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I've seen films where they show Transylvania as being the birthplace for these two legends. Is this just the literary equivalent of the old yarns' intrduction; "...in a far away land."?

Are other scary tales or supernatural stories, etc also from this eastern european country?

I believe alot of the Transylvanian tales originated from Vlad Tepes.

Here is a good article on him... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_the_Impaler

ah the stuff of legend... thankyou so much M.Phoenix.

Transylvania was also a cultural center where cultures and legends collided, causing it to be one of the most folklorically rich countries and ideal for the presence of such characters as Dracula and Frankenstein... although Dracula, as stated earlier, is based on the story of a real nobleman of Transylvania.

Well as we know Vlad the Impaler has set the scene for many a good story but perhaps the fact that Transylvania is heavily wooded and forested leading to an "aura" so to speak, what one cannot easily see leads the imagination to stray. Transylvania has just recently been industrialized leaving its history of wilderness steeped in mystery.

Votre -

I think you were referring just to the Dracula part, no?

Most folklore and legends about monsters and demons...witches...etc originate in areas without alot of culture or modern living...even back then.Most people wer told from father to son...the story of some creature in the woods that take children from their bed at night.Because of the fear of the unknown in small villages and townships...the stories were spread and people began to believe what they were *told* was the truth.

Frankenstein wasn't originally set in Transylvania. In fact it's always been set in some Bavarian town or Austrian town until they started putting the two characters (Dracula and Frankenstein) in movies and stories together where Transylvania was a more recognizable and stereotypical 'evil' place.