All entries
2,660 entries so far, best known first. 2,250 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
🇯🇵 JapanInugami犬神
A Japanese spirit of dog possession and folk sorceryBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreNecromancy
A form of divination that seeks to speak with the dead for hidden knowledge.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomMother Shipton
An English prophetess and herbalist from folklore, known for predictions printed long after her death.Figure · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreFranz Anton Mesmer
A German physician who proposed a universal fluid of natural energy and founded mesmerism.Tradition · Healing Historical
🇿🇦 South AfricaSympathetic magic
A magical principle based on imitation and contact to influence the worldTradition · Protection · Healing Historical
🇺🇸 United StatesFolk healer
An unlicensed community member who provides healing care using local plants and traditional knowledge.Tradition · Healing · Protection Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreNicholas Culpeper
An English herbalist and astrologer who translated medical texts into English for the poor.Text · Healing · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaUnicorn horn
A legendary object believed to neutralize poison and cure disease, traded as narwhal teeth for centuries.Charm · Healing · Protection Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomAgnes Sampson
A Scottish healer executed for witchcraft during the North Berwick trials.Figure Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreCunning folk
European practitioners of folk medicine and helpful magic from the Middle Ages to the twentieth centuryTradition · Protection · Healing Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreSixth and Seventh Books of Moses
A grimoire claiming to reveal the hidden spells of Moses for controlling spirits and natureText · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇯🇵 JapanKitsunetsuki狐憑き
A Japanese folk belief in which a fox spirit enters and controls a human host.Belief · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreWitch bottle
A container filled with personal items and sharp objects to trap harmful magicCharm · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇳🇴 NorwayCyprianus
A Scandinavian folk magic grimoire and the tradition of spells it containsText · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreEuropean witchcraft
Historical beliefs in harmful magic and the resulting trials across EuropeBelief · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreSeventh son of a seventh son
A folklore belief that birth order grants supernatural healing or cursed powersBelief · Healing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇯🇵 JapanTanukitsuki狸憑き (たぬきつき)
A Japanese folk belief where a tanuki spirit possesses a human, causing illness and strange behavior.Belief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyDoñas de fuera
Sicilian fairies said to carry chosen women by night to a field at BeneventoBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomWitchcraft in early modern Walesdewiniaeth
A historical look at the rare witch trials and executions in Wales from the 1500s to the 1700sBelief · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreCrithomancy
Divination by reading barley cakes and scattered cereal grains for omensOracle · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇫🇮 Finland and 2 moreTietäjä
A traditional Finnic healer and sage whose power came from memorised spells and deep knowledge.Figure · Healing · Protection Historical
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreKeeningcaoineadh
A Gaelic vocal lament for the dead, performed by hired mourners in Ireland and ScotlandRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreFrog coffin
A Finnish folk magic burial of a frog in a tiny coffin to steal luck or reflect harmRite · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Witchcraft in Latin America: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Inugami: Sawaki Suushi (佐脇嵩之, Japanese, *1707, †1772), Public domain, source
- Necromancy: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Banshee: W.H. Brooke, Public domain, source
- Mother Shipton: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Franz Anton Mesmer: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Sympathetic magic: Marie-Lan Nguyen, CC BY 2.5, source
- Folk healer: calliopejen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Witchcraft in early modern Wales: Joan Blaeu / Joan Blaeu, Public domain, source
- Nicholas Culpeper: Richard Gaywood, Public domain, source
- Unicorn horn: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Agnes Sampson: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Cunning folk: Midnightblueowl at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Witch bottle: British Museum, Daniel Pett, 2004-10-25 15:27:22, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Tietäjä: Robert Wilhelm Ekman, Public domain, source