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. 185 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

🇮🇪 Ireland and 2 moreJack-o'-lantern A hollowed vegetable carved with a face and lit from within, worn as a Halloween symbolCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreRabbit's foot A charm carried for luck, often linked to graveyards and strict folk rulesCharm · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreMojo bag A cloth pouch holding charms for protection, luck, or love in the Hoodoo tradition.Charm · Protection · Healing Living

🇺🇸 United StatesHex sign Pennsylvania Dutch barn symbols that range from folk art to talismansCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreBarnstar A painted or carved star used to decorate barns in parts of the United States and Canada.Charm · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇺🇸 United StatesLemon pig A carved fruit figure made for amusement and later linked to New Year luckCharm · Luck and prosperity Living

🇲🇽 Mexico and 1 moreGod's eyeOjo de Dios A woven yarn cross believed to grant spiritual sight and protectionCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇺🇸 United StatesGhost shirt A sacred garment of the Ghost Dance believed to protect the wearer from bulletsCharm · Protection Historical

Photo credits on this page

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

Barnstar: Una Smith, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Halloween: Toby Ord, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Rabbit's foot: Sobebunny, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Lemon pig: GenesisNZ, CC0, source
Hex sign: Smallbones, CC0, source
God's eye: Douglas P. Perkins, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Ghost shirt: Wolfgang Sauber, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Mojo bag: Liza Khomenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, source

Magic in North America

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Countries

Photo credits on this page

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