A vampire hunter or vampire slayer is a fictional occupation in folklore and fiction which specializes in finding

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

s, and sometimes other supernatural creatures. A vampire hunter is usually described as having extensive knowledge of vampires and other monstrous or

undead The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if they were alive. A common example of an undead being is a cadaver, corpse reanimated by supernatural forces, by the application of either the deceased's o ...

creatures, including their powers and weaknesses, and uses this knowledge to effectively combat them. Vampire hunters range in characterization in fiction from sages with more than average knowledge about the

occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...

, to athletes with the skill and ability to confront vampires with traditional or holy weapons often including

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

en stakes and holy water, to

supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

beings themselves who fight vampires with

mystical Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight ...

powers. Many characterizations draw from the

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

and

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

of the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. A well-known and influential archetypal vampire hunter is Professor Abraham Van Helsing, a character in Bram Stoker's 1897 horror novel '' Dracula'', a foundational work in the genre.

In folklore

Professional or semi-professional vampire hunters played some part in the vampire beliefs of the

(especially in Bulgarian, Serbian, and Romanian folk beliefs). In Bulgarian, the terms used to designate them included ''glog'' (lit. " hawthorn", the species of wood used for the stake), ''vampirdzhiya'', ''vampirar'', ''dzhadazhiya'', ''svetocher''. They were usually either born on Saturday (then called Sabbatarians,. Cited in Bulgarian ''sâbotnichav'',Димитрова, Иваничка. 1983. Българска народна митология. Greek ''sabbatianoí'') or the offspring of a vampire and a woman (typically his widow), called a '' dhampir'' in Romanian or a ''vampirović'' in Serbian. It was also believed that someone born on a Saturday could see a vampire when it was otherwise invisible (and sometimes other supernatural entities as well); similarly for the ''dhampir''. In the case of the Sabbatarians, it was believed in some places that they needed to be fed meat from a sheep killed by a wolf (Bulgarian ''vâlkoedene''); this would enable them not to fear the things that only they were able to see. In

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n and

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

n legends, the villages had their own vampire hunters that were called '' kresniks'', whose spirits were able to turn into animals at night to fight off vampires or ''kudlaks''. Some carried a kit that included a mallet, a stake, and a crucifix. If part of a church, it included holy water, holy oil, etc. However, the most important things that it carried were items such as rope, crowbars, or even pistols.Петровић, Сретен. 2000. Основи демонологије. In: Систем српске митологије. Просвета, Ниш 2000
Online (Serbian)

In fiction

The best known example of a vampire hunter in fiction is Abraham Van Helsing of the novel '' Dracula'' and in other works of fiction adapting or modifying that work. Other more recent figures include Buffy "the Vampire Slayer" Summers from the

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

and

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

of the same name. Buffy's spin-off television series '' Angel'' is also focused on a vampire hunter; the titular character, Angel, a vampire himself who is cursed with a conscience, is often portrayed battling vampires as well as demons. Created by Marv Wolfman, the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

character Blade the Vampire-Slayer is a half human/half vampire who uses his super-strength and agility to hunt vampires and other monsters. The character spawned a 1998 film adaptation which developed into a franchise. Vampire hunters have also appeared in video games, such as '' Castlevania'' (the occupation of the famed Belmont lineage), and ''

The Elder Scrolls ''The Elder Scrolls'' is a series of action role-playing games, action role-playing video games primarily developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The series focuses on Nonlinear gameplay, free-form gameplay in an ...

'' (with factions such as the Dawnguard). While predominantly depicted as human, examples of other types of vampire hunters also exist. Dhampiric figures, having a mix of human and vampire blood, are a popular form. Alucard from the '' Castlevania'' series, D from the '' Vampire Hunter D'' novel series, and the aforementioned

eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

ous hero of the ''

Blade A blade is the Sharpness (cutting), sharp, cutting portion of a tool, weapon, or machine, specifically designed to puncture, chop, slice, or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they a ...

'' series of comic books,

films A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of Visual arts, visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are gen ...

, and

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

, are examples of dhampir vampire hunters. Some vampire hunters are vampires themselves. Two examples of this type can be found in Morbius the Living Vampire in

, and Zero Kiryuu in the manga and anime series '' Vampire Knight''.

References

Bibliography

* * {{cite book, last=Perkowski, first= Jan, title=Vampire Lore, publisher=Slavica, date=2006 hunters Hunters by game Obsolete occupations

In folklore

In fiction

See also

References

Bibliography