Adrameleck

Also spelled "Adramelech", he is mentioned as one of the superior demons of hell who would rape women. He is mentioned in the Christian bible, and is also possibly Assyrian. His form is less of a goat like in the game, and more like a half-bull/half-peacock monster thing.

Alastor

In Greek mythology, Alastor is the spirit of revenge. He was originally a mortal, but he was slain by Hercules and existed to avange his death. These are simply called "Vandal Swords" in the English release (on another note, the enemies these come from, "Vandal Armors", were called "Victory Armors" in the Japanese release.

Aliorumnas

The Japanese name of the Salem Witch, she is described in Gothic folklore as one of several witches driven into exile by the fabled King Filimer.

Alraune

These creatures were known as Venus Weeds in Symphony of the Night, but have another name in Circle of the Moon. Alraune was a novel (and later silent movie in the 1930s) about a scientist who studied heredity. He took the sperm from a hanged criminal (from beneath his body, apparently) and impregnated a prostitute. The resulting child was Alraune. The scientist then had her raised in with nuns in a covenant - he was to study whether the genes of evil people would have any effect of her, even though she had a proper upbringing (see Konami's Metal Gear Solid series for similar themes.) In the end, she turned out to be pure evil.

Amdusias

Known simply as the "Hellfire Beast" in the English version, he is yet another demon of hell who takes on the form of either a unicorn or a human. Described in the game as the "Musician of Hell", he will also give concerts.

Amphisbaena

A snake with two heads. It is Greek for "goes both ways". Supposedly, if you cut one in half, both halves will rejoin. It can also join heads into a loop and roll. This is the Diplocephalus in the English version.

Anfauglir

The Japanese name of the Wargs from Symphony of the Night, Anfauglir is the Elvish name of Carcharoth, the guardian wolf from Tolkein's Silmarillion.

Arachne

Arachne was a poor girl in Greek mythology who boasted to have better weaving skills than the great goddess Athena. Insulted, Athena disguised herself as a old woman and trick Arachne into participating in a contest, to see who was more superior. While they both weaved beautiful tapestries, Athena's were superior. However, Arachne continued her boastful attitudes. Angered, Athena condemned Arachne to spend the rest of her life weaving - and turned her into a spider.

Artibatirae

Known in the English version of Symphony as the Spittle Bone, they are four-legged, abnormal humans (called Antipodes), described by the Roman historian Pliny the Elder in his book of Natural History.

Azaghal

In Tolkein lore, he is the Dwarf-lord of Beleghost.

Balor

The god of death and king of giants from Celtic-Irish mythology. He only had one eye, which he kept closed all the time, for it would cause death to anything that it looked at. When he attempted to murder his grandson (prophesized to kill Balor himself), he opened his eye, but was struck and killed.

Basilisk

Really just the same thing as the Cockatrice, though some forms of it appear as a serpent. Makes an appearance in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Beezelbub

Often referred to as the devil, Beezelbub is also more often known as the lord of the flies - hence, all of the insects surrounding him in Symphony of the Night.

Bifrons

These are the "Lossoth" in the English release. He is a monster, but can also transform into a human. He teaches about plants and jewels, and lights torches on the graves of the dead.

Buer

A demon with a lion's head surrounded by five legs that shaped a wheel. Also appears as a centaur or sea star.

Carmilla

Carmilla was based off of a character in a 1870 novel by Sheridan Le Fanu. She was supposedly a beautiful lesbian vampire who wore mask...which hid the fact that she was a countess long dead. You fight the mask in Castlevania 2, which also makes an appearance in Dracula X. You can also read the story here.

Cagnazzo

One of the devil's in Dante's Divine Comedy.

Catoblepas

Funny little creatures called Catoblepas in Circle of the Moon, and Gorgons in Symphony. It has the body of a buffalo and a head of hog. Its stare or breath can either turn people into stone, or kill them. Gorgon was also the name of the family where Medusa came from.

Cerebus

The three headed guardian god of Hades in Greek mythology. Hercules had to capture him as part of his twelve labors. He's also the monster guarding the third corridor in Hogwart's Castle in the first Harry Potter book.

Chronomage

The Chronomage looks very much like the rabbit from Alice in Wonderland - always carrying a stopwatch, worrying about being late for a very important date.

Chon Chon

These are some skull butterflies known as Bitterflies in the American release. Chon Chons are flying vampire heads that use their ears as wings, originating from South America (Peru and Chile).

Chupacabra

Called simply the "Cave Trolls" in the English release, the Chupacabra is a scaled monster that hails from South America that was known to attack goats and suck their blood.

Charon

Though never specificially mentiond, the cloaked boatman in the Castlevania games (Castlevania 2, Dracula X PC Engine, Symphony of the Night) is clearly inspired by Charon, the boatman who would lead the perished across the River Styx to the land of Hades. If the dead in question were not buried properly, or did not have a coin placed under the tongue of their corpse, they would have to wait 100 years at the shore before they would be taken over.

Cthulu

The squid faced elder god from H.P. Lovecraft's books. They mistranslated this in the English version - Cthulu's name and Malachi's were switched.

Cyclops

A giant with only one eye. The most popular cyclops is Polyphemas, son of Poseidon, whom Odysseus is captured by and imprisoned in a cave. Odysseus told him his name was "Noman" and was able to escape by getting him drunk then blinding him by attacking his most-obvious weak point. When Polyphemas called for help, he said "Noman has blinded me!" The other cyclops on the island couldn't make any sense of his seemingly idiotic, drunken fries and ignored him, while Odysseus made his way to freedom.

Diplocephalus

The name simply means "double headed monster". There is no actual monster like it (at least, none that I found.) Check out the "Amphisbaena", which is its Japanese name.

Drolta Tzuentes

A minor character in Castlevania Bloodlines was also a real witch named Dorottya Szentes, who served under Elizabeth Bathory, the character whom Bartley was based on.

Dryad

Female spirits nature that rule over forests. They are often born into trees.

Dhuron

I think this is either a mistranslation or alternate spelling of Dullahan or Dullaron or Dyruahan or however you wish you romanize it.

Dullahan

From Irish folklore, the Dullahan is headless horseman that rides in the middle of the night (very similar to the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, with Ichabod Crane.) When he stops riding, a mortal dies. Like the bad guys in the game, they carry their heads. Apparently, if one comes to your door and throws blood on you, it's a pretty bad omen.

Durga

A Hindu goddess, she is a fighting form of the Mother Goddess, Devi. She was armed to the teeth to destroy the buffalo demon Mahish. She is also the embodiment of compassion, the opposite of Kali.

Elizabeth Bartley

Inspired by the real Translyvanian countess Elizabeth Bathory, she was known as the "Blood Countess", for she liked to hire maids, then slaughter them in order to bathe in their blood. This led to rumors that she was a vampire.

Erinys

The Erinyes were three goddesses of revenge, also known as the Furies. They would pursue the guilty until they were absolved of their sins.

Fenrir

Very similar to the Wargs in the English release, Fenrir is a wolf-shaped monster from Norse mythology. He is a child of the evil Loki, and would attack against the gods when Ragnarok, the end of the world, arrived. When the gods received him, he was just a pup, so they chained him up, trying to convince him he was weak. After several attempts to chain him up (including chaining him miles beneath the earth), he escaped and killed the god Odin. His son eventually slew Fenrir in revenge.

Frankenstein's Monster

Long a movie monster favorite and based off of Mary Shelley's novel, the monster was actually a reanimated body created by Dr. Victor Frankenstein, cobbled together with parts from various dead people. The real monster is portrayed more as a lonesome human who simply can't fit into society, rather than simply a hulking, groaning killing machine.

Gaap

Another demon from Goetia found in Lament of Innocence, Gaap is a high prince of hell and can intensify the human passions of love and hatred.

Gargoyle

Stone statues shaped like dragons that were sculpted as guardians. They come alive in many video games and had their own Disney cartoon awhile back.

Gilles de Rais

The haplass castle master who was turned into a vampire was a real historical figure. He was a skilled and proud French warrior who fought alongside Joan of Arc. He also proved to be a pedaphiliac serial killer, torturing and killing children. In front of court, he confessed immediately to these sins and was executed.

Gremlin

Unlike most of these creatures, the gremlin is a fairly recent creation, and one from American legend. They were thought to be mischevious little creatures blamed for unexplained and mysterious breakdowns in airplaces during World War II. There was a Warner Bros. cartoon where Bugs Bunny matched wits with a gremlin.

Golem

Golems have appeared in many stories and video games - including Tolkein's books - but its roots lie in Jewish folklore. The Rabbi Loew of Prague, wanting to create a guardian for the weak and poor of the city, was created with a skeleton of tree sticks and flesh made of clay. He was brought to life, and made a servant of the people. He could take orders and learn, but he could not speak. Eventually, he experienced enough to grow a personality, and his power went to his head. The golem became a menace and the Rabbi had to dismantle him. There is still a statue of the Golem in Prague.

Gorgon

See Catoblepas.

Granfaloon

The big ball of bodies was originally called "Legion" in Japanese - God only knows why its name was changed. Nearest I can tell is that a granfalloon is a made up word from a Kurt Vonnegut novel. Vonnegut himself defines Granfalloon as "a proud and meaningless association of human beings." The quote: "If you wish to study a granfalloon, remove the skin of a toy balloon." Weird.

Harpy

Half bird, half women, harpies were commanded by the Greek gods to seek out any mortals that did anything wrong. Sometimes portrayed in art to be very beautiful and enticing, but were actually meant to be very ugly.

Headhunter

In the 1985 movie Return to Oz there is a villain named Princess Mombi, who has a collection of heads that attach to her neck. This is almost exactly the same as the Headhunter boss from Aria of Sorrow.

Hippogryph

A hippogryph is one of those fun combination animals passed down in European lore. It has the head, wings and front legs of a gryphon, and the back and hind legs of a horse. It figured in several of the legends of Charlemagne as a mount for some of the knights.

Hydra

Yet another monster from Greek mythology, the Hydra has appeared in both Castlevania 3 and 4 has multi-headed dragons living in the water. According to the myths, the hydra actually had much more than two heads - at least nine, and sometimes described to have as many as one hundred. One of Hercules' twelve labors was to kill the hydra. Unfortunately, every time he cut off a head, two would grow back in its place. So Hercules got his nephew Iolaus to cauterize (burn) each stump after chopping off a head - and he had to bury the last head under a boulder. Furthermore, the rather nasty goddess Hera sent a crab to nip at Hercules' feet all during the battle.

Kali

The Hindu goddess of fear who brings death and destruction. Moronically named "Curly" in the English release of Aria of Sorrow.

Karasuman

The demon lord of the ravens. There doesn't seem to be an actual demon called "Karasuman", but "karasu" means "crow" in Japanese, so a silly sounding translation would be "Crow Man". The Japanese demon known as the tengu is known to change into a crow/humanoid form. This is all very odd, considering that in the Japanese version of Symphony, its name is Malphas, a real crow demon.

Kicker Skeleton

This bad guy is a reference to the old Japanese TV show from the 70s called Kamen Rider. The hero(es), who took the form of a half-human/grasshopper, wore a scarf just like this skeleton. Most of his special moves consisted of a variety of kicks as well. The "Ancient Belt" item it drops is the source of the Kamen Rider's power.

Legion

The Japanese name of the Granfalloon (restored in Harmony of Dissonance, although they are minor enemies in Circle of the Moon), the Legion was a demon in the Bible that possessed people. They were said to be "composed of many".

Lilith

Probably known more amongst video gamers as Morrigan's jailbait succubus sister in Darkstalkers, Lilith is actually an interesting story in the "original" version of the Adam and Eve story. The Hebrews had two anthologies of the Bible - the Torah and the Talmud. The Torah is much of much of what became the Old Testament in the Christian bible. However, the Talmud contained various bits of folklore. This particular story was found in Talmud. Apparently the first woman, she was created as a mate for Adam before Eve came along. However, she was very independent. The story goes that she refused intercourse in missionary position (guy on top) and would not become subserviant to man (or God.) She was either kicked out of the Garden of Eden, or she left on her own will. She then become a demon. She shows up in various other cultures too, such as the Babylonian Goddess Lilitu (which translates to "the monster of the night".) She is also identified with the defiance of man, which is why she is the symbol of empowered women everywhere.

Lilim

The offspring of Lilith, these are essentially the same as the Succubus.

Lossoth

Fron Tolkein's books, their name means "snowmen" and they live in the far North. They are a nomadic tribe and don't really interact with the other humans.

Malphas

This is the "Karasuman" in the English release. He is a demon who (obviously) appears in the form of the raven, or a human with a very bird-like voice. He is also known to accept sacrifices but trick the sacrificers into giving their lives. Malphas is also in charge of building towers.

Medusa

One of the three Gorgon sisters in Greek mythology (and one of Castlevania's most prominent enemies), there are varying descriptions. She is either a hideous monster, or a beautiful woman who happens to have a hair full of snakes. Her stare can also petrify humans. She was slain Perseus - he used the mirror-like reflection of his shield to find her without having to look directly at her, then decapitated the beast. Perseus then stuffed the head in a bag, and used it as a weapon to turn them into stone.

Minotaur

Here's an interesting story. From Greek mythology - Minos, the king of Crete, was to sacrifice a bull to the god Poseiden. However, the bull was so magnificent, Minos kept it. Naturally, Poseiden was pissed, so he cast a spell of Minos' wife Pasiphae, who then fell in love with the bull. The cruel offspring (!!) was the Minotaur. Too hideous to actually show in public, Minos built a maze and had the Minotaur guard it. Somewhere around this point, Crete and Athens were fighting. As a compromise, Athens would give 14 of their young boys to be tossed in the maze and fed to the minotaur. Theseus, son of the king Aegeus of Crete, vowed to kill the monster. He made his way to Crete and fell in love with King Minos' (human) daughter Ariadne, who gave him a ball of silk thread. Theseus used this thread so he would not get lost in the labrynth, and killed the minotaur.

Mummy

The pyramids of Egypt were created as monuments (and tombs) for their dead pharoahs. After death, their leaders were stripped of their organs, dried, and wrapped in bandages before being buried along with quite a bit of treasure. While they certainly aren't of western origin like most of the monsters here, they have made popular movie monsters, hence their inclusion in the Castlevania universe. As far as I know, there is no actual Akomodan II.

Nemesis

Nemesis is the Greek Goddess of divine justice and vengeance.

Olrox

Personally, I think this is a misspelling of Orlock, the vampire from the one of the first vampire films, Nosferatu. The Japanese katakana seems to spell it "o-ru-ro-kku" but is spelled "Orlox" in English.

Orobourous

This is the name of those big snake/worm dragons you'll find in the Inverted Castle. It is a snake that is eating its own tail, so it forms a circle. This is representative of life and eternity.

Paranthropus

The large skeletons found in the various games, Paranthropus is the name of the one of the early species of humans (seperate from homo sapien) found in some sections of Africa. They are human sized and nowhere near as gigantic as the games. He's simply "Big Skeleton" in the Japanese versions.

Pazuzu

This Assyrian demon is found in Harmony of Dissonance, and one of the bosses in Castlevania 3. He is the "King of Evil Wind Demons" and is the personification of the south-east storm wind, which brings diseases. It stands like a human but has a lion's face, a scorpian's body, talons, and feathered wings and legs. He is also apparently the demon that possessed Linda Blair in "The Exorcist". Also the name of the Professor's gargoyle in a later episode of "Futurama".

Persephone

From Greek mythology, she is the daugher of Demester and Zeus. She was abducted by Hades, king of the underworld. Hercules went into hell to save her, but when he arrived, Persephone had actually fallen in love with Hades and wanted to stay. Eventually, they came to a truce, where Persephone would spend part of the year on the surface and the other in the underworld. When she was in hell, the weather would be cold, but when Persephone returned to the earth, the weather would grow warm and plants would blossom. This was symbolic of the changing of seasons. Oddly enough, this is the name of the ninja maids in Aria of Sorrow

Pixie

Pixies are actually playful little sprites from Irish folklore who are inclined to mischief. Apparently, they set up little rings of stone called 'Gallitraps'. Anyone to set a foot in this trap becomes the little prankster's prisoner. Pixies are more like little Leprachaun fellows than witches in the game.

Quetzacoatl

Quetzacoatl is a god from the South American indians (Aztec, Mayan and Toltec). He combined the earth (as a snake), air (as a bird) and water to form the planet. The enemy is a snake in this game (Orobourous in the English one), but appears as a thunder bird Guardian Force in Final Fantasy 8. In addition to figuring into the creation myths, he may have also been a real ruler around the tenth century. Somewhere along the line, legend has it that Quetzacoatl the king walked off towards the sun, saying that he would return. When the Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes discovered the Aztecs, the Indians believed him to be the return to Quetzacoatl. This sad mistake resulted in their eventual slaughtering by the Spaniards. (See that cartoon "The Road to El Dorado".)

Rubicant

Misspelled "Lubicant" in the English translation of Aria of Sorrow, it's another demon from Dante's Inferno. It also guards the eighth circle.

Salem Witch

This refers to the Salem Witches Trials of 1692 in Massachusettes, where large numbers of women were slaughetered because they were thought to be witches, and thus, evil. (insert Monty Python quote here)

Salome

In Christian lore, Salome was the daughter of the lady Herodias, and stepdaughter of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee. John the Baptist spoke out against the marriage between Herodis and Herod, because Herodias was formerly married to Herod's half-brother. Naturally, John was imprisoned for this. Herod was not quick to execute the soon-to-be saint, since he was rather famous and he did not want to make a martyr of him. However, his wife Herodias still wanted John dead, so she convinced her daughter Salome to seduce her own step-father with a dance and ask for John's death. Herod was weak-willed and followed the orders, giving Salome the head of John the Baptist on a platter.

Sausine

The Japanese name of Salome, she is some type of lower-level demon.

Scarmiglione

Misspelled as "Skull Millone" in Aria of Sorrow, it's demon from Dante's Inferno - guardian of the eighth circle.

Scylla

A monster with the head and torso of a beautiful woman, but with several snake tentacles and dog/wolf heads. She was originally a normal girl but was cursed by Circe out of jealousy (who later enchanted Odysseus) in Greek mythology. She happened to kill a few of the expendable crewmen on Odysseus' ship.

Siren

A female demon in Greek mythology with beautiful voices. Stationed on their own islands, their gorgeous songs lure male sailors to them, where they feast on them. When Odysseus passed by, he tied himself to his boat's mast to prevent him from swimming off, while his crewmen plugged their ears with wax.

Skeleton Ape

This one's a bit amusing - you'll notice that the Skeleton Ape throws barrels - just like one of video gaming's most famous simian - Donkey Kong.

Sniper of Goth

The enemy in the inverted Chapel has the description "slew Amalaric of the Goths". Amalaric was King of the Visigoths during the years 507-531. He mistreated his wife due to their difference in religions (he was Arian and she was Catholic), so she wrote a letter to her brother, the King of Paris, who had him assasinated.

Spartacus

One of the skeletons in Lament of Innoence. Spartacus was a Thracian slave who became a gladiator, escaped, and lead a revolt against the Romans. There was a 1960 Stanley Kubrick movie made about this saga, starring Kirk Douglas.

Spriggan

These annoying enemies in Harmony of Dissonance actually come from Scandanavian lore - they are trolls that guard treasures. Nothing like the anime action movie Spriggan, more like the shape-shifting troll woman from Chrono Cross (called "Sprigg" in the English release).

Stolas

A high prince of hell that looks like an owl with long legs.

Succubus

A female night demon that would seduce men in their dreams in hope in that a demon child would be conceived.

Sylph

Comes from the Greek word for butterfly, they are small entities that usually take the form of fairies. They are also supposed to be friendly, but try telling that to any of Symphony's bad guys.

Talos

Talos, in Greek mythology, was a giant made of bronze, who guarded the isle of Crete. He had a single vein which was closed by a bronze peg. When Jason and the Argonauts were heading by the island, they cast a spell on Talos, removed the peg, and let him bleed to death.

Triton

The god of the sea in Norse mythology, and the sun of Poseiden/Neptune. Also Ariel's father in The Little Mermaid.

Tsuchinoko

The description reads "A mythical monster proven to exist by Soma Cruz in 2035." The Tsuchinoko is an actual mythical snake stemming from the eigth century novel "Kojiki". Although there have been many reported sightings, no one has actually found or studied one. It is supposed to be between 30 and 80 centimeters long, and have a body thicker than its head or tail.

Ukobach

The "Gremlin" in the English version, Urobach is a very low-level demon who maintains the boilers of hell. He usually appears with his body on fire.

Undine

A female water sprite who could gain a real soul by marrying a human.

Valhalla Knight

Valhalla is the hall in Norse mythology where the Gods live. There they collect the heroic souls of the dead in order to amass an army to fight against Loki and the Frost Giants. This battle will result in the End of the World - known as Ragnarok. Go play Enix's Valkyrie Profile if you're curious. He is simply named the "Dead Trooper" in the Japanese release.

Valkyrie

Pretty similar to the Valhalla Knight above, the Valkyries were female warriors of the gods to recuit the dead into their army.

Vassago

One of the demons in Lament of Innocence, Vassago is another reature from the Goetia. A prince of hell, he can predict the future and find lost items.

Warg

The guardians of the Castle Entrance in Symphony of the Night, Wargs are large wolves (though not as gigantic as the game) that the Orcs in Tolkein novels used as riders. Their name, slightly modified to "varg", also means "wolf" in Swedish. Their names are different in the Japanese release - Anfauglir.

Water Leaper

These creatures are only found in the Saturn version of Symphony of Night, in the garden - they're based on tailed, winged, toad-like creatures that would lurk in Welsh lakes and prey on fishermen.

Werewolf

This is a well-known story, but it's worth telling. A werewolf is known to supper from "lychanthropy" - that is, they turn into a wolf or half-human/half-wolf combination. The disease is transmitted from bites from other werewolves. Supposedly, the only way to kill them is with silver - hence, the silver bullets. If you're curious, try the old PC adventure game "Gabriel Knight: The Beast Within", with deals quite a bit with werewolves.

Will-o-Wisp

A common enemy in video games, Will-o-wisps, also known as St. Elmo's Fire, amongst other names, are small flickering lights that are common over bogs. Some stories profess these to be fairly harmless fairies - others tell stories that the wisps would lure curious travelers into the swamps, and thus, their deaths. There is a story of a lowlife named Will, who was quite a wily bastard. He was killed when found in the bed of a married woman, but St. Peter in heaven gave him a second chance. However, he continued his bwady lifestyle. He was banished from both heaven and hell. However, the devil gave him some hellfire coals to keep light.

Wraith

If you've seen Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings, you know these guys - enclosed in capes, utterly evil. They appear briefly in the Saturn version of Symphony of the Night.

Wyvern

Wyverns are flying monsters that look like dragons, but in actuallity, are not true dragons. They are actually refered as Dragonetes, as they possess only two limbs and their wings are actually supposed to be feathered like birds and are not extended from the rib rage like a dragons. Wyverns are vicious and attack anything on sight, and are sometimes feared to have brought plague over Europe. Wyverns were also used as an allergory in the bestiaries of Medievil Europe for Satan.

Yorick

You'll find a headless skeleton in the inverted Castle Keep in Symphony of the Night perpetually kicking his head. I'm sure you've seen (or at least heard of) the scene in Shakespeare's Hamlet where Hamlet holds a skull and recites the lines "Alas, poor Yorick, I knew him, Horatio." Anyway, this was a name change in the English version - his Japanese was the less amusing "Soccer Boy".