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. 817 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

🇬🇷 GreeceTriple Goddess A Neopagan deity representing three female life stages and lunar phasesBeing · Power and authority Living

🇮🇸 Iceland and 1 moreHidden-folkhuldufólk Supernatural beings in Nordic folklore who live in a parallel world within the landscape.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreDuende A humanoid spirit of Iberian and Latin American folklore, ranging from household pranksters to forest guardians.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreAos Sí Supernatural beings of Irish and Scottish folklore, said to dwell in mounds and influence the human world.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇹 ItalyBadaliscBadalisch A mythical goat-headed creature from the Italian Alps, captured and mocked during Epiphany celebrations.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreEaster Bunny A German folkloric hare that judges children and delivers colored eggs for EasterBeing · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 4 moreTutelary deity A guardian spirit or god assigned to protect a specific place, person, or group.Being · Protection Living

🇪🇸 SpainCatalina Lercaro A ghost story from Tenerife about a woman who took her own life on her wedding dayBeing Living

🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreElwetritschElwedritsch A chicken-like creature from German folklore that tames the fear of sleep paralysisBeing · Protection Living

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreSaint Michael A Christian archangel who defends the faithful and weighs soulsBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇷🇴 Romania and 1 moreSânziană Romanian fairies and a summer solstice festival of flowers and magicBeing · Protection · Love and attraction Living 🇵🇹 Portugal and 1 moreCabra cabriola A fire-breathing goat bogeyman used to frighten children in Portuguese and Brazilian folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇸 IcelandGrýla A monstrous Icelandic troll associated with Christmas and the Yule LadsBeing · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇱 IsraelBabalon A Thelemic goddess of fertility, ecstasy, and spiritual transformation.Being · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living 🇷🇺 RussiaAiyАйыы (Ayıı) Benevolent spirits of the Upper World in Yakut mythologyBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living

Photo credits on this page

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

Grýla: Andrii Gladii, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Badalisc: Luca Giarelli, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Hidden-folk: Schorle, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Brownie: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Duende: René Mayorga, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Easter Bunny: Dr. Bernd Gross, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Elwetritsch: AnRo0002, CC0, source
Saint Michael: Francesco Botticini, Public domain, source
Catalina Lercaro: tivity.es, CC BY 3.0, source
Babalon: William Blake, Public domain, source
Sânziană: Saturnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Aos Sí: AE [George William Russell] (1867-1935), CC BY 4.0, source
Triple Goddess: Unknown author, Public domain, source