Magic in Europe

Cunning folk and grimoires, alchemy, runes and seidr, the fairy faith, the witch trials, and the folk calendar of fire and fertility. 830 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Midsummer and St John's Eve herbs and fires Walpurgis Night and May Day fires Samhain and Halloween divination games First-footing at Hogmanay Witch bottle Knocking on wood and horseshoe customs The Sator square Icelandic galdrastafir Malocchio removal with oil and water Matiasma and ftou ftou

Countries

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

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 morePrecious coral A marine skeleton harvested for jewelry and worn as a protective charm in several culturesSubstance · Protection · Healing Living

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreSator Square A five-word Latin palindrome found in Roman ruins and medieval churchesCharm · Protection · Healing Historical

🇫🇮 Finland and 5 moreMolybdomancy A divination method using molten metal poured into water to read omensRite · Seeing and foretelling · Cursing and harm Living

🇺🇦 Ukraine and 5 moreMugwortчорнобиль (chornóbyl') An aromatic herb used in folk medicine, cooking, and magical protection across Eurasia.Substance · Protection · Healing Living

🇹🇷 Turkey and 1 moreTurkish folkloreTürk halk kültürü A rich body of oral tales, jokes, and rituals from Turkey and the Turkic worldTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreSlavic religion The pre-Christian beliefs of the Slavic peoples before their conversion to Christianity.Tradition · Protection · Healing Revived

🇮🇶 Iraq and 5 moreGrimoire A textbook containing instructions for spells, rituals, and the creation of magical objects.Text · Protection · Healing Historical

🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreAmber Fossilized tree resin used in jewelry and folk healing traditionsSubstance · Protection · Healing Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreSpodomancy Divination by reading omens in ashes, soot, and cindersOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Living 🇬🇧 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 · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreOomancy Divination by eggs, reading shapes and signs to foresee events or diagnose spiritual statesOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Living

🇷🇺 Russia and 7 moreOgnyena MariaОгнена Марија A Slavic fire goddess linked to lightning, rain, and seasonal fire bansFigure · Protection · Healing Living

🇷🇴 Romania and 1 moreSânziană Romanian fairies and a summer solstice festival of flowers and magicBeing · Protection · Love and attraction Living

🇬🇧 United KingdomFairy FlagA' Bhratach Shìth A tattered silk heirloom of Clan MacLeod, said to hold fairy magic and ancient power.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇸🇪 SwedenSigtuna rib A runic bone amulet from medieval Sweden bearing a spell against diseaseCharm · Healing 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.

Grimoire: Bengt A. Lundberg, CC BY 2.5, source
Ognyena Maria: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Amber: uploaded with permission, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Oomancy: Rollcloud, CC BY 3.0, source
Spodomancy: Tim1965, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Sator Square: M Disdero, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Molybdomancy: Micha L. Rieser, Attribution, source
Mugwort: Prahlad balaji, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Turkish folklore: Biser Todorov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Fairy Flag: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Slavic religion: Alphonse Mucha, Public domain, source
Sigtuna rib: Swedish National Heritage Board, CC BY 4.0, source
Sânziană: Saturnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Precious coral: Géry PARENT, CC BY-SA 3.0, source