The Origins of Vampires

Welcome to Celebrate Poe - Episode 347 - The Origins of Vampires -

Today I would like to delve into what is believed to be the beginnings of the vampire myth. So this specific episode will NOT be dealing with Dracula or Nosferatu, or any of the relatively recent names that we associate with vampires, and not specifically with Edgar Allan Poe - except in passing - although this podcast will heavily delve in the future into Poe's vampiric stories that deal the transfer of energy.

Now the origins of vampire myths are deeply rooted in ancient folklore and cultural beliefs, evolving over millennia into the modern concept of vampires.

Thank you for experiencing Celebrate Poe.

Transcript

Welcome to Celebrate Poe - Episode 347 - The Origins of Vampires -

Today I would like to delve into what is believed to be the beginnings of the vampire myth. So this specific episode will be talking about Dracula or Nosferatu, or any of the relatively recent names that we associate with vampires today, and not specifically with Edgar Allan Poe - except in passing - although this podcast will delve in the future into his vampiric stories that deal the transfer of energy.

Now the origins of vampire myths are deeply rooted in ancient folklore and cultural beliefs, evolving over millennia into the modern concept of vampires.

The earliest known vampire-like creatures appeared in Mesopotamian mythology, with spirits that were restless souls of those denied proper burial rites, believed to haunt the living, drain their life force, and spread death and disease.

Greek and Roman folklore included tales of blood-drinking spirits or demons. For example, the Empusa and Lamia were female entities that attacked people in their sleep and consumed their blood or flesh.

In pre-Christian Ireland, the legend of the Abhartach told of an evil sorcerer who rose from the grave to drink the blood of his subjects. This figure is sometimes considered a precursor to modern vampire lore.

The vampire myth as we recognize it today largely originates from Slavic traditions. In these cultures, vampires were often described as revenants—undead beings who returned to harm the living. Causes of vampirism included improper burial rituals, untimely deaths, or malevolent spirits possessing corpses. These vampires were often blamed for spreading disease.

And here let me pause to look at the word revenant - a few years ago there was a movie with Leonardo DiCaprio called The Revenant - personally I thought it was rather tedious - not that a big a deal.  But maybe there were somehow trying to get across the point that DiCaprio’s character was seen as a revenant or something like it - or one of the undead - or something like it - someone who would not die - I don’t know - but getting back to the history of bone-fide vampires.

It might be surprising to learn that Medieval Europe—disparaged as the Dark Ages—did not know the concept of the blood-drinking creatures of the night. The legendary vampire emerged more recently, in fact. The vampire postdates witch-hunts, werewolf trials, and even the demon-haunted Puritans. 

The concept of the vampire as an undead creature inflicting harm originated in Eastern Europe, specifically in Bulgaria, a thousand years ago. Make no mistake, this was a legend isolated among the Slavic people. It was not widespread or well-known. As a word, vampire translates roughly as “ghost monster,” and that label gives insight about these early beliefs. 

Slavic vampires were non-corporeal (lacking a physical body), having more in common with a poltergeist. The vampire wrought havoc, often as a spreader of disease in a village, but the vampire did not create other vampires with its bite, and it didn’t consume blood. This early vampire was no suave creature in evening dress. It was a ghost-like being that operated in the same arenas as destructive rats.  And you can see the logic behind a people who are experiencing the spread of a plague or disease and use a vampire as a way of explaining the illness.

During the 17th and 18th centuries in Southeastern Europe, belief in vampires led to mass hysteria. Reports of "vampire epidemics" included cases where exhumed bodies were staked or burned due to suspicions they were preying on the living.

The term "vampire" (from Serbian vampir) first appeared in written form in Eastern Europe during the early 18th century. It was later adopted into English in 1732 following reports of vampire incidents in Eastern Europe.

Many characteristics associated with vampires—such as sensitivity to sunlight, wasting diseases, or aversion to garlic—may have been inspired by medical conditions like porphyria, rabies, or tuberculosis.  And misunderstandings about decomposition (e.g., bloated corpses or blood at the mouth) also fueled vampire beliefs5.
Vampire myths originated from ancient beliefs about restless spirits and evolved through cultural exchanges, medical misunderstandings, and literary imagination into the iconic figure we recognize today.

Eventually, the legend of vampires spread across different cultures through a combination of oral traditions, historical events, and cultural exchanges.

To start with, vampire myths were deeply rooted in Slavic folklore, where they were often associated with restless spirits or undead beings. These stories were passed down orally in peasant communities, where supernatural explanations were used to address phenomena such as disease or untimely deaths. Rituals to prevent vampirism, such as staking corpses or burning bodies, were common in rural villages.

In the 18th century, vampire hysteria swept through Eastern Europe, particularly in regions like Serbia and Transylvania. Reports of suspected vampire attacks led to exhumations and public executions of supposed vampires. 

Occupations and military campaigns also facilitated the spread of vampire legends. For example, German-speaking soldiers from the Holy Roman Empire encountered Slavic vampire myths during their control of Hungary in the late 17th century. They carried these stories back to cosmopolitan centers such as Vienna and Berlin, from where they reached Western Europe.

The vampire legend entered Western Europe through translations of Eastern European folklore during the Enlightenment period. Philosophers like Voltaire and Rousseau discussed these tales, further popularizing them.

And the 19th-century Gothic movement transformed vampires into literary figures. Vampire legends often adapted to reflect societal concerns or values.  In Eastern Europe, vampires symbolized fears of disease or improper burial practices. In Southeast Asia, vampiric beings reflected fears surrounding childbirth and morality. In Western literature, vampires became symbols of deviance, sexuality, and immortality.

Now, The Black Plague (1347–1351) played a significant role in shaping and amplifying vampire myths in Europe, as the catastrophic pandemic created fertile ground for superstitions and folklore. The societal upheaval, mysterious symptoms of the disease, and lack of scientific understanding contributed to the association between the plague and vampirism.

Victims of the plague often exhibited symptoms such as coughing up blood. These bloody discharges were sometimes interpreted as signs of vampiric feeding, especially when corpses were exhumed and found with blood around their mouths. The rapid decomposition of bodies during the plague could lead to bloating, which gave corpses a "fresh" appearance. This was misunderstood as evidence that the dead were rising from their graves to feed on the living.

And In an attempt to prevent the spread of disease or suspected vampirism, people adopted unusual burial practices. For example, corpses suspected of being vampires were buried with stones in their mouths or stakes through their hearts to prevent them from "rising" again.

In Venice, archaeologists discovered a "plague vampire" buried with an actual brick between her jaws—a precaution taken during an outbreak to stop her from feeding on others. 

The Black Plague created widespread fear and confusion, leading people to seek supernatural explanations for the devastation. Vampires became a convenient symbol for diseases that were poorly understood at the time.
In some cases, individuals who died under mysterious circumstances or exhibited unusual post-mortem conditions were labeled as vampires, further embedding these myths into European folklore. The association between disease and vampirism persisted into later centuries, shaping enduring folklore about bloodsucking undead creatures that symbolized both fear and contagion.


The psychological impact of the plague—marked by death, decay, and societal collapse—fueled a fascination with death and the afterlife. This cultural preoccupation likely contributed to the development and spread of vampire myths - especially in plague-stricken regions.

Stories of vampires gained traction in Eastern Europe, where they were often linked to epidemics and other calamities. These tales eventually influenced Western European perceptions of vampirism.
And the Black Plague's devastating effects on medieval society—combined with its mysterious symptoms, mass deaths, and lack of scientific explanation—helped solidify vampire myths as a way to make sense of an incomprehensible tragedy.

Countries such as Poland, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Croatia became hotspots for vampire folklore. In these areas, the belief in vampires was deeply rooted in local traditions. For example:

In Serbia, famous cases like that of Petar Blagojević (1725) and Arnold Paole (1726) fueled vampire hysteria. These incidents involved exhumations and staking of corpses believed to be causing deaths among villagers.

In Bulgaria, practices such as pinning corpses with iron stakes to prevent their return as vampires were common.

Hungary and Transylvania became synonymous with vampire legends due to their rich folklore and later perceived associations with figures like Vlad the Impaler.

Specifica myths even emerged in Poland that described a type of vampire believed to chew on its burial shroud, a myth likely influenced by observations of decomposing bodies during plague outbreaks.

In Moravia (today the Czech Republic) reports of vampire panics in the early 18th century highlighted widespread fears in this region.

The Black Plague had begun to significantly influence the development of vampire myths. For example, the symptoms of plague victims—such as bleeding from the mouth—may have been interpreted as signs of vampirism. Misunderstandings about decomposition processes (e.g., bloating or blood at the mouth) led people to believe corpses were "undead" and feeding on the living. Superstitions around improper burials or untimely deaths contributed to fears that the dead could return as vampires.

And Vampire myths flourished in rural communities where scientific understanding was limited, and supernatural explanations were used for mysterious deaths. The belief in vampires served as a way to rationalize disease outbreaks and social anxieties during periods of instability and high mortality.

 After the Black Plague, vampire myths emerged prominently in Eastern Europe (e.g., Serbia, Poland), Central Europe (e.g., Moravia), and parts of Southern Europe (e.g., Italy). These legends were closely tied to fears surrounding disease and death, reflecting both cultural superstitions and attempts to explain death and disease.

Transylvania later became almost synonymous with vampire myths due to its rich folklore and later - much later - popularization through literary works like Bram Stoker's Dracula.

You might wonder - why these specific regions?

Well, Southeastern Europe had a long history of Slavic folklore that included beliefs in revenants and undead creatures. These myths were reinforced by oral traditions and local superstitions.

Outbreaks of plague and other diseases often led to superstitious explanations for death. 

For example: Corpses exhibiting post-mortem bloating or blood at the mouth (common effects of decomposition) were interpreted as signs of vampirism.Practices such as staking bodies or the previously mentioned placing of objects in mouths were attempts to prevent the "undead" from rising.

Christian interpretations of vampires as minions of Satan added a moral dimension to these myths, particularly in regions where Christianity was deeply entrenched.

While vampire myths existed across Europe, they were particularly prominent after the Black Plague in Southeastern Europe (e.g., Balkans) and Central Europe due to a combination of cultural traditions, disease outbreaks, and religious influences. These regions not only developed rich vampire folklore but also experienced mass hysteria during events like the 18th-century "vampire controversy," which cemented their association with these legends.

Vampires were believed to be the reanimated corpses of individuals who had died under unusual or violent circumstances, such as suicides or sudden deaths. These individuals were thought to return from the grave to harm the living - in other words, they had an undead nature.

Vampires were often identified through physical signs on their corpses. Bodies believed to belong to vampires were found unusually well-preserved, with fresh skin, nails, or blood around the mouth. These physical anomalies were interpreted as evidence of their undead state.

Vampires were thought to attack people at night, often by strangling them or drinking their blood. Victims would reportedly fall ill and die shortly after being attacked. In some cases, vampires were believed to return to their families or villages to demand food or cause harm.

Vampire legends were often linked to outbreaks of disease, as sudden deaths in a community were attributed to supernatural causes. This belief may have been exacerbated by a lack of understanding of diseases like tuberculosis or plague.

Now when villagers suspected a vampire was causing deaths, they would exhume the body to inspect it for signs of vampirism, such as lack of decomposition or blood at the mouth.

Staking the corpse (often with hawthorn wood) was a common method to neutralize a vampire. Other practices included decapitation, burning the body, or covering it with garlic to prevent its return. Even government officials participated in these rituals during periods of mass hysteria. For example, Austrian representatives documented and sometimes sanctioned exhumations and staking practices in Serbian villages during vampire panics.

Several well-documented cases fueled vampire hysteria:

Petar Blagojević (1725): A Serbian peasant accused of killing nine villagers after his death by either throttling them or drinking their blood. His body was exhumed and staked in front of an Austrian official.

Arnold Paole (1730s): A Serbian soldier whose death was followed by mysterious deaths in his village. His exhumation revealed signs of vampirism, leading to staking and burning rituals.

The belief in vampires persisted despite the Age of Enlightenment's emphasis on rationality. Southeastern Europe, particularly rural areas, remained steeped in superstition due to limited scientific knowledge and strong oral traditions.

Vampires often symbolized societal fears such as disease, death, and cultural upheaval. They served as explanations for unexplained phenomena in times of crisis.

Reports of vampire incidents from Southeastern Europe reached Western Europe through newspapers and scholarly works such as Augustin Calmet's Dissertations on Vampires (1746). These accounts helped popularize vampire lore beyond its regional origins.

In summary, 18th-century Southeastern European beliefs about vampires reflected a mix of folklore, superstition, and attempts to rationalize unexplained deaths or diseases. These beliefs profoundly influenced later literary depictions of vampires and remain an enduring part of Gothic literature and global cultural history.

In the next episode, I want to delve into one of the most influential pieces of vampire literature of all time - and I am not talking about Dracula yet, but a a character from a serial by the name of Varney the Vampire.

Join Celebrate Poe for episode 344 The Feast of Blood
Sources include:  Vampires: A Handbook of History & Lore of the Undead by Agnes Hollyhock, Vampire Forensics: Uncovering the Origins of an Enduring Legend by Mark Collins Jenkins,, In Search of Dracula: The History of Dracula and Vampires by Radu Florescu and Raymond T. McNally, The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead  by J Gordon Melton, and Legends of Blood: The Vampire in History and Myth by Wayne Bartlett and Flavia IdriCHAYno (That last author has a Romanian name and I had to look up the pronunciation)

Thank you for listening to Celebrate Poe.