Glossary of Terms

Witches and pagans have a lot of specialized vocabulary and in-group terminology. This will be updated with some amount of regularity in an attempt to keep it up to date. I do not use platforms like TikTok, so terminology that originated on WitchTok and the associated communities might be added pretty late, if at all.

[Updated December 21st, 2025]

Alchemy

A proto-scientific practice that was done in India, China, Europe and by Muslim cultures. The most well known alchemical pursuits were transmuting other metals into gold, creating an elixir of immortality and creating the philosopher's stone. Alchemy led to the modern science of chemistry.

Altar

A place set up specifically for conducting rituals, giving offerings or doing spellwork. Altars will be covered in depth at a later date.

Animism

The belief that everything (people, animals, plants, objects, etc) has its own spirit. This will be covered in depth at a later date.

Astrology

Divination via celestial objects. Contrary to popular belief, astrology isn't primarily about defining a person's entire life by the positions of the stars and planets at their time of birth. It is divination in the same way tarot reading and runes are. Astrology varies by culture and time period and is quite complex and, therefore, can be difficult to learn.

Book of Shadows

A book of magical knowledge and experiences kept by Wiccans and, sometimes, eclectic pagans and non-Wiccan witches. It differs from a grimoire in the sense that a Wiccan Book of Shadows also keeps information that some may keep in a journal. Some covens may also have a shared Book of Shadows where information specific to their group may be kept.

Coven

Typically used in the context of Wicca and witchcraft, but some other types of pagans may call their groups covens as well. Covens are initiatory groups of witches/pagans with similar practices. Many keep their rituals, spells, etc secret and only allow initiated members access to this information. Many have degrees of initiation and have a hierarchical organization structure. This will be covered in depth at a later date.

Deity

A god, or any other being that is considered divine (ie a hero, demigod, etc).

Dianic Wicca

A Goddess centered form of Wicca founded by Zsuzsanna Budapest, a well-known pagan writer. Dianic Wicca is woman-only, based in radical feminism and (in some cases) lesbian sepratism, and is overwhelmingly trans-exclusionary. This topic deserves its own page though.

Duotheism

Typically refers to the belief in/worship of one God and one Goddess, almost always in reference to Wicca. There are probably other uses of the word, but considering this is a pagan/witch website, this is the definition that is most relevant.

Eclectic

A witch or pagan (or both) who blends multiple practices together. This will be covered in depth later.

Fluffy Bunny

A derogatory term for a witch/pagan who is percieved as being too "love and light" (ie toxic positivity) and, perhaps, as being more concerned with the aesthetics of witchcraft/paganism, rather than meaningful practice.

Goddess Movement

A feminist neo-pagan movement that started in the 1960s, influenced by the Great Goddess hypothesis that states that people (at least in the neolithic period) used to venerate a Great Goddess as part of a widespread matriarchal religion. The historical accuracy of this hypothesis is debatable and it is no longer as popular in academia as it once was. The Goddess Movement is largely a movement against patriarchal, male-centric religion.

Heathen

A person who practices Heathenry.

Heathenry

An umbrella term for a variety of Germanic pagan practices.

Hellenic Polytheism

Or Hellenic Paganism. A pagan practice centered around the gods and rituals of the ancient and Classical Greeks.

Hermeticism

Philosophical tradition attributed to Hermes Trismegistus. Hermeticism involves many esoteric practices, including alchemy, theurgy, Qabalah and astrology. Hermeticism has been greatly influencial on occultism.

Kemetic Paganism

A pagan practice centered around the gods and rituals of ancient Egypt.

Neo-Pagan

A person who practices a modern pagan religion. Sometimes used to describe pagans who are more New Age focused.

New Age

A spiritual movement that gained prominence in the 1970s. It incorporated elements of spiritualism (basically that people continue to have awareness after death and can be contacted by the living), New Thought (a philosophical movement that's a bit too Woo for me to figure out how to describe), and Occult movements like Theosophy (see: Theosophy). It's very focused on oneness with the universe, personal growth, the "higher self", etc. New Age beliefs also include alternative medicine (ie reiki, aromatherapy, crystal healing) and karma (in the Western understanding of the term). Basically, anything a stereotypical hippie would have been interested in. Lots of Eastern philosophy and appropriated Indigenous practices.

Occultism

Esoteric beliefs that fall outside the realm of organized religion and science. Some well known occult practices and ideas are astrology, ceremonial magic, Satanism, ley lines, ESP, clairvoyance, dream interpretation, and parapsychology (ie near-death experiences). Paganism, technically, falls under the purview of Occultism, but I'd say a vast majority of pagans do not consider themselves to be Occultists (at least in my experience).

Pagan

A person who practices a pagan religion.

Paganism

An umbrella term for a variety of new religious movements. If I had to give a concise definition, it would be:

Paganism is a religious/spiritual movement that includes a variety of practices/traditions. These traditions are typically nature-focused religions that take inspiration from Pre-Christian beliefs and Western occultism and mysticism (ie Hermeticism, Kabbalah, etc). It is often polytheistic and prioritizes correct action over correct belief.

More information can be found here.

Polytheism

The belief in multiple deities. Somebody who believes in all deities would also be called a polytheist.

Pantheism

The belief that God is everything in the sense that reality is, in and of itself, God.

Theosophy

An Occult movement founded by Helena Blavatsky and draws from neoplatonism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Basically, Blavatsky said there were Masters and Adepts around the world (but mostly in Tibet) that possess wisdom and supernatural powers and that Blavatsky herself learned from them and that these Masters want to revive the true ancient religion. Theosophists do not consider theosophy to be a religion.

Theurgy

Divine magic where a deity or multiple deities are invoked typically with the goal of uniting with the divine.

Wicca

A neo-pagan religion developed by Gerald Gardner and made public in the 1960s. I will definitely talk about Wicca more in depth at a later date.