Where do zombies come from?

Did you know that the English word zombie has African roots? The word-concept nzumbi (ghost, spirit) was first brought to the Caribbean by slaves who spoke Kimbudu (spoken in Angola). In the Carribean it developped into the creole word zonbi; the word also evolved into a superstition of a corpse that could be manipulated by supernatural power and made to obey commands.

nzumbi (Kimbudu) > zonbi (Carib. Creole) > zombie (English)

Incidentally, a "zombie" is also a voodoo snake deity of West African origin in Haiti, parts of the southern United States, and Brazil. I do not know if this is related to the Kimbudu-origin "nzumbi" (with lack of evidence, I tend to think not), but it is an interesting coincidence nontheless.

(http://kawann.k1.online.fr/atilye-de.htm)