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
London 18Paris 18Delphi 13Athens 12Cairo 5Dodona 5Edinburgh 4Kraków 4Olympia 4Praeneste 4Prague 4Amsterdam 3Bamberg 3Capitoline Hill 3Cumae 3Dartmoor 3Egyptian Hall 3Eleusis 3Logroño 3Lyon 3Milan 3New York 3Quebec 3Santiago de Compostela 3Trier 3Val Camonica 3Veii 3Vilnius 3Würzburg 3York 3
Rites of the region
Midsummer and St John's Eve herbs and firesWalpurgis Night and May Day firesSamhain and Halloween divination gamesFirst-footing at HogmanayWitch bottleKnocking on wood and horseshoe customsThe Sator squareIcelandic galdrastafirMalocchio removal with oil and waterMatiasma and ftou ftou
Countries
🇦🇱 Albania 30🇦🇩 Andorra 1🇦🇹 Austria 34🇧🇾 Belarus 21🇧🇪 Belgium 11🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4🇧🇬 Bulgaria 37🇭🇷 Croatia 16🇨🇿 Czech Republic 14🇪🇪 Estonia 28🇫🇮 Finland 38🇫🇷 France 157🇩🇪 Germany 137🇬🇷 Greece 135🇭🇺 Hungary 13🇮🇸 Iceland 47🇮🇪 Ireland 105🇮🇹 Italy 138🇽🇰 Kosovo 5🇱🇻 Latvia 10🇱🇹 Lithuania 20🇱🇺 Luxembourg 2🇲🇹 Malta 2🇲🇩 Moldova 4🇲🇪 Montenegro 4🇳🇱 Netherlands 32🇲🇰 North Macedonia 6🇳🇴 Norway 44🇵🇱 Poland 45🇵🇹 Portugal 17🇷🇴 Romania 42🇷🇺 Russia 117🇷🇸 Serbia 37🇸🇰 Slovakia 4🇸🇮 Slovenia 7🇪🇸 Spain 75🇸🇪 Sweden 85🇨🇭 Switzerland 30🇺🇦 Ukraine 25🇬🇧 United Kingdom 231🇻🇦 Vatican City 1
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
🇪🇸 Spain and 2 moreHoly ChaliceSanto Cáliz
A cup believed to have held the blood of Jesus at the Last SupperCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreClassical elements
Ancient theories that explain all matter as combinations of earth, water, fire, air, and aetherBelief · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇹🇷 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
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreOgre
A legendary humanoid monster known for its size and cannibalistic appetiteBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenKnights of Ålleberg
Swedish ghost story about sleeping warriors in a mountainFigure · Power and authority Legendary
🇳🇴 NorwayTroll
A Nordic creature of folklore and myth, ranging from mountain dwellers to modern fantasy icons.Being · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreDevil's Footprints
A 1855 English mystery of hoof-like tracks appearing across snow-covered landscapesBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreWedding superstitions
Folk beliefs and omens tied to marriage customs across many culturesBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇪 IrelandGlas Gaibhnenn
A fabulous cow of Irish myth that yields boundless milk and sparks a quest for vengeance.Being · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇦🇱 AlbaniaKukudh
An undead revenant from Albanian folklore that haunts houses and spreads sickness.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenVardøger
A spirit double that precedes a person in time and spaceBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandTír na nÓg
An island realm in Irish myth where time stands still and youth never fadesBelief · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomHobgoblin
A household spirit from English folklore known for chores and mischiefBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇫🇷 FranceMagonia
A cloud realm of aerial sailors blamed for hail and stolen grain in medieval EuropeBelief · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomSpring-heeled Jack
A Victorian phantom known for leaping over walls and breathing fire.Figure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyDe Umbris Idearum
A 1582 treatise by Giordano Bruno on memory, magic and philosophyText · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFiddler's Green
A maritime afterlife of endless music and rest for veteran sailorsBelief · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇨🇭 SwitzerlandArbatel de magia veterum
A 1575 Swiss grimoire focused on celestial spirits and Christian ethicsText · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomGwragedd Annwngwraig Annwn
Welsh lake fairies linked to the origin of black cattle and the Tylwyth TegBeing Legendary
🇭🇺 HungaryLidérc
A shape-shifting spirit from Hungarian folklore that brings wealth or illness.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇮🇹 ItalyMazapégul
A mischievous elf of Romagna with a red cap that steals sleep and braids horse manesBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyBorda
A blindfolded witch from the Po Valley who drowns children in marshesFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇩🇪 GermanyFeldgeist
German folk creatures tied to crops, weather and harvest ritualsBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇫🇷 FranceFarfadet
Small helpful spirits of French folklore that perform chores for foodBeing · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇪🇸 SpainTrenti
A forest goblin from Cantabrian mythology known for pranks and mischiefBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇫🇮 FinlandRahko
A Finnish mythic figure linked to the darkening of the Moon and nightmaresBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇦🇱 AlbaniaLugat
A shadow-dwelling vampire of Albanian folklore that attacks sleepers and hides in ruins.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomBuccabocka
A Cornish sea-spirit and mine-dweller who receives fish offerings from coastal communities.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreBogle
A Northumbrian and Scots household spirit or ghost known for perplexing people.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 morePan Twardowski
A Polish sorcerer who bargained with the Devil and ended up on the MoonFigure · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreAstral body
A subtle vehicle of emotion and dream said to travel beyond the physical formBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomMaggy Moulach
A Scottish brownie known for her hair and fierce protection of her kinBeing · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇷 Greece and 3 morePalladium
A sacred image or object believed to guarantee the safety of a city or nationCharm · Protection Historical
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreDogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie
A foundational treatise on ritual magic by Éliphas Lévi, structured around the tarot.Text · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇵🇱 PolandFrankenstein town gravediggers scandal
A 1606 witchcraft trial in Silesia that may have inspired Mary Shelley's novelBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreKlabautermann
A North Sea ship kobold that aids sailors and signals a vessel's doom.Being · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomQueen of Elphame
The elfin queen of Faerie from Lowland Scotland and Northern England folkloreFigure · Cursing and harm · Healing Historical
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 moreKarzełekСкарбник, Кладенец
A Slavic mine spirit that guards treasures and guides miners.Being · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreChink-a-chink
A close-up coin trick where objects appear to jump between locations until gathered togetherIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreMagical motto
A chosen name used by occultists to separate their spiritual identity from their everyday life.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇸🇾 Syria and 5 moreInsufflation
A ritual breath used in Christian rites to drive out evil or invite the spirit.Rite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelBabalon
A Thelemic goddess of fertility, ecstasy, and spiritual transformation.Being · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living
🇫🇮 Finland and 2 moreTietäjä
A traditional Finnic healer and sage whose power came from memorised spells and deep knowledge.Figure · Healing · Protection Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceCampeΚάμπη
A female monster who guarded the imprisoned Titans in Greek mythBeing 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
🇫🇷 France and 4 moreRobert the Devil
A medieval legend of a knight born to Satan who seeks redemptionFigure · Cursing and harm · Change and initiation Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenGlemminge stone
A Viking Age runestone in Sweden bearing a Younger Futhark inscription and a curse.Text · Cursing and harm Historical
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 1 moreIspolinисполин
A legendary giant from Bulgarian folklore, said to be the second generation of Earth's inhabitants.Figure Legendary
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Glemminge stone: Jorchr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Robert the Devil: Gustave Doré, Public domain, source
- Classical elements: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Midas: The Midas Painter, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ogre: Henry Justice Ford, Public domain, source
- Knights of Ålleberg: Photograph: Nasko, Public domain, source
- Troll: John Bauer, Public domain, source
- Devil's Footprints: John Good, Public domain, source
- Glas Gaibhnenn: Internet Archive Book Images, No restrictions, source
- Tír na nÓg: Arthur Rackham, Public domain, source
- Hobgoblin: Herbert Railton, Public domain, source
- Spring-heeled Jack: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Feldgeist: Zwoelefant, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Farfadet: User:Mattes, Public domain, source
- Bucca: Frederick Whymper, Public domain, source
- Pan Twardowski: Pit1233, Public domain, source
- Astral body: Rad el Baluvar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Palladium: Marie-Lan Nguyen ( Jastrow ), Public domain, source
- Dogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie: Eliphas Levi, Public domain, source
- Frankenstein town gravediggers scandal: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl, source
- Klabautermann: Anton von Werner, Public domain, source
- Karzełek: Krystian Hasterok, CC BY 2.5, source
- Tietäjä: Robert Wilhelm Ekman, Public domain, source
- Harpy: Unknown, near the Tyrrhenian Group?, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Chink-a-chink: Niklaus Gerber, CC BY 3.0, source
- Holy Chalice: Vitold Muratov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ispolin: Joshua Davis, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Wedding superstitions: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Babalon: William Blake, Public domain, source