Talk:Vampire/@comment-5814481-20140420200650/@comment-556400-20140420204017

A lot of spirits that are found in North America have European origins. Sometimes a myth or legend originates in one specific place but develops its own unique spin in a different area entirely.

One interesting observation of global mythology is that dragons are present in almost every culture's legends. They have different shapes and roles, but for a "giant lizard with magic powers" to exist around the world is kind of amazing. It most likely comes from the fact dinosaur fossils are found worldwide, but for both "flight" and "fire-breathing" to be shared among most legends maybe implies that perhaps there really was something that used to exist that approximates the contents of the legends.