They Burned Women, Not Witches
A Global Guide to Witch Hunts from Antiquity through Today
They Burned Women, Not Witches
A Global Guide to Witch Hunts from Antiquity through Today
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Description
A global examination of the persistence of witch hunts, from antiquity to present day, with a focus on their gendered dimensions and impact on women's lives and their communities.
From 1300 to 1800, primarily male leaders tried and tortured approximately 200,000 people for witchcraft, executing about half their victims. Women make up between 75% to 90% of the accused and murdered. In the 21st century, witch hunts remain endemic in Africa, India, Amazonia and parts of Indonesia. Who were (and are) these women and why were they targeted? Travel from Russia to Java, from Denmark to India, from ancient Rome to present-day Tanzania to investigate the circumstances surrounding various witch hunts and what these reveal about the real motives behind burning women and calling them witches.
Structured and written as a first-stop resource for readers and researchers, each regional examination offers at-a-glance data for global comparison, including demographics, approximate numbers of persons accused and executed, identifying factors leading to accusations, and more. Each example concludes with an analysis of how the events impacted women's roles in society at the time and through the present day. Chronologies of trials and laws and related primary source documents further place these events in historical context.
Table of Contents
Percent of Women Among Executed Accused Witches
Witch Hunting Texts
Witch Beliefs in Ancient Cultures
Major German Witch Hunts
Scottish Witch Hunts By Region
Witch Hunts in Colonial New England
Witch Hunts in Russia, Iceland, the Baltic States, and Eastern Europe
Witch Hunts in North and South America Among Indigenous People
Witch Hunts by African Nation
Asia-Pacific Witch Hunting Nations
Preface
Chronology of Witch Hunts
Chronology of Texts and Laws
Introduction: Why Witch Hunt History Matters
Part One: The Framework of Witch Hunts
1. A Witch, A Witch! The Language of Witch Hunts
2. “Behind Every Witch is a Woman Wronged”: Gender and the Victims of Witch Hunts
3. Here There Be Monsters: Witch Hunters and Their Critics
4. In the Face of Pain There Are No Heroes: The Violence of Witch Trials
Part Two: Witch Hunts through History
5. An Early Warning System: Witch Trials in Antiquity to 1400
6. The Mother of Witch Hunts: Germany
7. Three Weird Sisters: The Scottish Witch Trials, Danish Connection & Gaelic Exception
8. More than Salem: Witch Hunts in Colonia Connecticut and Virginia
9. Religion Matters: Slavic Witch Trials and Gender Exceptions
10: Shapeshifters, Raven Mockers & Brujas: Witch Hunts Among Indigenous Americans
11. A Post-Colonial Paradox: Witch Hunts in Sub-Saharan and West Africa
12. Witch Hunts in the Asia-Pacific: India, Nepal, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia
13. They're Eating the Dogs: Witch Hunts Without Witches
14. Cast Into the Wilderness: Scapegoating, Victim Blaming & Real Monsters
15. There's Always More Witch Hunts: An Addendum
Part Three: Primary Source Documents
Summisdesiderantesaffectibus (1484)
Malleus Maleficarum, excerpt (1487)
An Act Against Conjuration, Witchcraft and Dealing with Evil and Wicked Spirits (1603-4)
Macbeth, Act 1, Scene 1 and Scene 3 (1606)
The Discovery of Witches, excerpt (1647)
Johannes Junius Letter to Daughter (1668)
“A Witch Trial at Mount Holly” (1730)
W.I.T.C.H. Manifesto (1968)
Mpumalanga Witchcraft Suppression Bill (2007)
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's Apology (March 2022)
Bibliography
About the Author
Index
Product details
| Published | Sep 03 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 272 |
| ISBN | 9798765126394 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Illustrations | 21 bw |
| Dimensions | 235 x 156 mm |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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