Vampires are characters in mythology and legend who live by eating the essence of life, usually in the form of blood from other living things. Although belief in blood-sucking demons exists in various cultures and has existed since ancient times, the term vampire itself only became popular in the early 18th century after the entry of vampire legends into Western Europe from the Balkans and Eastern Europe. In these areas there are also legends about creatures such as vampires, such as vrykolakas in Greece and strigoi in Romania which also contributed to increasing the belief in vampires in Europe. but much of the modern way of viewing vampires was created by Bram Stoker in the famous novel, Dracula. Few people believe that vampires are real, but they are still very popular in movies, television, and books.