|
Witch is an individual who uses extra-ordinary or supernatural power (what is generally termed magic) to influence events. Witch has come to signify a wide assortment of meanings, depending on the culture, and the context in which it is presented. While mythological witches are often supernatural creatures, historically many people were also accused of witchcraft, or claimed to be witches. To this day there are a good number of individuals who refer to themselves as witches. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
It has been suggested that Witch be merged into this article or section. ...
Witch may refer to: Witchcraft W.I.T.C.H., a comic book W.I.T.C.H. (organisation), an American feminist organisation. ...
Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Look up magic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
// For the Derek Sherinian album, see Mythology (Derek Sherinian album). ...
Look up Supernatural in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
History studies the past in human terms. ...
There is some belief that the term witch only refers to female magic-users, with another term attributed to the males (such as warlock, wizard, or sorceror). This however is not necessarily true. There are many texts which assert that men are now, and have been considered witches just as readily as women. Look up magic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Warlocks are, among historic Christian traditions, said to be the male equivalent of witches (usually in the pejorative sense of Europes Middle Ages), and were said to ride pitchforks instead of broomsticks. ...
Look up wizard in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
A sorcerer or sorceress (Old French sorcier, fem. ...
Overview The belief in witches of any variety has existed since prehistoric times, and examples can be found all over the world. People have a tendency to categorize witches under one of two categories: Good and Evil. Evil witches are the ones who are thought to bring illness, bad luck, and curses upon neighbours, locals, and crops. Usually however, wherever there is an evil witch, the magic-user who counteracts the ill effects is usually not referred to as a "good witch". As a matter of fact, most good witches are not referred to as such, except in fiction. Benevolent magic-users have traditionally been referred to by other names, such as "healers", or "shamans". A healer is someone who intends to aid recovery from ill health, including alleged faith healers. ...
The shaman is an intellectual and spiritual figure who is regarded as possessing power and influence on other peoples in the tribe and performs several functions, primarily that of a healer ( medicine man). The shaman provides medical care, and serves other community needs during crisis times, via supernatural means (means...
History It is difficult to trace the history of witches, as there is as diverse a history as there is a witch. Many people have skewed ideas regarding such periods of history regarding witches, such as what is commonly referred to amongst the NeoPagan communities as "The Burning Times", or the Salem Witch Trials. Image File history File links Persecution_of_witches. ...
Image File history File links Persecution_of_witches. ...
A witch-hunt is a search for suspected witches; it is a type of moral panic. ...
1876 illustration of the courtroom; the central figure is usually identified as Mary Walcott The Salem witch trials, which began in 1692 (also known as the Salem witch hunt and the Salem witchcraft episode), resulted in a number of convictions and executions for witchcraft in both Salem Village and Salem...
Europe Witches were often blamed for such things as epidemics and famines in the Middle Ages, especially in light of such continent-wide problems as the Bubonic Plague. It is crucial to remember that these witches who were accused were not the same as the cunning folk who practiced herbal medicine, and often assisted others in locating so-called witches.[1] Often times the ones persecuted for being witches were midwives, due to their knowledge of contraceptives and abortifacients. Bubonic plague is the best-known variant of the deadly infectious disease plague, which is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis. ...
In English history, the cunning man or cunning woman is a professional or semi-professional folk magic user up until the twentieth century. ...
An abortifacient is a substance that induces abortion. ...
One of the most infamous texts that outlined the proper methods of discovering and trying witches was the Malleus Maleficarum, or, "The Hammer of Witches", written by James Sprenger and Henry Kramer, which was first published in 1486.[2] It was first written in Latin, and translated to English in 1928 by Montague Summers. Prior to the publication of the text, there was wide skepticism as to whether or not witches actually existed. The authors responded within the text itself by asserting that such disbelief was tantamount to heresy, which thereby silenced any dissenters, out of fear that they too would be persecuted. The book was instrumental to the Inquisition, who especially utilized the methods of torture and dispatching outlined in the work. It is from the Malleus Maleficarum that many of the superstitions surrounding witches arose, such as the belief that women are much more likely to be witches. Cover of the seventh Cologne edition of the Malleus Maleficarum, 1520 (from the University of Sydney Library). ...
Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ...
Augustus Montague Summers (10 April 1880 - 10 August 1948) was an eccentric British author and clergyman. ...
Inquisition (capitalized I) is broadly used, to refer to things related to judgment of heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. ...
It is this period in Medieval Europe that many modern persons who self-identify as witches refer to as "The Burning Times". Often times, the facts and figures that are presented to sway the reader's sympathy with the oppressed witches are skewed, in that there are no official records that explicitly state how many were indeed murdered. The records that do exist are often difficult to verify, as some have included all manner of people killed in the count, regardless of the nature of their case (whether they were truly witches, heretics, or merely non-Catholic). Figures have ranged from 40,000 deaths, to as high as 100,000.[3] The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ...
This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ...
Look up Heretic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
The Americas Most do not mistake the work of the shaman for that of a witch, despite the fact that they often times are capable of very similar things. However, in many Native American groups, shamans are at risk for becoming malicious witches, and can even influence others in similar ways.
The people of the Great Basin area believe that a witch called a pohagadi can cause a child dreams that will in time turn him into a witch.[4] Drainage map showing the Great Basin in orange Various Definitions of the Great Basin (NPS) The Great Basin is a large, arid region of the western United States. ...
The most famous case of supposed witches in the Americas comes from the witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. Aproxximately 27 people died in various ways during the trials, the vast majority being either hanged, or dying in jail.[5] Nickname: Witch City Settled: 1626 – Incorporated: 1626 Zip Code(s): 01970 – Area Code(s): 351 / 978 Official website: http://www. ...
Witches in Modern Times Ever since the renewed interest in the occult and related phenomena in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, there has been an upswing in interest in the potential actuality of witches, and a new desire to attain such a position.
In 1921, Margaret Murray published a book which proposed that there was evidence for the existence of an underground witch-cult in Europe surviving from pre-history through the time of the witch trials to the 18th century. This has since been debated by various researchers, due to Murray's questionable sources, comprised primarily of heavily tainted information gathered from individuals who, for the most part, were forced to provide their statements under extreme duress.[6] This article or section seems not to be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia entry. ...
In 1899, Charles Leland wrote what would be a highly influential book called Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches. The text was supposedly based primarily on the writings given to Leland by a woman named "Maddalena", who had the writings as evidence of a long-living witch collective in Italy. There is still debate as to the validity of this text as well.[7] Charles Godfrey Leland (1824–1903) was an American humorist and folklorist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and educated at Princeton University, and in Europe. ...
Cover from a 1990 printing of Aradia. ...
Later, scholar Marija Gimbutas had located evidence to suggest that ancient peoples in Europe possessed Mother Goddess symbols and figurines, which lends to the idea that there possibly existed a matriarchal society before the widespread patriarchal societies with which most people are familiar. Some contemporary witches have turned to this research as validating their reconstructed social structures. Marija Gimbutas by Kerbstone 52, at the back of Newgrange, Co. ...
Mythological Witches Witches are a popular topic in literature, folktales, and movies. Witches abound in the works of the Brothers Grimm, such as Rapunzel, and Hansel and Gretel. The idea of the evil witch continued as the popular stories were adapted over the decades for newer audiences, eventually winding up becoming the classic images that immediately spring to mind when one hears the word 'witch'. Illustration by Johnny Gruelle Rapunzel is a German fairy tale in the collection assembled by the Brothers Grimm, and first published in 1812 as part of Childrens and Household Tales. ...
Artwork by Arthur Rackham, 1909. ...
Characteristics Attributed to Mythological Witches Many of these are passed down from serious sources such as the Malleus Maleficarum, or have been acquired into popular witch lore over the years, possibly through children's stories, etc. - being old, unattractive, or unpopular
- having deformities, the most popular including:
- warts
- large moles (esp. on the nose)
- a hump
- a large nose and/or chin
- having odd skin (either wrinkled, scarred, or green)
- living alone, or being unmarried, a widow, childless, etc.
- possessing one or more cats, especially black ones (to be used as familiars)
- having frogs/toads, birds, etc., around (for either spells or familiars)
- having crossed eyes, or odd eye colour (to be indicative of the "evil eye)"
- having or riding on a broom
For the protein Strabismus, see Strabismus (protein) Strabismus, also known as heterotropia, squint, crossed eye, cockeyed, wandering eye,weak eye or wall eyed, is a condition in which the eyes are not properly aligned with each other. ...
John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye The evil eye is a widely distributed element of folklore, in which it is believed that the envy elicited by the good luck of fortunate...
Besom brooms are the broom traditionally associated with witches and are traditionally made of twigs tied to a larger pole. ...
List of Fictional Witches -
A list of fictional characters who are witches. ...
Bewitched was an American situation comedy starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York (1964-1969), and Dick Sargent (1969-1972). ...
This article is about the Harry Potter series of novels. ...
Charmed is an American television series that ran for eight seasons on The WB. It was produced by Aaron Spelling and is about three sisters who are the worlds most powerful good witches, known throughout the supernatural community as The Charmed Ones but known to everyone else as the...
Famous Historical and Mythological People Believed to be Witches Yaga can refer to: Yajna (Hindu mythology) Baba Yaga (Russian mythology) Yaga (clothing company) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Joan of Arc, also known as Jeanne dArc,[1] (c. ...
Morgan le Fay, by Anthony Frederick Sandys (1829 - 1904), 1864 (Birmingham Art Gallery): A spell-brewing Morgaine distinctly of Tennysons generation In Arthurian legend, Morgan le Fay, alternatively known as Morgaine, Morgain, Morgana and other variants, is a powerful sorceress and sometime antagonist of King Arthur and Guinevere. ...
See also It has been suggested that Witch be merged into this article or section. ...
The pentagram within a circle, a symbol of faith used by many Wiccans, sometimes called a pentacle. ...
A witch doctor (in southern Africa known as a Sangoma) often refers to exotic healers that believe that maladies are caused by magic and are therefore best cured by it, as opposed to science or developed medicine. ...
Notes - ^ http://nemeton.blogspot.com/2005/10/witches-in-history.html
- ^ http://www.malleusmaleficarum.org/
- ^ Jenny Gibbons (1998). Recent Developments in the Study of The Great European Witch Hunt. Retrieved 2007-03-08.
- ^ http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewarticle.asp?AuthorID=1215&id=21493
- ^ http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/ASAL_DE.HTM
- ^ http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/murray.htm
- ^ http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/aradia/index.htm
|
Feeds |
Contact