In Balkans folklore, dhampirs (sometimes spelled ''dhampyres'', ''dhamphirs'', or ''dhampyrs'') are creatures that are the result of a union between a vampire and a mortal human. This union was usually between male vampires and female mortal humans, with stories of female vampires mating with male mortal humans being rare.

Etymology

The word "dhampir" is an

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

loanword borrowed from the Slavic original word " vampire". Vladimir Orel points out the similarity between Proto-Albanian *pīja and the Proto-Slavic cognate *pijǫ.

Nomenclature

The word "dhampir" is associated with Balkan folklore, as described by T. P. Vukanović. In the rest of the region, terms such as

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also

* * * Old Serbian (disambiguat ...

''vampirović'', ''vampijerović'', ''vampirić'' (thus, Bosnian ''lampijerović'', etc.) literally meaning "vampire's son", are used.Levkievskaja, E.E. La mythologie slave : problèmes de répartition dialectale (une étude de cas : le vampire). Cahiers slaves n°1 (septembre 1997)
Online (French).
Петровић, Сретен. 2000. Основи демонологије. In: Систем српске митологије. Просвета, Ниш 2000

In other regions the child is named "Vampir" if a boy and "Vampirica" if a girl, or "Dhampir" if a boy and "Dhampirica" if a girl. In Bulgarian folklore, numerous terms such as ''glog'' (lit. "

hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

"), ''vampirdzhiya'' ("vampire" + ''

nomen agentis In linguistics, an agent noun (in Latin, ) is a word that is derived from another word denoting an action, and that identifies an entity that does that action. For example, "driver" is an agent noun formed from the verb "drive". Usually, ''derive ...

suffix In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns, adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can carry ...

), ''vampirar'' ("vampire" + ''nomen agentis'' suffix), ''dzhadadzhiya'' and ''svetocher'' are used to refer to vampire children and descendants, as well as to other specialized vampire hunters.Димитрова, Иваничка. 1983. Българска народна митология
Online article (Bulgarian)
reproducing text from Ivanichka Dimitrova. Bulgarian folk mythology. С.1983.стр. 153- 159 Dhampiraj is also an Albanian surname.

Origin

In the Balkans it was believed that male vampires have a great desire for human women, so a vampire will return to have intercourse with his wife or with a woman he was attracted to in life. In one case, a Serbian widow tried to blame her pregnancy on her late husband, who had supposedly become a vampire, and there were cases of Serbian men pretending to be vampires in order to reach the women they desired. In Bulgarian folklore, vampires were sometimes said to

deflower Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

virgins as well. The sexual activity of the vampire seems to be a peculiarity of South Slavic vampire belief as opposed to other Slavs, although a similar motif also occurs in Belarusian legends.

Powers

Legends state that dhampirs were, for the most part, normal members of the community. But dhampirs, especially male, of paternal vampire descent could see invisible vampires and practice sorcery, often starting careers as vampire hunters, which would be practiced for generations from father to son. According to the legend, dhampyres have the powers of both humans and vampires: they can sense a supernatural creature within a specified distance, have acute sense of sight and hearing, have regenerating abilities, immortality, can walk in sunlight (which led to the adoption of the sobriquet "Daywalker"), eat like a human, can control animals, and can be used to destroy vampires. One unique distinction between vampires and dhampirs is that a dhampir’s blood is very acidic towards vampires and can melt any part or the complete body of a vampire.

Features

Some traditions specify signs by which the children of a vampire can be recognized. Albanian legends state they have untamed dark or black hair and are very cunning or courageous in nature. They are not attracted to blood and can eat normally like other human beings. They also are not vulnerable to sunlight. In Bulgarian folklore, possible indications include being "very dirty", having a soft body, no nails or bones (the latter physical peculiarity is also ascribed to the vampire itself), and "a deep mark on the back, like a tail." In contrast, a pronounced nose was often a sign, as were larger than normal ears, teeth or eyes. According to J. Gordon Melton, from his book, ''The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead'', in some areas, a true dhampir possessed a "slippery, jelly-like body and lived only a short life—a belief... that vampires have no bones."

References

{{Albanian mythology Albanian legendary creatures Bulgarian folklore Corporeal undead * Fictional vampire hunters Fictional vampire types Serbian mythology Slavic legendary creatures Vampires Fictional Serbian people Slavic folklore characters Romanian legendary creatures North Macedonia folklore