Which culture(s) mentioned vampires first?

Question

Were the Romanians the first people to make stories of vampires or was there any other culture before them that indicated at these undead bloodsuckers?


I'm just curious.

Answer 1

Evil spirits that feed on the living can be found in nearly every culture. The earliest are probably the Edimmu and Rabisu of Sumerian mythology.

The Edimmu was the spirit of a person who had not receieved a proper funeral. They could return to the living world and possess a body (living or dead) in order to feed on the living.

The Rabisu was an evil demon that lived in dark corners and entranceways, waiting for victims to pass by. It sustained itself by sucking the life out of its victims.

The mythology that these creatures inhabited is at least 5,500 years old, and could be over 7,000 years old.

The BBC has a pretty good page on vampire legend from around the world. Check out the link below.

Answer 2

If you take a long look back into history vampirism was running rampant throughout though the Romanians put it in the "limelight" so to speak.