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Throughout my readings (online, in books, etc.) diffrent people tend to prefer diffrent spellings of the term Vampire. Some people look at them to mean the same thing, some look at one to be for roleplaying and the other to be for real life. What is your take on the variation (if there is one)?

I have always assumed that it was just two ways to spell the same word...that there was no alternative meaning, that with both spellings you are referring to the same thing.

The way they are spelled is looked upon as if Vampire is real and Vampyre is roleplay. I looked up some different things about the spelling differential of these words and the meaning. I found this one page that does explain differences between the two spellings. I hope this will help out some , I found it rather interesting. I am not going to type off of the page but I will add the link so if anyone else wants to check it out.

http://www.100megspopup.com/vampsociety/vampyres/myth.html

i always thought it was a way to show the different genders

i thought it was because so we could see who is real an who is fake

mmm very good topic lol.
lets see here well i never knew that there were even two ways to spell vampire.but i gess that cool lol.

I thought it was just the way someone wanted to spell it

My user name is no mistake, I chose neither and made my own... which is how both spelling came to be in the first place most likely....

Either way it boils down to it, the meaning of the word is still the same, so should it matter how we spell it? I don't think so beacuse in the end we are all talking about the same thing...

-Winter-

To me, they mean the same. As someone said above me, it might have been done to make it sound older. I see vampyre a lot in role-playing books. But then again, in most of them, it's spelled as vampire. I don't think the authors got the update on the meanings! LOL!

But I think they're one in the same. People just like trying to be different.

I have always thought the mean to be the same but for 'vampyre' to be older? I may be wrong

I always thought that Vampyre is the same as Vampire but than in another language.

Differrent people have different spellings for the same word.

perhaps is come from the "old english"

Either is acceptable.

Vampire" has become the standard one in modern times, with "vampyre" being used as an alternative by various groups of people trying to be arcane or stylish.

It is also possible that "Vampyre" might also have come into play due to the way it was spelled in the short story, "The Vampyre" by John Polidori.

Hate to be awkward here but some people also spell it "vampyr", without the e.

Personally I will not judge someone on how they spell the word, and I would probably take into account that it is their own choice.

To me, I think that "vampyre" looks kinda cool :)
Then again it's just my opinion - I don't really think there is any difference at all!

From what I understood the term "Vampyre" is an older more European term. "Vampire" is more Americanized. Now I could be wrong, but when I see the writing of "Vampyre", I tend to think Romania and older types of vampire vs. how we spell it today.

In my own opinion, I don't see where it matters...it means the same thing. I think it's just more of an imagination thing.

words are words no matter the spelling, wether its old english, yet vampire holds different spellings and meanings in different cultures of this world, It does not matter to me.

There's only one right way to Spell it and thats Vampire.

I agree with Kitsuna, while I have always assumed that it was just two different ways of spelling the same word, it does look as if it could have been spelled "vampyre" in an attempt to make it sound older.

from what I have seen the spelling Vampyre is supposed to me more correct to the original latin term....and that it is used more by people in the lifestyle to mean they are "real"

There are 2 ways to spell it and each has different meanings.

"vampyres" to refer to a real phenomenon involving real people. We use "vampire" to refer to imaginary mythical creatures who mainly inhabit horror movies and other works of imaginative fiction. This notation is used by some in the vampyre/vampire community, but its use is far from a consensus. In fact, some use the opposite definition; still others use both terms to refer to both types of vampires/vampyres.



VAU: Vampires Among Us� (http:www.vampiresamongus.com)
The term "vampire" refers to psychic vampires, blood vampires as well as supernatural, undead vampires such as seen in fiction. A "Vampyre" (also known as a social vampire or vampyre lifestyler) is someone who simply mimics the life of vampires and enjoys the sense of "bonding" created by the vampyre community. It is also noteworthy that there are hierachies within vampyre "families".


More about vampyres:
The word "vampyre" has a lengthy etymology. The original source was the proto-Indo-European (PIE) word "to fly" which became, in succession, the Old Slavic word "oper," the Old Polish word "vaper", the German word "vampir," the English "vampyre." From this older English term emerged the modern English term "vampire." 1

I often refer to vampire as the role player and vampyre as the actual vampyre, but it depends a lot on the persons personal opinions of the matter.

i always thought of vampire as the real thing and vampyre as the role palying...

Thanks for that information NocturnisOrchid.

I always figured that they were just different spellings...

We're all familiar with people who pretend to be vampires, I've noticed that people who act like a vampire often spell it "vampyr" or "vampyre"...

I always thought they were the same. Kind of like grey and gray. Or Ketchup and Catsup.

i always thought vampyre was an older way to spell it ..

i always thought that "vampyre" was just a spelling that was used in the older language while "vampire" is a more modern way to spell it

In my opinion, when an individual spells the word with a "y" instead of the traditional "i", just means, they are being both essentric in their ways, trying to sound midieval as well as RPGish.

Though the two spellings are the same, one would percieve the spelling with a "y" to be more of a "living vampire" lifestyler from the acclaimed "black veil" atmosphere. More and more individuals subject the term "vampyre" for anything new age when it concerns the sub culture of modern society.

So is Vampyre not the original spelling of the word?

i have never really sure but i remember someone trying to say a vampire is someone who is turned and vampyre is someone born into it. but i dont think thats what it is just a way of spelling it

You are half right ~Coma~, being born and being turned are two entirely differant atmospheres to say the least, but in some instances, one would interpret the spelling with a "y" as a sign that they are born into it...Though still, they would subject themselves into the accentric atmosphere since they claim to be born.

I still say the new age migration stems the vampire into vampyre just to sate long waited ambitions to change something that has remained monotonous over time. A new least on words so to speak.

I have seen many new age vampire sites such as the "sanguine" sites to instill the letter "y" into their spelling just to prove a point. Since most of them think it ideal in their ways to stereotype the new age "vampyre" into sub groups such as "sanguine" and "psi" even though both names are one and the same over all.

interesting ,thanks

I just assumed it was a speeling eeror hahaha :P

Just kidding...I was always told it was the difference between myth and roleplay.

As far as I was aware 'vampires' were in the mythological sense, and 'vampyres' were ones who followed the vampyric lifestyle.

If it were to see which were real and fake then which would be the real?

I just thought it was two different spellings, from different author's depictions.

someone thought it would seperate two different kinds.... i feel the "y" is a cross breed of lycan vamps or the person who started it didn't have spell check, maybe they are just confused... who knows

to be honest i had never seen the Vampyre spelling until i came here.... so im all new to the meaning od one vs. the other

I've always thought that people who spell it as 'vampyre' are just trying to be fancy.

out of the three possibilities i mentioned earlier i still think the best and most accurate would be that they don't have spell check

Interesting post Dragonfly.

I had no idea that the different spellings meant something other then just variation of spelling. When I first looked at this I was wondering if it was the real or fake thing, but after reading through the sites and reading the responses here I am finding out other wise.

Thanks Morbid and Nocturnis for posting the sites for researching.

hahaha, yea it probably did originate that they just couldnt spell it right :P

Think of Buffy. The Vam - pyre was referred to tongue-in-cheek, mock ceremoniously, demanding respect, whereas the vampires were poppin up everywhere.

i think it is just the way people spell it. Also the way they see it. My name can be spelled so many different ways and it still has the same meaning, and the same pronouncation.

I feel it is just the olde' spelling verses the new spelling, plus the european and American spelling of the 2 yet , I could be wrong.. LOL

none at all ...just like magic and magick --- it's all the same .

exactly that was what I meant no difference in meaning at all just different spellings..

I am truly thinking vampire is a modern way of spelling it and vampyre is a older way.

There are those who spell the word phoenix, and pheonix. those who feel the need to correct are merely arrogant jackasses. Spelling is irrelivant as long as the message is still the same.

ThePinja -



Just because the spelling is different doesn't mean they aren't different, you know?

I always thought that if someone spelled the word Vampire that would be real and the word Vampyre would be a roleplaying one

Well if you are in the community some don't care about how vampire is spelled because it can be spelled many different ways depending on area. If you speak to someone from Eastern Europe they might put Vampir. The community did like Crowley did with magic...he added a "K" to distinguish stage magic from occult magickal practices. Vampire is usually the spelling of folklore and most books etc. When you see Vampyre it is how the community spells it to differentiate the two but as I said there are those who feel its silly and use the aforementioned spelling for everything.

I'm sorry I always thouhgt that vampire was English and Vampyre was another language like old romanian???

I never really thought the way you spelled the word should matter, most people don't even read all the letters in a word most of the time unless it is a word that is unknown to them.

When they use Vampir it is from a Slavic source I believe Upir. Romanians speak a romance language evolving from Vulgar Latin. Vampire wouldn't really be a word from that language so you will see people use Stregoi or Moroi but it doesn't exactly mean that either. There is a Romanian person in our group and he uses Vampir and starts everything with Salut!

Some of this lifestyler stuff comes from something Sanguinarius has posted on her site about the Lifestyler Vampyre. www.sanguinarius.org Terminology

Vampyre lifestyler / Vampyre (spelled with a "y"):
Someone who incorporates fictional vampire imagery and trappings into his or her personal life, often cultivating a "Vampyric" physical appearance, including but not limited to a very pale complexion, a wardrobe made up predominantly of dark clothing, a style of dress which is modeled on Victorian or Renaissance fashions, black or blood-red lipstick, sunglasses, fangs, FX contacts, and a generally melancholy or lugubrious air. Lifestylers often form alternative extended families and social structures modeled on the "covens" or "clans" of vampire fiction and role-playing games. Many also utilize lingo and terminology taken from vampire fiction and RPGs. Some are real vampires in the sense of craving blood, while others are blood fetishists, and still others are just drawn to the "Vampyre aesthetic". This is an outgrowth of, but distinct from, the Gothic subculture.

This isn't entirely true because most people I know use the Y for the spelling. I was used as a reference but because I am not very or active at all off the net. I was not considered prominent enough. I am 61 years old and could care a flying fig for most of the activities and wouldn't exactly fit into the goth clubs where most of the activities are held. What can you do if the club requires this type of dress...they are trying to attract people to coming inside. I do a column monthly on the "Scene" as everyone calls their own and I have yet to find a purely "Vampire" club. You have the vampires mixed with the Gothic groups and some are both and the fetish and some are all of the above or one or the other it is so mixed together.

Then there are the courts such as Lazarus that meets in a burlesque house most often for their activities but not all.

The Court of Gotham usually has a strict dress code like this:

Dresscode: Formal Black, Fetish, Renaissance, Elizabethan or Victoria

Occasionally people have themed activities and usually these are the Vampire Havens but they are planned things and don't happen on a weekly basis and not always at the same places. So its apple and oranges. The hard core older vampires just sit back quietly and watch...As for me I am just an Aries with a big mouth, lol.

One correction...I made it sound like I never went out and met anyone. I have but now I am not going to do that most likely because I would feel out of place and not by the function or activity but by age separation and this is why I really don't have the interest to go into Los Angeles and I never went to them in San Diego and probably wouldn't they are too entwined with fetish. This is why everyone thinks people who go to these things are all lifestylers but they are NOT. Trust me it really doesn't matter which way you spell it...it is the nitpickers that will call you out but I am in an organization and I know the Y means real at least in all the ones I have had dealings with. (Gives Sangi a big kick) I do know her slightly.

I believe, and this is just from reading the first post, that there is no difference in the two besides the spelling.

To my understanding, they both mean exactly the same thing.

Quite simply, early spelling wasn't standard (even in the same document at times). One can find rare instances of something like "tyred" being used and later "tired" further down the very same document. More frequently however, the author had a preference for which version of any existing spelling he or she used. This could be influenced by geography (as French influenced regions tend more toward 'yre' that particular case). Once accepted printings of dictionaries came into play these differences were less common, but for words not part of the day to day vocabulary (like vampire/vampyre) the authors choice was still the deciding factor. Different nationally accepted dictionaries also became the main reason between two english speaking countries differences in spelling (as with the UK and America)

Now within the last 10-20 years or so, people have tried to attribute different meanings to the different spellings. The same thing was done with Magic/Magik/Majik and Fairy/Faerie. Truth be told though, most often the case was simply those with more interest wanting to use a spelling that was LESS accepted and therefore cooler and 'older' sounding. There's no real proof which came first in most cases and so we're still just left with personal preference.

i thought they had the same meanind.

i thought they had the same meaning,such as "color" and "colour"

just different spellings.

i personally think vampyre is more of a roleplay poseur saying versus vampire, since that spelling as been around forever

I think people made up the vampyre to make it more new to people ior something...

I think people should just stick with Vampire... not the other

All we have to go on are traditions and superstitions. These do not at first appear much...Yet must we be satisfied; in the first place because we have to be – no other means is at our control – and secondly, because, after all, these things – tradition and superstition – are everything. Does not the belief in vampires rest...on them?
From Dracula by Bram Stoker

Amongst the Family of Living Vampyres, We make a clear differentiation between the spelling of Vampyre and vampire. For the Strigoi Vii the two words have completely different meanings. The Living Vampyre is spelled with a capital “V” and a “y,” whilst the traditional psychic vampire and mythological vampire are most often spelled with an “i” and a lowercase “v.”
“Vampyre” is the older and more classic spelling popularly used in the 19th century, coming from the Latin word vampyrus. The word “vampire” came into the more modern usage with the translation from Eastern European names such as upior, upyr, vampir and vapir. Some members of the Family feel the words Vampyre and vampire are both quite cliché, and a few of these simply prefer to refer to Themselves as Strigoi Vii.
There has been a movement, mostly on the internet in the late 1990s and the first years of the new millennium, which spells “vampire” with an “i.” Followers represent a wholly different category from the Strigoi Vii and Traditional Vampyrism. The original Vampyre covens of Angel (Los Angeles) and Gotham (New York City) were the “old guard” who practiced traditions very similar to what is presented here. The “vampire” internet community is mostly comprised of traditional psychic vampires, from whom the Strigoi Vii wishes to clearly differentiate Ourselves. The Family is proud of and honours Our heritage, and Our members are not to be confused with these parasitic and energy deficient beings.
Traditional psychic vampires, which We of the Family call asarai, are those individuals in this world who truly drain you of your emotional energy. They are clearly defined in Dion Fortune’s book Psychic Self Defense and Anton LaVey’s 1969 magnum opus The Satanic Bible. These traditional psychic vampires are individuals who intentionally or unintentionally create psychodrama and waste energy. While they sometimes flock to the contemporary “gothic” subculture, they are most often found in everyday life. Those asarai who have come in to the sphere of Our Family are truly weak and pathetic beings who have tried to attach themselves to Our movement. We are a traditional and rational Family and have no interest in re-defining terms such as “psychic vampire” to accommodate social trends of people who do not remember or respect the old ways as properly defined by notable logicians such as Dion Fortune and Aleister Crowley.
Recently the Family has gradually distanced itself from the current incarnation of the “vamp scene” and such isolation, although understandable, has resulted in dissociation from each other and a worrisome downward trend for the Family. The Sanguinomicon has been compiled in this form to re-ignite the Black Flame within Our Blood and revitalize the time of Glamour, passion, romance, mystery, and secrecy.
The Sanguinomicon is clearly not for the “drama vampire” that has flooded the vampire community. The Strigoi Vii find humour in the irresponsible “wannabes” who lurk about the periphery of Our Sanctums. Many wear gauche Dracula capes, cheap store-bought plastic fangs, and spend many nights moping about the local darkwave nightclub claiming to be hundreds of years old. Additionally, We are not “dark gurus” seeking non-existent powers, nor “deluded role-players” who take their hobby too seriously.
The true Strigoi Vii is a serious, dedicated, and rational individual. We test and explore everything in Our lives before We add it to Our personal gnosis, or fund of knowledge.

See I dont read a lot of horror stories and stuff but I play games. And I have come to notice the difference is mainly depending on where the person comes from. For me I have always thought it to be Vampire until I play FFXII and Van Helsing they both use vampyre when in the original language. Therefore there is no definite way of saying how it is to wrote, pronounced, or explained. I will give further information as I do more research till then this is all I can gather about our proud race.

Akasha40 -



What should we just stick to one?

Vampire is the new modern way to spell it and the vampyre is the old way. I choose to say and spell it the old for that is my right and other can say or spell it there own way. Just hope it stands for one thing and just another.

I always thought that "Vampire" meant a male Vamp and "Vampyre" was for a lady vamp.

SINcerely Rebecca♫♪

The meaning is the same. Vampyre was the original spelling.

I'd quite like to see proof that 'vampyre' was the original spelling.

I have noticed myself the differnet spelligs though I thought It was spelt different by where you were from. I like the different terms of male and female and also 'real' and roleplay. They are good thoughts of the terminology. Very interesting.

i simply thinkg the 2 variations of vampire/vampyre spelling has to do with old world/new world conceptions of the creature nd how they spelled it..
just a prefference of society.

According to http://members.tripod.com/bitenbysin/vampterms.html ,

Vampyre vs vampire: "Vampyre" is the older spelling of the word "vampire" used in the 17th & 18th centuries, thus "Vampyre" is used to refer to people who are really into the scene or lifestyle. The more modern "vampire" is most often used to refer to Hollywood, myth and fiction.


I suppose I believe that, it makes sense.
"Vampyre" does seem to be an archaic spelling of the word. But people have been screwing around with the English language for centuries.

I think that they mean the same thing. Just different ways of spelling it. That's all.

i think also that it may have something to do of what language was spoken when the term(s) vampire/vampire was arived as i do not believe the preferred language was english now as we know and use it.

those words to me make no difference to one another, it is simply a view of the mind to create a sentiment of higher knowledge and position, both words to me are equal.
I wont juge anyone who uses one or the other word.

spellings from different times in space

I always thought that if someone spelled the word Vampire that would be real and the word Vampyre would be a roleplaying one

No one has yet been able to provide the information about the spelling for different times. Therefore it leaves me to wonder how truthful that would be.

i think the word vampyre is just to make it sound older

DIIFERENT CULTURES

If you research the origin of the word vampire you will find that it is the English version of the word vampyre and it is believed that that word has its origin in the word upir. Look it up on wikipedia.

As far as I understand it, some people choose to call themselves "vampyres" to separate themselves from the fictional, Hollywood-type "vampires". If that makes sense.

That's correct. What is confusing people is the use of the word historically and the use in the modern vampire community and it is just used to differentiate. Unfortunately Sanguinarius has changed what she felt about the meaning on her terminology page. I have what she use to say prior. I think I know why she changed it but not going to say anything more. It's a private matter between her and others. It really doesn't matter anyway. Vampire is just one word for what is described here and since it is from Europe, they can guess at its origins but most of the superstitions in the area where they are defining it from came from the gypsies and they came from India and in that language it is entirely another word.

ive always thought that it was just a diffrent spelling, from like diffrent locations of the globe sort of thing

Sometimes words, especially in the English language have many variants.

English is a combination of motley Germanic Tribes' dialects, Latin, Gallic, and every other Western European language of the day.

Language is dynamic. Rite?

I believe Kitsuna said it best. Spelling it like vampyre is just a way to make it look older. Or at least that's always been my outtake on it. :)

When I think Vampire, I think hollywood movie vamp. Afraid of garlic sunlight and crosses.

Vampyre, to me is a person who leads the vamp lifestyle.

I thought one was how the old english spelled it and the other how we spell it.

Honestly I just think that for some they think it is more appealing aesthetically spelled with a Y.

i realy just think that they are the same word spelled diffrently when one person made a mistake and it just caught on......

i personaly feel its a spelling thing but a friend of mine says vampyres dont live by the rules of the masquerade only you can be judge

And like a few others have said it could be more appealing with the Y..more mysterious. Or could be an old spelling.

I see it one in the same Considering I dont believe in real vampires, so in my opinion they are all just a myth

Is Pyro and Piro the same thing?

I never honestly knew there was a variation I just thought ithere was a prefrece in Spelling is all I don't know that much about vampires interesting creatures tho from the things I do know about them which is why i"m here to learn about them and to also find myself.

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