殭屍 (geung si)

literally means “stiff corpse.” It refers to the jiangshi of Chinese folklore – a reanimated corpse that moves by hopping, arms outstretched, due to rigor mortis, and is traditionally destroyed or controlled by Taoist priests using talismans. This is a distinct creature from the Western vampire, which in Cantonese is 吸血鬼 (kap hyut gwai), “blood-sucking ghost.”