10 Things You Didn’t Know about Umbreon

Umbreon is one of the Eeveelutions. For those who are unfamiliar with that term, the Pokemon called Eevee can evolve into a number of potential forms, each of which possesses a connection with an element of some kind. In the case of Umbreon, it is the Dark Eeveelution. Here are 10 things that you may or may not have known about Umbreon:

1. The Japanese Name Is Blacky

The Japanese name of Umbreon is Blacky. Supposedly, it comes from a combination of Black and Lucky. Furthermore, it might be a reference to a Japanese belief that black cats are lucky.

2. The English Name Is Inspired By Latin

Speaking of which, the English name Umbreon is inspired by Latin. Umbra means “shadow.” Meanwhile, aeon is a Latin transliteration of a Greek word with various meanings that include “age,” “being,” and “generation.” On a related note, there was a Greek god called Aion who served as a representation of Unbound Time rather than time separated into the past, the present, and the future.

3. Eon Stands for Evolution

With that said, it should be mentioned that the “eon” in the names of Umbreon and other Eeveelutions are supposed to stand for evolution, which makes sense because Eevee is called the Evolution Pokemon because of its higher than normal number of potential evolutions. In fact, Eevee was called Eon in the English prototype.

4. Might Be Based on a Black Cat

One of the potential sources of inspiration for Umbreon is the black cat. As stated earlier, the Japanese see black cats as being lucky, but they are aware of the western belief that black cats are unlucky. It could be that this is the reason that Umbreon is a Dark Pokemon.

5. Might Be Based on Bastet

Some people see a resemblance between the rings on Umbreon’s form and the lunar markings seen on certain ancient Egyptian statues. As such, these individuals think that Umbreon might have been inspired by the ancient Egyptian goddess Bastet, who was a cat-headed figure once associated with the sun but later associated with the moon because the Greeks syncretized her with Artemis.

6. Has a Couple of Evolution Methods

Eevees can turn into Umbreons through a couple of ways. First, they need to level up with a high friendship value when it is nighttime. Second, they need to level up with a high friendship value when there is a Moon Shard in the bag, which was necessary because Pokemon XD didn’t have the day-night cycle.

7. Has Been a Starter

It is interesting to note that Umbreon has been a starter Pokemon. Both it and its Psychic counterpart Espeon were the starters of the protagonist Wes in Pokemon Colosseum for the Nintendo Gamecube. This makes sense because Wes wasn’t a new trainer but rather someone who had been with his Pokemon for years and years by the start of the game.

8. They Have Excellent Night Vision

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Umbreons are nocturnal in nature. As a result, they possess excellent night vision, which provides them with a considerable advantage when fighting enemies at night. This is particularly true because Umbreons have no hesitation about making use of stealth whenever and wherever possible.

9. They Have Poisonous Sweat

One of the Umbreon’s more curious properties is that it can sweat poison, though they don’t actually learn any Poison moves on their own. Dark Pokemon being Dark Pokemon, this isn’t a wholly passive maneuver. Instead, Umbreons are perfectly capable of spraying the poisonous sweat right into the eyes of their enemies, which is an excellent example of how they prefer going after vulnerabilities.

10. Their Rings Can Glow

Curiously, the rings on the Umbreon’s form can light up, which is supposed to spook its enemies. It is possible that the fear is caused by the ominous nature of the light. However, it should be noted that the rings are supposed to possess some kind of mysterious power, meaning that there might be something more to it. Whatever the case, the contrast between the Umbreon’s black fur and the much more colorful nature of its rings enable it to stand out that much more to the senses, thus making for a very memorable impression.