# Do "Zombies" Actually Exist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 12, 2003, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603 "2003-08-12T07:34:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/1 "2003-08-12T07:34:07Z")
There seems to be persistent rumors out of haiti, that humans can be put into a state of mental confusion, wherein they are susceptible to being ordered around like slaves. Supposedly this happens because a voodoo “priest” (orhongan) has administered several toxic drugs to the soon-to-be zombie. These drugs are said to reduce the victim to a state of child-like dependency, and the victimbecomes a “zombie”. There was one account (supposedly true) of a man who became a zombie…he “died” and was buried, then dug up by a voodoo priest. he then was spotted by a sister, years later. later, a Harvard ethnobotanist 9forget his name) went to haiti and did an investigation-supposedly he was able to obtain a sample of the drugs used to make azombie. However,i heardthat he later repudiated his earlier work. So, is this zombie thing real, or just a bit of colorfulfolklore? ---
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/2 "2003-08-12T07:39:59Z")
I found [this book](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0684839296/qid=1060674392/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/103-6570223-2443855?v=glance&s=books&n=507846) very informative and interesting, and well researched to boot. [Here’s](http://www.skepdic.com/zombies.html) what Skepdic has to say about zombies. ---
**Author:** ![Angelic1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e19adc/32.png) [@Angelic1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angelic1)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/3 "2003-08-12T07:41:05Z")
I’m a zombie at 4am when I wake up when i don’t have too…so yup there sure are zombies out there 😛 ---
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/4 "2003-08-12T07:42:36Z")
Also, if I remember correctly, in the book linked above: The author concludes that the zombie phenomenon is caused by a mixture of drugs and hallucinogenics, not by anything supernatural. ---
**Author:** ![SoylentGreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@SoylentGreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SoylentGreen)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/5 "2003-08-12T12:59:17Z")
One of my co-workers is a zombie; no wait; make that two. But I think in this case, the condition was congenital rather than acquired. SG ---
**Author:** ![Olive\_The\_Other\_Reindeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Olive\_The\_Other\_Reindeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olive_The_Other_Reindeer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/6 "2003-08-12T13:01:21Z")
I know a bartender from Port au Prince. He makes one heck of a Zombie. ---
**Author:** ![toque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9e8a1a/32.png) [@toque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toque)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/7 "2003-08-12T13:12:27Z")
Wade Davis also wrote a slightly more scholarly book about the subject called “The Ethnobiology of the Haitian Zombie.” Other good books fro information on Vodoun are “The Divine Horsemen” by Maya Deren and “Tell My Horse” by Zora Neale Hurston. I think Wade Davis makes a good case for the existence of zombies, but I’m no ethnobiologist. ---
**Author:** ![toque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9e8a1a/32.png) [@toque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toque)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/8 "2003-08-12T13:14:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DarrenS \* > \*\*Also, if I remember correctly, in the book linked above: > > The author concludes that the zombie phenomenon is caused by a mixture of drugs and hallucinogenics, not by anything supernatural. \*\* I believe he came to the conclusion that this was a component, but culture and faith were the primary factors, e.g. you couldn’t make a Swede into a zombie. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2003, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-zombies-actually-exist/194603/9 "2003-08-12T13:20:16Z")
Cecil has spoken about the subject ([How do I go about creating a zombie?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a990521.html)