Definitions & Identity

Witch: A person who studies and practices witchcraft, engaging with various magical, spiritual, and often nature-based practices. As a witch, I consider my Craft a way of life, a philosophy, a discipline, and a skill. I do not consider witchcraft a religion; nor do I consider my practice religious.

Old-Style Witch: A witch who creates a living magical practice rooted in historical inspiration, weaving together academic study, folklore, and ethnographic sources. This path emphasizes continuity with the beliefs, customs, and practical magic of historical cunning folk, charmers, and village witches—reinterpreted in a modern context. As an Old-Style witch, I study the methods, beliefs, and systems used by folk witches and cunningfolk before me and apply that knowledge to my living practice today. I do not perform or copy elements from historical sources, other practitioners, Black Books or folklore; I focus on learning how to create my own magic that is true to traditional methods and worldviews.

Traditional Witch: A practitioner of non-Wiccan witchcraft who draws upon folklore, pre-modern folk beliefs, and regional customs to shape their magical worldview and practice. As a Traditional Witch, my Craft emphasizes spirit work, ancestral veneration, folklore-inspired rites, historical methods, and the cultivation of relationships with familiar spirits and powers. I utilize the study of specific paths of Traditional Witchcraft to inspire the structure of my rituals and improve my day-to-day relationship with magic.

Trollkvinna: A practitioner of trolldom, the Swedish tradition of folk magic and cunning. As a trollkvinna, my craft is rooted in the folklore and customs of Swedish witches and cunningfolk.

Hearth Witch: A practitioner of magic whose spiritual and magical focus centers around the home, land, ancestors, and domestic life. Hearth Witches treat the home as an extension of the spiritual body and often weave magic into daily routines such as cooking, cleaning, and tending to family or ancestral spirits. As a Hearth Witch, my practice emphasizes rootedness, connection to land and house spirits, folk customs, and honoring the cycles of the household as a reflection of the natural world.

Hedge Witch: A practitioner of witchcraft who works with liminality, trance, and spirit travel through witch flight. The “hedge” represents the symbolic boundary between the mundane and spirit worlds, which the Hedge Witch learns to cross through altered states of consciousness. As a Hedge Witch, my craft includes spirit contact, healing, herbalism, and magical journeying, informed by personal gnosis and ancestral practices.

Spirit Worker: A magical or spiritual practitioner whose primary focus is communion, cooperation, and relationship-building with spirits. This includes spirits of the dead, land spirits, deities, primordial spirits, and other otherworldly beings. As a Spirit Worker, my practice is rooted in ongoing dialogue, offerings, and mutual responsibility with the spirit world.