Ghouls are thought to be demons addicted to devouring the dead. The ghoul first emerged in ancient Arabian folklore as a being that dwelt in graveyards and other uninhabited places. In Arabian thinking, the ghoul, of ghul, was a devilish type of Jinn.

In the year 1640, a priest called Father Secchi saw a ghoul in a cemetery near Florence. Other accounts appear in history, including one ghoul who was caught in a churchyard in Sudbury and was ducked in the local horsepond. According to the story, the water turned to blood. In the fourteenth century, a ghoul was cornered in the cathedral at Amiens, and hung, drawn and quartered.

Some people also believe ghouls live in the desert, and are able to change shape at will. This type of demon may apparently assume the shape of an animal, particularly that of a hyena. The creature is thought to prey on young children, and also to rob graves to eat the dead.