Golem

A golem (/ˈɡoʊləm/ GOH-ləm; Hebrew: ‎גּוֹלֶם, romanized: gōlem) is an animated, anthropomorphic being in Jewish folklore, which is created entirely from inanimate matter, usually clay or mud. The most famous golem narrative involves Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the late 16th-century rabbi of Prague. According to Moment magazine, "the golem is a highly mutable metaphor with seemingly limitless symbolism. It can be a victim or villain, man or woman—or sometimes both. Over the centuries, it has been used to connote war, community, isolation, hope, and despair."^[1]

In modern popular culture, the word became generalized, and any crude anthropomorphic creature devised by a sorcerer may be named "golem". There may be iron golems, such as Iron Invader or stone golems, e.g., in Blood & Magic.