Talk:European witchcraft

Archaeological example
I am sorry to barge in here before I haven't got that book back -- but I recently read a nice popular science book on modern archaeology (in German it is called "Den Tod auf der Schippe" or something like that). One chapter was about a professor of archaeology in Plymouth or Exeter (not quite sure which anymore) who had dug up a sort of offering pits literally in her back garden in Cornwall. These shallow pits contained large numbers of wildfowl eggs piled up on a bed of dog or cat skin plus one or two other things. Her only interpretation for these pits was that they had a ritual or magical function (something to do with fertility, presumably). While most of them were dated to the centuries before the Civil War, one or two were from the mid 20th century (!). Local rumour still spoke of the former occupants of that property, a pair of sisters as far as I remember, as "the witches". As this is the only archaeological example I know of of "witchcraft" proper (rather than the many better-known forms of apotropaic magic), as well as of a clandestine continuity of specific rituals, I was wondering whether these wouldn't deserve a mention in this article. Of course I wouldn't add anything before I have the relevant sources. Trigaranus (talk) 15:28, 5 January 2011 (UTC)

Sourcing on Gaelic-speaking cultures
I'm not going to add it myself as I'm a co-author. But here's an in-depth article with pretty thorough sourcing that might prove useful: Rowan and Red Thread: Magic and Witchcraft in Gaelic Cultures (PDF) - Slàn, Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 20:34, 30 March 2013 (UTC)

Proposed merge from Witchcraft
The proposal is to move more material here from Witchcraft, really to make sure that it is all covered here. The secondary aspect is that the whole European witch trial overview should be here, and the coverage in Witchcraft should be further summarized and reduced, so it can be more balanced with respect to its global coverage. Skyerise (talk) 18:43, 17 August 2023 (UTC)

Outline is by period and country
The outline was intended to be by period and country. I have restored it. In particular, I wrote the country sections to be country specific, excluding American variants, intentionally. This is what is considered "witchcraft" in this period in these countries. Any other views or manifestations would simply be included in the narrative, say for example if someone were to report witch hunts in Estonia, the witches being hunted would certainly be neopagan +or Roma+ witches, there not being any others known to exist in the territory of Europe at this time. Skyerise (talk) 22:51, 19 August 2023 (UTC)

References Inadequate
Very few and inadequate references provided I am asking for citations with tags. Peaceful Nature (talk) 01:28, 7 September 2023 (UTC)


 * The article contains over 150 citations. If you're talking about the lede paragraphs, then these do not need to contain citations as the lede summarises referenced text in the main body of the article. The few citations in the lede are just there to cover controversial text. See MOS:LEAD.  Esowteric +  Talk  +  Breadcrumbs   06:38, 7 September 2023 (UTC)


 * Yes, best if you stick to newbie tasks before complaining that an article has only 150 citations. Skyerise (talk) 13:45, 7 September 2023 (UTC)
 * Okay Skyerise, I will keep it in mind, sorry for disturbing you. Peaceful Nature (talk) 16:52, 7 September 2023 (UTC)
 * It's hard to judge the state of a robust article unless you read the whole thing.... only then will you know if there are things in the lead not supported in the body... Skyerise (talk) 17:09, 7 September 2023 (UTC)
 * Okay skyerise, its admit my mistake, thanks for correcting, I will memorise it. Thanks Peaceful Nature (talk) 16:41, 9 September 2023 (UTC)

Possible references to look at
-From Goddess to Hag: The Greek and the Roman Witch in Classical Literature - "Barbette Stanley Spaeth" Note mostly for myself. Possibly interesting perspective on classical/pre-witch-trials European witchcraft. - Darker Dreams (talk) 05:27, 20 September 2023 (UTC)

oddly written introduction
European witchcraft is a multifaceted historical and cultural phenomenon that unfolded over centuries, leaving a mark on the continent's social, religious, and legal landscapes. The roots of European witchcraft trace back to classical antiquity when concepts of magic and religion were closely related, and society closely integrated magic and supernatural beliefs. Ancient Rome, then a pagan society, had laws against harmful magic. In the Middle Ages, accusations of heresy and devil worship grew more prevalent. By the early modern period, major witch hunts began to take place, partly fueled by religious tensions, societal anxieties, and economic upheaval. Witches were often viewed as dangerous sorceresses or sorcerers in a pact with the Devil, capable of causing harm through black magic. A feminist interpretation of the witch trials is that misogynist views of women led to the association of women and malevolent witchcraft.

I have a few problems with the introduction paragraph:

1. the use of the word multifaceted in the first sentence. It needs clarification/expansion, but in its current state seems too metaphorical and vague a word to use. 2. 'Ancient rome, then a pagan society...' then? when? having not actually referenced a date, the sentence does not actually make sense. 3. 'accusations of heresy and devil worship grew more prevalent' - again, from what period to what period? The middle ages is, in my mind anyway, an large portion of vaguely-defined history. 4. fuelled is spelt wrong, but I suppose I could easily fix this. 5. 'a feminist interpretation' - This seems a little unnecessary - is it not fairly obvious that there was some element of misogyny at play due to the fact that men were never accused, and never supposedly sold their souls to the devil? Sebimus (talk) 20:41, 23 January 2024 (UTC)