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You’d agree with us that the Halloween holiday is, by far, America’s most favorite holiday. That’s the time we love to dress like our special scary Halloween monsters, looking all funny and frightful. But where did it all come from? What power do they have over us?
There is only one way to answer these questions – a journey to the spooky world of Halloween Monsters.
Therefore, let us take a dive into the wildly fantastic world of goblins and ghostly ghouls and walk the dark and mysterious path to the past to find the beginnings of the 15 creepiest Halloween monsters. Get ready to be spooked!
1. Ghosts
Source by: Pixabay
Mythology and folklore describe a ghost as the imprint left behind in the physical world when a person dies. Traditionally, it arises from the belief that people have souls separate from their bodies and thus live on after death, and occasionally stick around to haunt the living.
Scientifically, parapsychologists claim that energy, including everything in the body, can never be completely destroyed. Lending some credence to ghost believers.
According to a recent survey, more than half of Americans believe in ghosts. And one in five Americans claims to have seen a ghost. It does seem that the American society has no trouble believing in the concept of ghosts.
Interestingly, we all have different impressions of ghosts. They range from transparently pale mist-like appearance to phantoms floating through the air, down to unseen poltergeists throwing things around the room.
While becoming a ghost might be a little complicated, getting the costume seems the easiest; just poke two holes in your bed sheet, and you’re ready for Halloween.
2. Vampires
Source by: Pixabay
Back in the days, when medical science was still in its cradle, many people were declared dead by mistake. As a result, the myths of these undead immortal creatures are most likely the cases of premature burials. Meaning, when a person died and another became sick, it was believed that the deceased was responsible for inflicting the harm on the sick.
Rituals were then performed to prevent the deceased – vampire – from preying on the sick.
Vampires are one of the most iconic and traditional Halloween monsters. They are believed to be gruesome, scary beings that feed on blood to survive. They hunt our minds, the dark silence of our imaginations, and they are immortal.
The horror novel, Dracula, by the Irish author Bram Stoker, profoundly gives a clear representation of the whole concept of Vampirism. Numerous movie adaptations of this book and other emerging blood-sucking characters keep this scary monster in our minds.
Well, maybe they are not so scary again. The modern interpretation of this monster is intriguing but still very powerful, more like fascinating and parasitic. But a monster is still a monster, regardless.
3. Zombies
Source by: Pixabay
A long time ago, slaves were kept on the island of Hispaniola, now called Haiti, and they were treated with extreme cruelty. The slaves considered suicide a bliss and a way out of the brutality of their masters. It was believed that those who sought to escape bondage through suicide would be trapped in their bodies, cursed to haunt those they left behind forever.
Over the years, Zombies have evolved beyond human haunting beings into voracious, mindless monsters that continue to feast on our brains for breakfast via numerous movies.
Some also believe that zombies are people who have either had their souls drained from their bodies or have been revived from the dead through sorcery.
4. Witches
Source by: Pixabay
The belief in witches as some sort of monster is as historical and persistent as ghosts. Witches are believed to be one of the terrors that keep up at night. In the modern world, witches enjoy a positive place in our culture. They are seen as sweet, smart beings, thanks to the likes of Harry Potters, Bewitched, Charmed, and some other tales of good witches.
However, that’s not so true if we looked a little further back into history. In the past, witches were believed to possess black magical powers that are related to the natural world. And like all pagans, they were demonized as heretics by the Christian church.
The most famous one being the Salem Witch Trial of 200 people in the early 1960s, and that led to the death of over 20 people. Well, times have changed.
Today, the faithful of Wicca, a modern form of witchcraft, are seen as harmless and even thought to be peaceful worshipers of nature.
5. Werewolves
Source by: Pixabay
Werewolf stories are as old as mythology itself. They have origins in different cultures, from Nordic folklore down to Lycaon tales of the ancient Greek who was turned into a wolf by Zeus and more.
They suffered the same fate as witches and were accused of every murder that couldn’t be explained.
The ancient Germanic stories believed that skillful warriors are wolves of the gods. While the idea of a werewolf may not have dominated modern popular culture as Vampires or Mummies, it does hold a significant place in modern minds.
6. The Mummies
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The idea of Mummies stemmed from Egyptian Mythology. Mummification was a burial practice in ancient Egypt. And it involves preserving corpses and burying with them all the goods they would need for their afterlife journeys. The dead buried in this way is called the Mummy.
Anyone who opened the tomb would be haunted by the Mummy’s cause. Gradually, the tale started spreading across Europe and also making appearances in different stories and fantasies.
Then, Mr. Bram Stoker put some modifications to the tale in his book The Jewel of Seven Stars. In the book, you see the iconic image of the risen Mummy haunting an unaware little man in underground passages.
In 1932, Hollywood brought Mummy to our screen in a movie called The Mummy, starring Boris Karloff. And ever since, the Mummies’ tale has become an example of the dangers of human hubris.
7. Creepy Clowns
Source by: Pixabay
Ordinarily, when you hear clowns, you think of loveable fools, Jesters, Jokers. Well, it seems there is horror behind that smiling face. We didn’t know about that until the 19th century.
The 1892 Italian soap opera, Pagliacci, featured the first mysterious, lethal clown. Just fiction, yeah?
Well, it became a reality when the Police apprehended the serial killer, John Wayne Gacy, in the 1970s. Gacy was a clown who performed at children’s parties. That instilled the belief of killer clowns in Americans’ consciousness.
In 1986, Stephen King further fueled America’s fear with his classic horror novel – It. The fear became so intense that it earned its word: Coulrophobia (the fear of clowns). Recent movie adaptations of Stephen King’s novel, It, and some other screen shows continue to refresh the fear of this unfathomable creature in the minds of Americans.
8. The Grim Reaper
Source by: Thirteen.org
The grim reaper, as portrayed in movies and books, is draped in a black robe holding a scythe. The scythe is used to harvest the souls that are destined to die.
The grim reaper is the harbinger of death. It is believed that he harvests souls from the physical world and delivers them to the metaphysical realms.
The whole concept of the grim reaper is associated with the black plague in Europe. The dark times during which countless humans were killed without any known cause. Now, we know that those deaths were due to some bacteria and viruses.
The black robe symbolizes the traditional European associations of blackness with death, burial rites, and the clothes used in burying the corpses during the plague. While the scythe struck people down in their thousands, just like the plague.
9. Killer Robots
Source by: Pixabay
Unlike the traditional tales of terrors, the killer robot takes a more futuristic belief of a monster who’s on the brink of killing its creator.
Far before the famous 2001 HAL; A Space Odyssey, Skynet, the idea of machines turning against their creators started from the 1920 science fiction play Rossum’s Universal Robots, R.U.R., by the Czech playwright Karel Capek. The robot was not entirely a machine but a Humanoid, some called it a Cyborg, who went on to wipe out the human race. Scary!!!
Although modern Sci-fi works like the “Star Trek” still reminds us of the killer robots, the fear seems to have dissipated reasonably as we now comfortably share the world with robots. For instance, we now share our roads with Autopilot Teslas, self-driving test cars, and, maybe someday, SkyNet itself.
10. Aliens
Source by: Vox
Similar to the concept of ghosts, the notion of beings from outside our planet visiting us has been around for ages. Some believe in the existence of aliens and that they visit the earth often.
However, the little humanoid alien with gray skin and a huge head can be traced back to a 1947 incident in Roswell, New Mexico, and a faked alien autopsy video. In fact, well before 1947, in the early 1900s, H.G Wells depicted the race of moon men in his book, The First Men in The Moon. And ever since, the concept of aliens as a monster has become fascinating and mind-boggling to us.
11. Dinosaurs
Source by: Onlydinosaurs
The remains of dinosaurs were first discovered and identified back in 1864. And ever since, dinosaurs have become a fascinating subject of interest to humans. As a result, scientists have spent the last 200 years trying to entirely understand these creatures who once dominated our world.
However, the more research done on this subject, the more the discoveries made, and the more our knowledge of dinosaurs change every few decades.
Maybe we are only getting to understand these ancient creatures better. And, of course, every discovery comes with a myth. Regardless, you can never go wrong with a dinosaur costume.
12. Goblins
Source by: Wizarding World
This is a monstrous little creature that features in the folklore of many European cultures. Goblins are known for roaming the forests and mountains, stealing gold and jewelry, and pulling horrible pranks on humans. They are believed to be mischievous beings that sometimes swap human babies with their own spawn.
Goblins are characterized by many differing abilities, temperaments, and appearances, depending on the culture and folklore. Moreover, Goblins are believed to possess magical abilities as a fairy or demon.
13. Skeleton
Source by: Pixabay
Back in the middle ages, there was this tradition, depicted by skulls and skeletons, that was prevalent. It’s called memento mori, which loosely translates to “remember death.” And considering the close association of Halloween with death, it’s not so surprising to see images of skeletons around during the holiday. In a way, it is a kind of stand as a remembrance of our mortality.
The allegorical tale of the Dance of Macabre or the Dance of Death, where skeletons rise from their graves to dance around, made the whole concept of skeletons scarier.
In 1874, the tale was made into a classical music composition by Camille Saint-Saens, which is seldom played. Regardless, when next you decide to hang a skeleton around your home during Halloween, remember the Dance of Macabre.
14. Bats
Source by: National Geographic
The connection between Halloween and bats may seem natural, but it does have a historical background that runs back into the late 19th century. Out of all the species of bats, only three feed on blood, and they are called Vampire Bats.
They are nocturnal animals and live mostly in caves. As a result, they are closely associated with the underground world and death. Well, this claim didn’t stick so well until Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula, was released. In the novel, Stoker portrayed vampire shapeshifting to bats.
Although bats are creepy, they have a fascinating appearance with amazing abilities.
15. Swamp Monster
Source by: Newsweek
A swamp monster is a fictional creature often believed to hide in wetlands. The truth is, swamps are eerie places. There is this spooky feeling of some creature brushing against your feet in a murky pond.
The myth stemmed from Cajun folklore. Tales of mucky-pond monsters may, similarly, take their cue from that 1954 horror classic, “Creature from the Black Lagoon,” which was influenced by South American legend.
Modern editions of swamp monsters, including Marvel’s Man-Thing and DC Comics’ Swamp Thing, further made this myth concrete. Even more recently, tales from the Honey Island also claim the existence of half-man/half-beast in the swamps in New Orleans with footprints and what’s supposed to be a video evidence.
16. Dragons
Source by: Onlydinosaurs
Just like dinosaurs, the myths about dragons vary significantly across different cultures and regions. Dragons are generally believed to have large flappy wings, horns, four legs, and capable of spitting out fire. They are legendary and appear in many folklores across the world.
They are believed to have ravenous appetites and live in caves where they accumulate treasures. Modern movies continue to leave different impressions of dragons in our minds. But for what it’s worth, a dragon’s costume is never a bad idea for any cosplay.
Source by: Onlydinosaurs
That’s our top 15 scary Halloween monsters for cosplay. Now you know the origin of your favorite Halloween costumes. Remember, the perfect Halloween should involve a full moon, a cloudy sky, a gentle breeze, and stories about creatures we hope we never have to encounter.
So, have fun donning the costume of your favorite monster!!!
