All entries
2,158 entries so far, best known first. 3,227 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
馃嚭馃嚫 United StatesKahuna
A Hawaiian expert or priest, keeper of hidden knowledge in craft and spiritTradition 路 Healing 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚠馃嚪 Iran and 1 moreJinn噩賽賳賾
Supernatural beings in Islamic and pre-Islamic Arabian belief, created from smokeless fire.Being 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚠馃嚛 Indonesia and 2 moreDukun
A traditional healer and spirit medium in Indonesian folk practiceTradition 路 Healing 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚦馃嚞 Nigeria and 5 moreOgun脪g煤n
A West African deity of iron, war and metalworking found in Yoruba and diaspora traditionsBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚨馃嚟 Philippines and 1 moreTaotao Monataotaomo'na
Ancestral spirits of the Mariana Islands who guard wild places and influence daily lifeBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚚馃嚘 CanadaMistapewmist芒p锚w (釖メ悽釕栣悿)
A spirit-being of the Cree peoples, known as the Great Man or Bigfoot.Being 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚘馃嚭 AustraliaCleverman
A traditional Aboriginal healer and cultural keeper in Australia with varied magical abilities.Being 路 Healing 路 Cursing and harm Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Dukun: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mistapew: Alarichall, CC0, source
- Jinn: VenusFeuerFalle, CC0, source
- Kahuna: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Ogun: Chado07, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mimi: Photo by and 漏2002 Dustin M. Ramsey ( Kralizec! ), CC BY-SA 2.5, source