User:Skyerise/sandbox/History of witchcraft

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While the European witch trials in the early modern period are the most widely known, the history of witchcraft spans centuries and continents. Witchcraft, as a concept, has been primarily defined by societies and cultures through persecution rather than by its inherent qualities. Since ancient Mesopotamia, diverse cultures have identified certain practices as witchcraft and subjected practitioners to severe consequences. In ancient Greece and Egypt, accusations of malevolent sorcery could lead to social ostracism or legal action. During the Western Han Dynasty in ancient China, foreign shamans were persecuted.

What makes the history of witchcraft particularly intriguing is the stark contrast between the persecuted traditions and the persecuting ones. Accused traditions often encompassed practices related to traditional healing, divination, and a deep reverence for nature. In contrast, the persecuting traditions, often representing dominant religious or political authorities, saw these practices as a challenge to established norms and authority. Accused individuals, frequently marginalized or vulnerable members of society, were accused of wielding supernatural powers, while the persecuting institutions sought to maintain their influence and control.

Mesopotamia[edit]

The early stages of the development of witchcraft in Mesopotamia were "comparable to the archaic shamanistic stage of European witchcraft".[1] Witches were not considered evil,[2] but rather helped others using a combination of magical and medical knowledge.[1] They generally lived in rural areas and sometimes exhibited ecstatic behavior,[1] which was more usually associated with the asipu (exorcist), whose main function at this stage of development was to battle non-human supernatural forces.[3]


Our Mesopotamian speaker imagines himself able to journey shaman-like to both the heavens and the netherworld in the guise of a star.[4]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Abusch (2002), p. 65.
  2. ^ Abusch (2002), p. 66.
  3. ^ Abusch (2002), pp. 65–6.
  4. ^ Abusch (2002), p. 276.

Works cited[edit]

  • Abusch, Tzvi (2002). Mesopotamian Witchcraft: Toward a History and Understanding of Babylonian Witchcraft Beliefs and Literature. Brill Styx. ISBN 978-9004123878.
  • Cai, L. (2014). Witchcraft and the Rise of the First Confucian Empire. State University of New York Press. ISBN 978-1438448497.
  • Wilby, Emma (2005). Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits: Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic. Sussex Academic Press.
  • Wilby, Emma (2010). Visions of Isobel Gowdie: Magic, Witchcraft, and Dark Shamanism in Seventeenth-Century Scotland. Sussex Academic Press.

Further reading[edit]

  • Behringer, W. (1998). Shaman of Oberstdorf: Chonrad Stoeckhlin and the Phantoms of the Night. University Press of Virginia. ISBN 9780813918532
  • Bever, E. (2008). The Realities of Witchcraft and Popular Magic in Early Modern Europe: Culture, Cognition and Everyday Life. Palgrave Macmillan UK. ISBN 9780230582118
  • Blain, J. (2002). Nine Worlds of Seid-magic: Ecstasy and Neo-shamanism in North European Paganism. Routledge ISBN 9780415256513
  • Bogdan, Henrik; Djurdjevic, Gordan (2014). Occultism in a Global Perspective.  Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781317544463
  • Farrer, Douglas (2016). War Magic: Religion, Sorcery, and Performance.  Germany: Berghahn Books. ISBN 9781785333309
  • Flint, V. I. J. (1999). Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Ancient Greece and Rome. Athlone Press.
  • Frankfurter, David (2019). Guide to the Study of Ancient Magic. Netherlands: Brill. ISBN 9789004390751
  • Irwin, L. (2014). Coming Down from Above: Prophecy, Resistance, and Renewal in Native American Religions. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 9780806185798
  • Kilpatrick, A. (1998). The Night Has a Naked Soul: Witchcraft and Sorcery Among the Western Cherokee. Syracuse University Press. ISBN 9780815605393
  • Knab, T. J. (2019). A War Of Witches: A Journey Into The Underworld Of The Contemporary Aztecs. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780429711046
  • Malotki, E., Gary, K. (2001). Hopi Stories of Witchcraft, Shamanism, and Magic. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 9780803283183
  • Middleton, John (1977). Magic, Witchcraft, and Curing.  University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292750319
  • Mitchell, S. A. (2011). Witchcraft and Magic in the Nordic Middle Ages. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812203714
  • Morgan, L. (2013). A Deed Without a Name: Unearthing the Legacy of Traditional Witchcraft. John Hunt Publishing. ISBN 9781780995502
  • Ogden, D. (2002). Magic, Witchcraft, and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195151237
  • Stratton, K. B. (2007). Naming the Witch: Magic, Ideology, and Stereotype in the Ancient World. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231510967
  • Whitehead, Neil L.; Wright, Robin (2004). In Darkness and Secrecy: The Anthropology of Assault Sorcery and Witchcraft in Amazonia. Duke University Press. ISBN 9780822385837
  • Winkelman, M. (1992). Shamans, priests, and witches: a cross-cultural study of magico-religious practitioners. Arizona State University. ISBN 9780936249100
  • Worobec, C. D. (2003). Possessed: Women, Witches, and Demons in Imperial Russia. Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780875805986
  • Znamenski, A. (2013). Shamanism in Siberia: Russian Records of Indigenous Spirituality. Netherlands: Springer Netherlands. ISBN 9789401702775
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