- Moroi
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A moroi (sometimes moroii in modern fiction; pl. moroi) is a type of vampire or ghost in Romanian folklore. A female moroi is called a moroaică (pl. moroaice). In some versions, a moroi is a phantom of a dead person which leaves the grave to draw energy from the living.
Moroi are often associated with other figures in Romanian folklore, such as: strigoi (another type of vampire), vârcolac (werewolf), or pricolici (werewolf). Morois are also known as mortal vampires, whereas strigoi are immortal vampires.
They are also sometimes referred to in modern myth as the live-born offspring of two strigoi. It may signify an infant who died before being baptized. The origins of the term 'moroi' are unclear, but it is thought by the Romanian Academy[1][2] to have possibly originated from the Old Slavonic word mora ("nightmare"). It also resembles the word mort (dead).
The concept of "Moroi" and "Strigoi" were fictionalized in many novels (notably Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead) but less so than the usual "vampire".
References
- ^ Noul dicţionar explicativ al limbii Române, Bucharest: Litera Internaţional, 2002. ISBN 9738358043
- ^ *moroi in Dicţionarul explicativ al limbii Române, Academia Românǎ, 1998
Categories:- Romanian mythology
- Vampires
- Undead
- Romanian legendary creatures
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