Scholars and sceptics
Anthropologists, historians and investigators who study magic and test its claims.
Scholars and sceptics are the people who study magic from outside the practice: anthropologists, historians, folklorists, psychologists, scholars of religion and investigators who test claims. They have names such as E. E. Evans-Pritchard, Marcel Mauss, Bronislaw Malinowski, Mary Douglas, Keith Thomas and Carlo Ginzburg, and also investigators such as James Randi. This page covers what they have found, how they disagree, and what their work has cost and changed. Their work has changed how the whole subject is understood.
Early theories
Nineteenth-century writers such as James Frazer treated magic as a mistaken early science, a view now widely rejected as arrogant and inaccurate. Later anthropologists, including Evans-Pritchard in his 1937 study of the Azande, showed that magical belief can be a consistent way of reasoning about misfortune. Mauss and Malinowski stressed its social role. Fieldwork, archives, laboratory studies and surveys are their main methods, and each field has its own debates and schools.
The history of witch trials
Historians have revised their view of the witch trials. Keith Thomas and Alan Macfarlane studied English village accusations, Carlo Ginzburg found the benandanti in Friuli, and Ronald Hutton has argued about the numbers and causes, and Silvia Federici links the persecution to the rise of capitalism, a thesis historians dispute. The older figure of nine million victims has been dropped, and estimates now run to tens of thousands of executions.
Testing claims
Sceptics test whether claims hold up. James Randi offered a prize for evidence of paranormal power that was never won, and organisations such as the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry investigate fraud. Researchers study why people believe: pattern-seeking, uncertainty and the wish to control events. The best sceptics aim to understand people, not to mock them. Sceptics hold that claims should be tested, and they have a long record of exposing cases such as spirit photography and fake healers.
Ethics of study
Scholars were often colonial officials or missionaries, and their reports shaped how Indigenous religions were named. Contemporary researchers work with communities, ask consent and respect closed knowledge. Practitioners sometimes object to being explained, and sceptics sometimes to being called closed-minded. The conversation continues, and this guide aims to stay neutral on whether magic works. Their critics reply that science cannot measure everything that matters to a community, and that explaining a ritual away is not the same as understanding it.
Scholars and sceptics on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 7 moreSaint Andrew's Day
A Christian feast day marked by national holidays in Scotland and Romania, and folk divination across Europe.Rite 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomEnglish folklore
The myths, legends, and customs of England passed down through generations.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreScottish folkloreBeul-aithris na h-Alba
The myths, creatures and beliefs of the Scottish people, recorded from ancient times to the present.Tradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚬 Italy and 1 moreMedieval European magic
A broad category of ritual and natural practices in the Middle Ages, blending healing, divination, and religious belief.Tradition 路 Healing 路 Seeing and foretelling Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 4 moreWinter solstice
The shortest day and longest night of the year, marked by rites of solar returnTradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚬 Italy and 5 moreSator Square
A five-word Latin palindrome found in Roman ruins and medieval churchesCharm 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 3 moreRunic magic
The use of ancient Germanic letters for spells, divination, and protectionTradition 路 Protection 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚠馃嚩 Iraq and 5 moreGrimoire
A textbook containing instructions for spells, rituals, and the creation of magical objects.Text 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 2 moreMj枚lnirMj谦llnir
The hammer of the Norse thunder god Thor, used as a weapon and for blessingsBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 3 moreJet
A black gemstone carved into amulets and mourning jewellery for centuriesCharm 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 1 moreDruiddruides
A learned priestly class of the ancient Celts in Gaul and BritainTradition 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 4 moreLady MiddayPoludnitsa
A Slavic noon spirit who watches over fields and punishes those who work during the hottest hours.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚪馃嚧 Romania and 5 moreVampire folklore
Global legends of blood-drinking spirits and undead revenantsBelief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 5 moreBay Laurel未维蠁谓畏
An aromatic Mediterranean plant used in cooking and as a symbol of victory and purification.Substance 路 Protection 路 Cleansing and purification Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 1 moreSamhain
A Gaelic festival marking the end of harvest and the start of winter, observed on November 1st.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreChurch grim
A guardian spirit of Christian churchyards, often appearing as a black dog or lamb.Being 路 Protection Historical
馃嚠馃嚫 IcelandGaldrab贸k
An Icelandic grimoire of spells and staves from around 1600Text 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreNeopagan witchcraft
Modern pagan traditions that practice magic and draw on historical witch beliefs.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚠馃嚜 IrelandLorica
A Hiberno-Scottish monastic prayer for protection against evilText 路 Protection Historical
馃嚫馃嚜 SwedenKvinneby amulet
An 11th-century Swedish copper plate with a long runic inscription seeking protectionCharm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚭馃嚘 Ukraine and 1 moreStricha小褌褉褨褔邪
A Slavic goddess who spins the golden thread of human destiny and good fortuneBeing 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Protection Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 Italy and 1 moreShamanism in Europe
Scholarly theories on shamanic elements in European folk beliefs and witch trialsTradition 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 Italy and 1 morePalladium螤伪位位维未喂慰谓 (Palladion)
A wooden statue of Athena said to protect cities, stolen from Troy and brought to Rome.Charm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 4 moreTutelary deity
A guardian spirit or god assigned to protect a specific place, person, or group.Being 路 Protection Living
馃嚪馃嚫 Serbia and 5 moreWolves in folklore, religion and mythology
A global survey of how cultures view the wolf as symbol, spirit or threatBelief 路 Power and authority 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚡馃嚨 Japan and 4 moreHousehold deity
A spirit or minor god believed to guard a home and its family members.Being 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚤馃嚬 Lithuania and 2 moreLaumaLaum臈
A Baltic fairy-like spirit of the sky, weather, and newborn children.Being 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 GreeceGello螕蔚位位蠋
A Greek demon of infancy and a class of beings blamed for infant death.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚜馃嚫 SpainAnjanaan藞hana / an.xa.n蓽
Cantabrian fairies who protect forests and bring gifts to children.Being 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 IrelandLatoon fairy bush
A whitethorn tree in County Clare saved from a motorway by folkloric warnings of misfortuneBelief 路 Protection Living
馃嚫馃嚜 SwedenSaleby Runestone
A Swedish memorial stone raised by a husband for his wife, featuring an ancient curse.Text 路 Protection Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 1 moreGargoylegargouille
A carved stone waterspout shaped like a creature, used on Gothic buildings to shed rainwaterCharm 路 Protection 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 GreeceDaimon未伪委渭蠅谓
A Greek spirit or divine force that mediates between gods and humansBeing 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomLazy Laurence
A mischievous English pixie who makes orchard workers lazy and gives them indigestionBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomNine sorceressesnaw chwaer
A group of nine magical women in Welsh and Arthurian legendFigure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 5 moreVeles袙械谢械褋
A Slavic chthonic deity of cattle, the underworld, and oathsBeing 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 2 moreBesom胁械薪懈泻
A twig broom used for sweeping, folk magic, and fire responseCharm 路 Protection 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Grimoire: Bengt A. Lundberg, CC BY 2.5, source
- Xana: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- European witchcraft: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Kvinneby amulet: Ulrik Skans SHMM, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Bay Laurel: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us, source
- Samhain: Daniel Maclise, Public domain, source
- Church grim: In猫s Lee, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Brownie: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Jiangshi: Dick Thomas Johnson, CC BY 2.0, source
- English folklore: J. R. Skelton, Public domain, source
- Medieval European magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Sator Square: M Disdero, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Wolves in folklore, religion and mythology: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Gello: Filippino Lippi, Public domain, source
- Mj枚lnir: M氓rten Eskil Winge, Public domain, source
- Palladium: Marie-Lan Nguyen ( Jastrow ), Public domain, source
- Jet: Thmsfrst, Public domain, source
- Druid: Bernard de Montfaucon, Public domain, source
- Lady Midday: 袙褨褖褍薪, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Daimon: Fran莽ois-Andr茅 Vincent, Public domain, source
- Gargoyle: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saleby Runestone: Berig, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Saint Andrew's Day: Henryk Siemiradzki, Public domain, source
- Lauma: Raki_Man, CC BY 3.0, source
- Household deity: Claus Ableiter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Veles: Andrey Shishkin, CC BY 3.0, source
- Besom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cox_(artist), Public domain, source