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. 828 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

🇫🇷 France and 5 moreWerewolf A mythical shapeshifter that turns into a wolf, central to European witch-hunts and Gothic horror.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary

🇬🇷 GreeceMedeaΜήδεια A sorceress and princess of Colchis who aids Jason and uses magic for revenge.Figure · Cursing and harm · Healing Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreLeshyлеший A forest spirit from Slavic folklore who guards the woods and misleads travelers.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy A European spirit with magical powers and human form found in folklore and artBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇹 Italy and 1 moreCupidCupīdō A Roman deity of desire and erotic love, often depicted with a bow and arrow.Being · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇷 GreeceEmpusaἜμπουσα A shape-shifting phantom of Greek myth with a single brass leg, sent by Hecate to seduce and devour young men.Being · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary

🇬🇷 GreeceCancer (mythology)Καρκίνος A giant crab from Greek myth that became a zodiac constellationBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreSupernatural beings in Slavic religion Mythic entities of nature, death, and fate in Slavic folklore and belief.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇫🇷 France and 1 moreSebile A medieval enchantress who evolved from a classical prophetess into an Arthurian fairy queenFigure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇹🇷 Turkey and 1 moreMidasΜίδας A Phrygian king from Greek myth who gained a golden touch and donkey earsFigure · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇬🇷 GreeceHarpyἅρπυια (hárpyia) Half-human, half-bird creatures from Greek and Roman myth, often seen as storm winds or snatchers of food.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary 🇬🇷 GreecePolemosΠόλεμος A Greek spirit of war and the personification of conflictBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇹 ItalyCacus A fire-breathing giant of Roman myth who stole cattle and was slain by HerculesBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreScyllaΣκύλλα A sea monster from Greek tales who guards a perilous passage and devours sailors.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇬🇷 GreeceHorkosὍρκος A Greek divine personification of the curse that follows a broken oathFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary

Photo credits on this page

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

Supernatural beings in Slavic religion: Bartolomeo Giuliano, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Scylla: Unknown artist, Public domain, source
Medea: Frederick Sandys, Public domain, source
Leshy: Γραφέας, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Fairy: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
Sebile: tony_57, CC BY 3.0, source
Cupid: Bertel Thorvaldsen, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Cancer (mythology): Diosphos Painter, Public domain, source
Midas: The Midas Painter, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Harpy: Unknown, near the Tyrrhenian Group?, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Cacus: William Blake, Public domain, source
Werewolf: Mont Sudbury, Public domain, source
Horkos: Furienmeister, Public domain, source