Ghoul

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For other uses, see Ghoul (disambiguation).

"Amine Discovered with the Goule", from the story of Sidi Nouman, of the One Thousand and One
Nights

Ghoul (Arabic: ‫غول‬, ghūl) is a demon-like being or monstrous humanoid

originating in pre-Islamic Arabian religion,[1] associated with graveyards and
consuming human flesh. In modern fiction, the term has often been used for a
certain kind of undead monster.
By extension, the word ghoul is also used in a derogatory sense to refer to a
person who delights in the macabre or whose profession is linked directly to
death, such as a gravedigger or graverobber.[2]

Contents

 1Early etymology
 2Folklore
 3Islamic theology
 4See also
 5References

Early etymology[edit]
Ghoul is from the Arabic ‫ ُغول‬ ghūl, from ‫ َغا َل‬ ghāla, "to seize".[3] In Arabic, the term
is also sometimes used to describe a greedy or gluttonous individual. See also
the etymology of gal and gala: "to cast spells," "scream," "crow," and its
association with "warlike ardor," "wrath," and the Akkadian "gallu," which refer to
demons of the underworld.
The term was first used in English literature in 1786 in William
Beckford's Orientalist novel Vathek,[4] which describes the ghūl of Arabic folklore.
This definition of the ghoul has persisted until modern times with ghouls
appearing in popular culture.[5]