Not quite zombies, but there is a credible theory that rabies was the inspiration for vampires -- and maybe even werewolves -- since a lot of the symptoms are similar, e.g. transmission through biting (often from dogs and bats, which coincidentally are also animals that vampires can transform into), heightened aggression that includes biting, aversion to bright lights and strong smells like garlic:
replyThe issue there is that the modern Zombie myth of an undead creature that spreads by biting only dates back to 1968.
replyTurns out George Romero took the infectious aspect from the novel I Am Legend (made into Omega Man in 1971), which is a vampire story. He mashed up the European vampire with the Haitian "zonbi".
replySome scholars think that the 18th century rabies epidemics shaped the vampire legend.
https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1999/04/20/rabies-seen-as-b...
Why does it being from 1968 mean it wasn’t inspired by rabies?
replyprevious iterations were clearly not cool enough of a fantasy to be propagated
replyI think you just invented epimemetics.
replyThere is no Epimemetic Division.
replyIt's amazing how microorganisms, including that Cordyceps fungus, can "control" macro nervous systems so specifically..
replyWith rabies I'm not sure it is really control in the sense that it makes the host find victims, but rather that your neurons get damaged in a way that causes immense agitation and the biting is almost a reflex to "defend" yourself as you're incapable of processing what is happening.
replyKurzgesagt has a video on it - The Deadliest Virus on Earth https://youtu.be/4u5I8GYB79Y?si=kpoOGGK8YUA-2P5k&t=378 (time coded to 6:18 where it talks about the lack of damage to the brain)
replyPart of it is that after it does its thing in the brain, it then travels to the salivary glands where it can then spread through a bite.
Zombies who eat brains are the mentally ill.
replyBram Stoker’s vampire characters and stories are gay, as are their heirs (Anne Rice).
Sparkling Twilight vampires are Latter-Day Saints.
Zombies and vampires existed long before these novels and films got made, but pop culture has a way of wiping out and superseding local folk culture in the modern minds of new generations.
Actually the American shopping mall, specifically the Monroeville mall near Pittsburgh PA in the 1960 inspired zombie lore
replyIt's also a good description of a large fraction of social media posts.
replyCase in point.