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| - The word "zombie" originated in the Voudon beliefs of the Caribbean, referring to a body "revived" and enslaved by a sorcerer. (Some of the oldest aspects of zombie appearance are actually symptoms of tetrodotoxin poisoning, a neurotoxin used in certain voudon rituals.) In this form, it has been known in America since the late 19th century. However, it wasn't until the 1960s that George Romero's Night of the Living Dead attached the word to the living dead who eat the flesh of the living. (Note, however, that the flesh-eaters in that movie are never referred to as "zombies," and Romero himself didn't consider them zombies, preferring "ghouls.")
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| abstract
| - The word "zombie" originated in the Voudon beliefs of the Caribbean, referring to a body "revived" and enslaved by a sorcerer. (Some of the oldest aspects of zombie appearance are actually symptoms of tetrodotoxin poisoning, a neurotoxin used in certain voudon rituals.) In this form, it has been known in America since the late 19th century. However, it wasn't until the 1960s that George Romero's Night of the Living Dead attached the word to the living dead who eat the flesh of the living. (Note, however, that the flesh-eaters in that movie are never referred to as "zombies," and Romero himself didn't consider them zombies, preferring "ghouls.") As Night was accidentally entered into the public domain due to an error in the end credits, it quickly became the object of imitation and emulation by many other directors. Most zombie invasion stories, even those not explicitly based on Romero's films, follow the same conventions, though there are major points of contention. While Romero is responsible for most of the "general" zombie conventions, the more specific and visible zombie tropes are more often inspired by the later works of John Russo, Night's co-writer. Most zombie movies mix-and-match conventions from the Romero and Russo canons. The Russo canon in particular is the reason most people will respond with "Braaaiinnnns" when Zombies come up in conversation, and most depictions along those lines are references to it. The most common zombie archetypes are as follows:
* Type V: Voodoo. The original zombie. Reanimated by Black Magic or merely a living person Brainwashed via drugs for More Than Mind Control. May either do their creator's bidding or go insane and turn into Type F. This is a common type encountered in video games and RPGs such as Dungeons and Dragons; being creatures of dark magic or unholy powers, these fall under the Revive Kills Zombie rule.
* Type C: Construct. Similar to Frankenstein's Monster, this is the zombie you get when attempting to reanimate somebody/bodies from the dead -- With Science, For Science!! -- causing them to Come Back Wrong. If they go berserk (which they probably will-- zombies will be zombies), the good news is that they have an almost zero chance of spreading Zombification and creating a Zombie Apocalypse.
* Type F: Flesh-eating. Your typical B-Movie zombie, it eats the skin, brains, or various other organs from the living, typically turning them into zombies -- which makes them a lot like a ghoul, really. Can also be merged with Type V or P.
* Type P: Plague-bearing. Created by a virus or occasionally machine or somesuch. These are the zombies that are guaranteed to turn others into zombies due to their highly communicable virus or nanobots or whatever. Almost always merged with Type F.
* Type PS: Parasite. A subtype of Type P, these zombies are created specifically via exposure to a form of parasitic lifeform, be it the only stage or part of a series of mutations. Good for video games, as the advanced mutations allow for advanced enemies and bosses to still be zombies.
* Type R: Revenant. An older variety, originating in European folklore, less prone to rotting and falling apart, which normally retains intelligence, and memories of its previous life. They are driven by a single burning purpose, most often vengeance or true love, driven by a desire so strong it can overcome even death. While conceptually very old, and the prototype from which many other undead derive, this trope has fallen out of favor for more modern breeds of zombie, and for the bloodsucking vampire. Often Living on Borrowed Time.
* Type M: Mishmash. A combination of different traits.
* Type O: Other. Or, 'Our Zombies Are Really Different.' Not infected, not magical, sometimes not even undead, these guys are somehow still similar enough to be called zombies. (In some cases, office workers) Skin color of zombies can also vary widely, ranging from normal color to greens, blues, grays and even other colors. Their gait can also vary, from limping, sliding their feet on the ground or have the "arms forward" stance. See also Everything's Deader with Zombies, Zombie Apocalypse, Not a Zombie. Not Using the Z Word happens when creatures that otherwise fit the profile perfectly are not called zombies; Technically Living Zombie is what happens when they fit the profile perfectly except for not being dead. Elite Zombie is this trope combined with Elite Mook. Most zombies are Night of the Living Mooks, and Slave Mooks.
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