zombies

Zombies are fictional undead creatures that appear in folklore, film, literature, and games. In many depictions, a zombie is a person who has died and been reanimated, typically lacking independent will and driven by a basic urge such as hunger. Folkloric zombies originate in Haitian Vodou practice, where they are described as revived individuals controlled by a bokor, rather than simply mindless monsters. Modern popular culture has expanded the concept far beyond these traditional roots.

The modern zombie emerged in Western cinema in the mid-20th century; George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968) defined many conventions, portraying slow-moving hordes and a focus on social themes. Since then, variations have appeared, including fast zombies, more intelligent undead, and reanimation through viruses, curses, or nanotechnology.

In most depictions, zombies are reanimated corpses with impaired cognition. They may be slow or fast, and their defining trait is an urge to feed on the living. Infection or exposure often spreads via bites or contact, creating zombie outbreaks that threaten populations and infrastructure. Some works emphasize ritual or spellcasting; others treat the undead as a metaphor for consumerism, mortality, or collapse.

Zombies have become a staple of contemporary media, including films, television, novels, comics, and video games. They are used to explore fear of disease, loss of autonomy, and societal response to crisis. Academic analysis covers folklore, media theory, and ethics of survival. Despite variations, the core image remains: a person who is no longer fully alive and is animated by a singular, uncontrollable impulse.