Talk:Poppet

Poppets as divinities, or for sympathetic magic
Is the term 'poppet' commonly used to describe a representation of divinity, like a corn dolly? I'm more familiar with the term being used for a doll for healing/binding etc. of a person. Possibly the article needs rearranging so the image-magic section comes first. I also think the description of different materials of construction needs to be broken up between the two uses. Corn shafts, carved roots, fruit and branches correspond to the agricultural divinity dolls, and wax, paper, clay or rags correspond to the image-magic dolls. I don't know where the potato fits (but I know some Irish chefs who claim to know 50 different recipes for spud!). Comments please? Fuzzypeg 10:24, 12 January 2006 (UTC)

poppet talk!
Definition: A poppet is a small doll or figure that represents a person in a ritual or spell. These items are NOT evil things for you to stick pins into. Poppets are frequently used in healing spells, and are usually hand-sewn and stuffed with the appropriate herbs. Magick of this kind is common in Santeria.


 * If this is out of a book, a reference would be really helpful. Most of the work here is in tracking down decent references to cite. We have the information in our heads, but can we verify it? Fuzzypeg ☻ 01:04, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Origins, and stuff
I was reading the Oxford English Dictionary article on this word, and found what appears to be contradictory information. It appears, from close reading, that it originated from the post-classical Latin 'pupa', via either middle French, Anglo-Norman, Middle Dutch, or a variety of other different languages. "Several other Romance and Germanic languages also have words denoting variously ‘doll’, ‘baby’, ‘little girl’, some of which are borrowed from the post-classical Latin word, some from the classical Latin word."

Pupa means girl or doll, and the oldest recorded usage that the OED has (circa 1390) is a small or dainty person. The small effigy or a person used for witchcraft meaning dates from 1400 or earlier. The doll meaning has uses recorded starting around 1500, and using 'poppet' to mean an idol also started about this time. There is also the meaning of 'puppet', which seems to have originated around 1550. The endearment didn't come into fashion until the end on the 1700's and was/is used especially for young women. Originally it was derogatory, with overtones of an effigy or puppet. Loggie (talk) 15:27, 3 February 2008 (UTC)


 * Note that at the start of the etymology the OED says "Origin uncertain; perhaps < one or more of the following, all ultimately". But the OED give the meanings in the following order:
 * 1 "A small or dainty person. In later use freq. as a term of endearment, esp. for a child or young woman: darling, pet."
 * 2.a "A small effigy of a person, used in witchcraft or necromancy."
 * 2.b "A small figure in the form of a person; a doll. Cf. PUPPET n. 1. Now chiefly U.S. regional (chiefly south Midland)."
 * 2.c "depreciative. An idolatrous object or image, an idol; (hence) any material object which is worshipped. Cf. PUPPET n. 1a. Obs"
 * 3. = PUPPET n. 2. Now rare.
 * 4 part of a clock
 * 5 "Naut. and Shipbuilding. A short piece of wood, used for various purposes
 * 6 "A cylindrical case for pins and needles, pencils, etc."


 * Do we need an article on this word or should it be in Wiktionary? --PBS (talk) 21:10, 3 January 2009 (UTC)


 * We seem to have a quantity of information relating to poppets that wouldn't belong in a dictionary. I can also see potential for further expansion as an article. Fuzzypeg★ 02:45, 9 January 2009 (UTC)

Tag: Sources
I have tagged the page as requiring additional sources. There are only three references; two are to books - which although I haven't read I will assume are appropriate. However, the third is to a QI episode. The link given is to the Wikipedia page for the episode which makes no reference to the term poppet. In addition to this, I don't think 2/3 sources or references is enough verification. Drmotley (talk) 21:29, 28 January 2015 (UTC)

Wiki Education assignment: Art and Ritual
— Assignment last updated by Tania-ctz (talk) 23:07, 16 November 2023 (UTC)


 * I believe the page edits made during this course assignment were somewhat unhelpful and may need to be removed but I wanted to bring it up here first - The "German Kitchen Witch" section is already better represented on the Kitchen witch page, which is linked in the first paragraph. The rest of the information added is sourced entirely on an article on craft ideas and misrepresented here as historical information. ThunderTiki (talk) 21:50, 19 February 2024 (UTC)