of animal familiar was a cat. there are stories of witches using toads, blackbirds and almost every other kind of small animal, and even, sometimes, demons. GARLIC : A relative of the onion plant that is often used for seasoning food. It has also been used in many different ways as a protection against evil spirits, including vampires. An ancient Islamic legend says that garlic sprange up on the spot where Satan first put his foot after being expelling from paradise. HARPIES : These female monsters were winged hags said to haunt the ancient Greeks. they carried living people away to hell and devoured shipwrecked sailors. ITZPAPALOTL : A frightening Aztec demon who was a cross between a woman and a butterfly. Stone knives surrounded her wings and her tongue itself was a knife. She also had a magic cloak which she used to change himself into a harmless-looking butterfly. JARACACA : An evil Brazillian vampire in the form of a snake. It was said to steal a mother's milk while she was feeding her child. At the same time the Jaracaca would put its tail in the mouth of the child. JIGAR-KHOR : This was one of the many blood-drinking witches and spirits that were said to haut the jungle of India. Jigar-khors were female spirits that were supposed to be able to steal their vicitms' livers simply by staring at them while reciting a magic spell. KELPIE : A Scottish demon in the shape of a horse. Anyone who found a Kelpie lurking by the bank of a river and tried to ride it across the water found it impossible to get off again. the Kelpie always drowned its victims before eating them. LAMIA : A vampire-like demon with the ace of a beautiful woman but the body of a snake. According to greek legends, Lamia fattened up young men before she devoured them. MANDRAKE : This small plant was thought to have evil powers, as it was said to grow beneath the gallows where it could be nourished by the flesh and blood of the criminal hanging above. It was dangerous to pick, as the plant let out a scream when pulled from the groud that killed anyone who heard it. MARA : A Danish vampire that was a beautiful woman during the day-but who sucked the blood from young men at night. Anyone who fell in love with her would suffer terrible feelings of suffocation and strangling, but she could be frightened away by a knife. NEED-FIRES : Fires that were supposed to be able to drive away evil spirits. They were lit during catastrophies of many kinds throughout the Middle Ages and especially at times of plague. need-fires had to be started at night, either by rubbing two pieces of wood together or else with a lighted twig from another need-fire. OWENGAS : Vampires from Guinea in Northern Africa that were the bad spirits of evil ancestors or of dead magicans in a physical form. Belief in owengas led to the pratice of clearing up all spilt blood and destroying and blood-stained objects in order to deprive them of their food. SATAN : According to the jewish and Christian traditions, Satan was a senior angel who lead a revolt against God. For his punishment, he was sent to hell, from where he directs a battle against all that is good in the world. STRIGES : These Greek demons flew about at night as birds and snatched sleeping children from their cradels to eat thier flesh and drink their blood. THAYE TASE : One type of Burmese demon known generally as tases. The appear especiallu when there is an epidemic of cholera or smallpox and haunt those who are about to did, by giggling and laughing at their victim's pain. Like vampires, they are said to be the souls of people who have died a violent death. VAMPIRE : The word probably comes from an old Turkish work 'oupir', meaning 'bloodsucker'. Apart from the ordinary vampire such as Arnold Paole and the fictional Count Dracula, there is about 19 different vampires, but there maybe even more. VRYKOLAKAS : In Greek vampire legends, this ugly creature is the corpse of an evil man brought to life by a devil. The vrykolakas sat on its sleeping victims and killed them by suffocation. WILLS-O'-THE-WISP : Glowing light that can sometimes be seen at night hovering above rotting vegetation. When plants decay they can give off a gas that burns of its own accord. Before they were properly understood, these lights were the subject of many strange superstitions. According to one old Chinese legend, Wills-o'-the'wisp were the vampire-like evil spirits that grew out of spilt blood, or out of the rotting wood of coffins. They were said to make people ill and to ruin crops by burning the ears of corn. Like vampires, they only came out at night. WOLF : Once common throughout Europe and North America, this animal that has been inspired so many legends is now limited to remote areas. The last wilf wolves in Britain were killed in the eighteenth century. Although they kill other animals, it is very rare for wolves to attack humans. ZOTZ : A South American demon in the legends of the Mayan people. The Zotz was an ugly winged creature with the head of a dog. It lived in a part of hell and drank the blood of anyone who passed through its territory. | ||||||||||||||||
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Back to the Beginning What is a vampire? The Undead & The Ways of the Vampire Vlad The Impaler & Elizabeth of Bathory Preventing Vampires, Gaurding the house/coffin from Vampires & Introduction of the Werewolf, European Werewolves & A French wolf-boy Werewolf in Large Depth Werewolf in America, The Nootka wolf cults & The Navaho wolf-men Introducing Demons, Medieval Demons & | ||||||||||||||||
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