# Fear of Lightbulbs **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 13, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895 "2005-02-13T19:01:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mamboman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecb155/32.png) [@mamboman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mamboman)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/1 "2005-02-13T19:01:22Z")
Hi O Can anyone tell me the clinical term for an irrational fear of lightbulbs? I’d be ever so grateful… ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/2 "2005-02-13T19:04:23Z")
Well, most of the clinical phobia names seem to be derived from ancient greek, and they didn’t have a word for light bulb. One may need to be coined. I recommend Alvaphobia. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/3 "2005-02-13T19:08:56Z")
Alvaphobia! Love it! How about “tungsternation?” ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/4 "2005-02-13T19:11:01Z")
^Edison reference? …or, how about ‘bulbiphobia’. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/5 "2005-02-13T20:11:33Z")
illumiphobia? ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/6 "2005-02-13T20:11:42Z")
[Grasping At Straws] Incandescophibia? [/GAS] ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/7 "2005-02-13T20:13:05Z")
Better yet conedophobia No, I guess that would be fear of huge light bills ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/8 "2005-02-13T20:56:37Z")
> [@scotandrsn](#): > > Well, most of the clinical phobia names seem to be derived from ancient greek, and they didn’t have a word for light bulb. One may need to be coined. > > I recommend Alvaphobia. Alvaphobia is fear of talking rodents. illumiphobiaf isn fearo ofr thed Illuminati. Incandescophibia is closest, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/9 "2005-02-13T21:14:51Z")
However the OP made reference to light bulbs only, which would include fluorescent, and other types of HID lighting such as mercury vapor, sodium, and metal halide. Since fear of light is photophobia, fear of artificial light would pseudophotophobia. Or does the OP speak of the object being feared as it lurks in a household closet, awaiting it’s chance to produce light? ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2005, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/10 "2005-02-13T21:25:51Z")
Would the sufferer be a globephobe? ---
**Author:** ![mamboman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecb155/32.png) [@mamboman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mamboman)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/11 "2005-02-14T08:35:55Z")
> [@danceswithcats](#): > > However the OP made reference to light bulbs only, which would include fluorescent, and other types of HID lighting such as mercury vapor, sodium, and metal halide. > > Since fear of light is photophobia, fear of artificial light would pseudophotophobia. > > Or does the OP speak of the object being feared as it lurks in a household closet, awaiting it’s chance to produce light? Yes, my particular condition takes in any form of light bulb. Furthermore, I’m not worried about light bulbs which are actually in place doing their job, just of having to handle them. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/12 "2005-02-14T09:02:19Z")
Well fear of glass is _hyalophobia_. ---
**Author:** ![Berkut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Berkut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Berkut)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/13 "2005-02-14T09:11:11Z")
How many people does it take to have a fear of lightbulbs? ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/14 "2005-02-14T10:30:05Z")
> [@dogbutler](#): > > **Alvaphobia is fear of talking rodents.** > illumiphobiaf isn fearo ofr thed Illuminati. > Incandescophibia is closest, IMHO. I dare you to find a single person that would not soil their underwear if a rat started talking. 😃 _Socrates!!_ ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/15 "2005-02-14T15:13:45Z")
Seems to be a very rare phobia. You might be stuck with something as unwieldly as “lumino-bulbous phobia”, **mamboman**. Which sucks, actually. There doesn’t seem to be a niftily neat term already for the condition. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/16 "2005-02-14T16:56:39Z")
Modern Greeks use _lampa_ for light bulb, AFAICT, so why wouldn’t it be “lampaphobia”? ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/17 "2005-02-14T19:04:31Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > Modern Greeks use _lampa_ for light bulb, AFAICT, so why wouldn’t it be “lampaphobia”? I know electricians refer to lightbulbs as “lamps” – but the layman might think **mamboman** is in trepidation of desklamps. Dunno. Sounds the best of the bunch, tho’, **nametag**. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/18 "2005-02-14T19:05:48Z")
Oh, and sorry for forgetting to capitalise your nick, **Nametag**. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2005, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fear-of-lightbulbs/289895/19 "2005-02-14T20:43:33Z")
> [@Berkut](#): > > How many people does it take to have a fear of lightbulbs? 😃