All entries

2,000 entries so far, best known first. 3,529 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇦🇺 AustraliaMokoi An evil spirit in Yolngu mythology that kills sorcerers and kidnaps childrenBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇳🇿 New ZealandTaniwha Supernatural beings of Māori lore, acting as guardians or dangerous predators in water and earthBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living 🇼🇸 Samoa and 1 moreAitu A Polynesian term for spirits, ghosts, or calamityBelief · Cursing and harm Historical

🇦🇺 AustraliaRainbow Serpent A creator spirit of water and land in Aboriginal Australian mythologyBeing · Healing · Cursing and harm Living

🇦🇺 AustraliaKurdaitchakwertatye A ritual executioner and feathered shoes of the Arrernte people in Central Australia.Tradition · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical 🇳🇿 New ZealandTohunga Suppression Act 1907 A New Zealand law banning traditional Māori healers and faith practitionersText · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical

🇵🇬 Papua New GuineaWitch-hunts in Papua New Guinea Violent attacks on people accused of sorcery, mainly women and girlsBelief · Cursing and harm Living 🇦🇺 AustraliaYara-ma-yha-who A red frog-like vampire from Australian Aboriginal folklore that lives in fig treesBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇵🇭 Philippines and 1 moreTaotao Monataotaomo'na Ancestral spirits of the Mariana Islands who guard wild places and influence daily lifeBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living 🇸🇧 Solomon IslandsAdaro Ghosts and elemental spirits from Makira island in the Solomon IslandsBeing · Cursing and harm Historical 🇳🇿 New ZealandMaero A wild supernatural people of New Zealand forests and mountainsBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇦🇺 AustraliaCleverman A traditional Aboriginal healer and cultural keeper in Australia with varied magical abilities.Being · Healing · Cursing and harm Living 🇫🇯 FijiFlaming Teeth A giant from Fijian myth whose burning teeth brought fire to humanityFigure · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Taniwha: Pseudopanax at en.wikipedia, Public domain, source
Rainbow Serpent: unknown (as drawn by an Aboriginal), Public domain, source
Kurdaitcha: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Witch-hunts in Papua New Guinea: The original uploader was Dr. Blofeld at English Wikipedia ., Attribution, source

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Photo credits on this page

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