Genius loci – the spirit of a location
The Latin term genius loci literally means “the spirit of the place”. In Roman mythology, the spirit originally meant a guardian spirit (genius), who was often depicted in the form of a snake. In...
Category: Folklore
Haselwurm and Tatzelwurm
The Haselwurm and the Tatzelwurm or Stollenwurm are a strange creatures which dwell in a foggy way between spirit beings from folklore and cryptozoological rarities. The weirdest thing about the creature is the fact...
Dybbuk or Dibbuk – the sticky ghost of the Ashkenazi
In Ashkenazic Jewish folklore a Dybbuk (Yiddish: דָּבַק, dāḇaq) is an evil spirit which enters into a living person, cleaves to his soul, causes mental illness, talks through his mouth, and represents a separate...
Huldra or Skogsrå, the femme fatale of the Scandinavian forests
A Huldra or Hulder is a seductive – usually female – forest creature found in Scandinavian folklore. Her name derives from a root meaning “covered” or “secret”. In Norwegian folklore, she is known as...
Huldufólk, the Hidden People of Iceland
The Huldufólk (“hidden people”), also called Högfolk is a mythical race of Elves in Icelandic and Faroese folklore. They are supernatural beings that live in nature. They look and behave similarly to humans, but...
Witch bottles for warding off evil and curses
Witch bottles were originally created for Apotropaic magic (protection or defense magic) and began as countermagical devices used as protection against other witchcraft and black magical attacks. Apotropaic magic has always been one of...
Jack-o’-lantern, its origin and connection with Will-o’-the-wisp
In the United States, the celebration of Halloween made its appearance mainly in the second half of the 19th century, when large groups of Irish and Scottish immigrants entered the country. During this time,...
Investigating “An authenticated Vampire story” by Franz Hartmann
An authenticated Vampire story by the famous occultist Dr. Franz Hartmann was first published as a true account on vampirism in THE OCCULT REVIEW, London, September 1909 – whose founder and editor was an...
Aitvaras, fire snake aka household spirit of Lithuania
The Aitvaras or Aitvars is a nature spirit in Baltic, especially Lithuanian, folklore and mythology. Several folklorists and micro-historians such as Wilhelm Mannhardt, W. R. S. Ralston, Claude Lecouteux, and others have pointed out...
Jewish Necromancy
Necromancy is a form of magic which uses the dead to get certain results. There are many forms of necromancy and the art is and was performed all over the planet and goes thousands...
