[2] “Witch. Mediæval English wicche, both masculine and feminine, a wizard, a witch. Anglo-Saxon wicca, masculine, wicce, feminine. Wicca is a corruption of wítga, commonly used as a short form of witega, a prophet, seer, magician, or sorcerer. Anglo-Saxon witan, to see, allied to wítan, to know. Similarly Icelandic vitki, a wizard, is from vita, to know. Wizard, Norman-French wischard, the original Old French being guiscart, sagacious. Icelandic, vizkr, clever or knowing, … with French suffix ard as German hart, hard, strong” (Skeat, “Etymol. Dictionary”). That is wiz-ard, very wise. Wit and wisdom here are near allied to witchcraft, and thin partitions do the bounds divide. [↑]
[3] For a very interesting account of the mysterious early dwarfs of Great Britain the reader may consult “Earth Houses and their Inhabitants,” by David MacRitchie, in “The Testimony of Tradition.” London: Trübner and Co., 1890. [↑]
[4] The many superstitions relating to cutting nails may be referred in part to the very wild legend of the ship Naglfara given in Sturleson’s “Edda.”
“Then in that Twilight of the Gods (the Norse Day of Judgment) will come the ship Naglfara, which is made of dead men’s nails. In that sea it will go forth. Hrymer steereth it. And for this cause no man should die with his nails unshorn, for so the ship is made, and the gods would fain put that off as long as possible” (“Edda, Gylfesgynning,” 26th tale). [↑]
LAPLAND MAGIC DRUM.
CHAPTER V.
CHARMS OR CONJURATIONS TO CURE OR PROTECT ANIMALS.
From the earliest ages a drum or tambourine has formed such an indispensable adjunct of Shamanic sorcery among Tartars, Lapps, Samoyedes, Eskimo, and Red Indians, that, taking it with other associations, I can hardly believe that it has not been transmitted from one to the other. In Hungary the gypsies when they wish to know if an invalid will recover, have recourse to the cováçanescro buçlo (chovihanescro būklo) or “witch-drum.” This is a kind of rude tambourine covered with the skin of an animal, and marked with stripes which have a special meaning. On this are placed from nine to twenty-one seeds of the thorn-apple (stramonium). The side of the drum is then gently struck with a little hammer, and according to the position which the seeds take on the marks, the recovery or death of the patient is predicted. The following is a picture of a gypsy drum as given by Dr. Wlislocki.