Magic in North America

Hoodoo and conjure, Appalachian folk magic, Indigenous ceremony (some of it closed to outsiders), modern Paganism and the stage magic of Houdini to Las Vegas. 187 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

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

🇨🇦 CanadaNanabozhoᓇᓇᐳᔓ A shapeshifting spirit and trickster in Anishinaabe storytelling from North AmericaBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living

🇪🇪 Estonia and 1 moreEstonian mythologyeesti mütoloogia The pre-Christian beliefs and legends of the Estonian peopleTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreFinnish mythology The pre-Christian folklore and cosmology of the Finns and KareliansTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Revived

🇨🇦 Canada and 1 moreTotemdoodem A spirit or symbol linking a group to nature, from Ojibwe clan systems to Australian kinshipBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreHiisi A Finnic spirit of sacred places that evolved into a demonic giant in folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical 🇫🇮 Finland and 2 moreHaltija A supernatural guardian of a specific place or animal species in Finnish and Baltic Finnic mythologyBeing · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical 🇬🇱 GreenlandAnguta A Greenlandic Inuit figure who guides the dead and fathered the sea goddess SednaBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇨🇦 CanadaMistapewmistâpêw (ᒥᐢᑖᐤ) A spirit-being of the Cree peoples, known as the Great Man or Bigfoot.Being · Protection · Healing Living

🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreVäinämöinen An ancient Finnish demigod and master singer from the Kalevala epicBeing · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreVanishing hitchhiker An urban legend where a motorist picks up a passenger who vanishes, often leaving behind proof of their death.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Wonder and entertainment Living 🇺🇸 United StatesPlastic shaman A label for imposters who sell fake Indigenous spiritual practices for profitBelief · Cursing and harm Living 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreThe Teachings of Don Juan A 1968 book presenting an apprenticeship with a Mexican sorcerer as anthropological fieldwork.Text · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical

Photo credits on this page

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

Mistapew: Alarichall, CC0, source
Nanabozho: D. Gordon E. Robertson, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Estonian mythology: Jeannette Berkowitz (illustrator), Public domain, source
Finnish mythology: Väinö Blomstedt, Public domain, source
Totem: Jami430, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Väinämöinen: Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Public domain, source

Magic in North America

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Countries

Photo credits on this page

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