Even if it's over Zoom this year, everyone loves a good Halloween party! Between the “Monster Mash” and the costume contests lies the art of good, creepy conversation. Scroll through this list of chilling words and their histories to get fluent in the language of Halloween … if you dare.
Haunt
When you think of the verb "haunt," you might envision a crumbling mansion with ghosts and evil spirits wandering cobwebbed hallways. But for centuries "haunt" was more neutral, meaning to visit a place often. Then in the 1500s, the ghostly connotation crept in, and "haunt" began to reference distress and harm. A nice walk through a haunted house on Halloween is just what the mad scientist ordered.
Ghost
The word "ghost" has been in use for at least a thousand years, though it originally meant someone’s vital spark or intelligence. Eventually the meaning morphed into the souls of the dead. An ancient spelling is gast (the root of "ghastly"), or something frightening. Halloween is all about celebrating the spirits of the departed, so this one will get a lot of use.
Vampire
The myth of the bloodthirsty undead preying on the living is older than the word itself, dating all the way back to Ancient Greece. The original name of the creepy creature came from Eastern Europe, where Serbian stories about the vampir were popular. In the 1700s, "vampire" made its way into English and has been sucking our blood ever since.
Banshee
Originally a Gaelic word for "woman of the fairyland," this fanciful term abruptly took a dark turn. In legends, banshees are the spirits of women who scream outside the window of doomed households. If you heard her wail, you would know someone in your home would die before daybreak. Yikes.
Goblin
"Goblin" has come to represent a creature more mischievous than monstrous over the centuries. The word "goblin" comes from a Greek word that means "rogue," which points to its playful nature. However, a goblin in myths and literature can exist anywhere on the scale from plain ugly to menacingly evil.
Wraith
Historically, a wraith was the replica of a living person appearing as a specter (see further down the list) to foreshadow something bad, like that person’s death. An old synonym for the ghostly appearance of a living person is "doppelgänger," but now this German-inspired word is more commonly used for someone who looks exactly like another individual.
Ghoul
Although it looks similar to the Old English words "ghost" and "ghastly," it wasn’t until the 1700s that "ghoul" became part of the language. The word was introduced to the West by the translation of One Thousand and One Nights (sometimes known as Arabian Nights) into French. In the book, the Arabic word ġūl was used to describe an evil being who robbed graves and ate corpses.
Specter
Meaning a visible disembodied spirit, the word "specter" is rooted in the Latin spectrum, which means image or apparition. The verb form is specere, which means “to look.” Many English words pertaining to appearance have come from the same verb: "spectacle," "inspect," and "conspicuous," to name a few. Specters can also be ghostly, fearsome visions conjured by the imagination. Or, are those just Halloween decorations?
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