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{{Short description|Formula intended to trigger a magical effect}}
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{{Other uses}}
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[[File:Book of incantations f.7v.png|thumb|19th century book of incantations, written by a Welsh physician]]

An '''incantation''', '''spell''', '''charm''', '''enchantment''', or '''bewitchery''' is a [[magical formula]] intended to trigger a [[magic (supernatural)|magical]] effect on a [[person]] or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung, or [[chant]]ed. An incantation can also be performed during ceremonial [[ritual]]s or [[prayer]]s. In the world of magic, [[magician (fantasy)|wizards]], [[witchcraft|witches]], and [[fairy|fairies]] are common performers of incantations in culture and folklore.<ref name=":0" />

In [[medieval literature]], [[folklore]], [[fairy tales]], and modern [[fantasy]] fiction, enchantments are charms or spells. This has led to the terms "enchanter" and "enchantress" for those who use enchantments.<ref>{{Cite book|title= Magic Words, A Dictionary|last=Conley|first=Craig|publisher=Weiser Books|year=2008|isbn=978-1-57863-434-7|location= San Francisco|pages= 40}}</ref> The [[English language]] borrowed the term "incantation" from Old French in the late 14th century; the corresponding [[Old English]] term was ''[[wikt:gealdor|gealdor]]'' or ''[[wikt:galdor|galdor]]'', "song, spell", cognate to ON [[galdr]]. The weakened sense "delight" (compare the same development of "charm") is modern, first attested in 1593 ([[OED]]).

Words of incantation are often spoken with inflection and emphasis on the words being said. The tone and rhyme of how the words are spoken and the placement of words used in the formula may differ depending on the desired outcome of the magical effect.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Magic Words:a dictionary|last=Conley|first=Craig|publisher=Weiser Books|year=2008|isbn=978-1-57863-434-7|location=San Francisco|pages=23–27}}</ref>

Surviving written records of historical magic spells were largely obliterated in many cultures by the success of the major [[monotheism | monotheistic]] religions ([[Islam]], [[Judaism]], and [[Christianity]]), which label some magical activity as immoral or associated with evil.<ref>
{{cite web
|last1=Davies|first1=Owen
|title= The top 10 grimoires
|url= https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/apr/08/history
|website=The Guardian|access-date=24 October 2017
|date=8 April 2009
}}
</ref>{{reliable source|date=August 2022}}

==Etymology==
[[File:The Enchanted Garden of Messer Ansaldo by Marie Spartali Stillman (1889).jpg|right|thumb|''The Enchanted Garden of Messer Ansaldo'' by [[Marie Spartali Stillman]]]]
The [[Latin]] ''incantare'', which means "to consecrate with spells, to charm, to bewitch, to ensorcel", forms the basis of the word "[[wikt:Special:Search/enchant|enchant]]", with deep linguistic roots going back to the [[Proto-Indo-European language|Proto-Indo-European]] ''kan-'' [[Prefix (linguistics)|prefix]]. So it can be said that an enchanter or enchantress casts magic [[Spell (paranormal)|spells]], or utters incantations.

The words that are similar to incantations such as enchantment, charms and spells are the effects of reciting an incantation. To be enchanted is to be under the influence of an enchantment, usually thought to be caused by charms or [[Spell (paranormal)|spells]].

==Magic words==
[[File:Abracadabra triangle (cropped).jpg|thumb|Classic magic words]]
{{Main|Magic word}}
Magic words or words of power are words which have a specific, and sometimes unintended, effect. They are often [[nonsense]] phrases used in [[fantasy]] fiction or by [[Magic (illusion)|stage prestidigitators]]. Frequently such words are presented as being part of a [[Divine language|divine]], [[Adamic language|adamic]], or other [[Twilight language|secret]] or [[Language of the birds|empowered]] [[language]]. Certain [[comic book]] heroes use magic words to activate their powers.

Examples of traditional magic words include ''[[Abracadabra]]'', ''[[Alakazam (magic word)|Alakazam]]'', ''[[Hocus pocus (magic)|Hocus Pocus]]'', ''[[Open Sesame (phrase)|Open Sesame]]'' and ''[[Sim Sala Bim]]''.

In Babylonian, incantations can be used in rituals to burn images of one's own enemies. An example would be found in the series of Mesopotamian incantations of [[Šurpu]] and [[Maqlû]]. In the Orient, the charming of snakes have been used in incantations of the past and still used today. A person using an incantation would entice the snake out of its hiding place in order to get rid of them.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics : Fourth Edition|last=Cushman|first=Stephen|publisher=Princeton University Press|year=2012|location=Princeton, ProQuest Ebook Central|pages=681}}</ref>
===Udug-hul===
{{Main|Udug}}
In Mesopotamian mythology, Udug Hul incantations are used to exorcise demons (evil Udug) who bring misfortune or illnesses, such as mental illness or anxiety. These demons can create horrible events such as divorce, loss of property, or other catastrophes.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Healing Magic and Evil Demons : Canonical Udug-Hul Incantations|last=Markham|first=Geller|publisher=De Gruyter, Inc|year=2015|isbn=9781614515326|pages=3–5}}</ref>

==In folklore and fiction==
[[File:Orlando Furioso 13.jpg|thumb|The enchantress Alcina makes herself appear beautiful, in ''[[Orlando Furioso]]''.]]
In traditional fairy tales magical formulas are sometimes attached to an object.{{citation needed|date=November 2019}} When the incantation is uttered, it helps transform the object. In such stories, incantations are attached to a magic [[wand]] used by wizards, witches and [[fairy godmother]]s. One example is the spell that [[Cinderella]]'s Fairy Godmother used to turn a pumpkin into a coach, "[[Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo]]", a nonsense rhyme which echoes more serious historical incantations.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Archetypes and Motifs in Folklore and Literature|last=Garry|first=Jane|publisher=M.E. Sharp|year=2005|isbn=0-7656-1260-7|location=Armonk|page=162}}</ref>

==Modern uses and interpretations==
The performance of magic almost always involves the use of language. Whether spoken out loud or unspoken, words are frequently used to access or guide magical power. In ''The Magical Power of Words'' (1968), S. J. Tambiah argues that the connection between language and magic is due to a belief in the inherent ability of words to influence the universe. Bronisław Malinowski, in ''[[Coral Gardens and their Magic]]'' (1935), suggests that this belief is an extension of man's basic use of language to describe his surroundings, in which "the knowledge of the right words, appropriate phrases and the more highly developed forms of speech, gives man a power over and above his own limited field of personal action."<ref name="Malinowski">{{cite book|last1=Malinowski|first1=Bronislaw|title=Coral Gardens and Their Magic: A Study of the Methods of Tilling the Soil and of Agricultural Rites in the Trobriand Islands|date=2013|publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]]|location=Hoboken, New Jersey|isbn=978-1136417733}}</ref>{{rp|235}} Magical speech is therefore a ritual act and is of equal or even greater importance to the performance of magic than non-verbal acts.<ref name="Tambiah">{{cite journal|last1=Tambiah|first1=S. J.|title=The Magical Power of Words|journal=Man|date=June 1968|volume=3|issue=2|pages=175–208|doi=10.2307/2798500|jstor=2798500}}</ref>{{rp|175–176}}

Not all speech is considered magical. Only certain words and phrases or words spoken in a specific context are considered to have magical power.<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|176}} Magical language, according to [[C. K. Ogden]] and [[I. A. Richards]]'s (1923) categories of speech, is distinct from scientific language because it is emotive and it converts words into symbols for emotions; whereas in scientific language words are tied to specific meanings and refer to an objective external reality.<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|188}} Magical language is therefore particularly adept at constructing metaphors that establish symbols and link magical rituals to the world.<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|189}}

Malinowski argues that "the language of magic is sacred, set and used for an entirely different purpose to that of ordinary life."<ref name="Malinowski"/>{{rp|213}} The two forms of language are differentiated through word choice, grammar, style, or by the use of specific phrases or forms: [[prayers]], spells, [[songs]], [[blessing]]s, or [[chants]], for example. Sacred modes of language often employ archaic words and forms in an attempt to invoke the purity or "truth" of a religious or a cultural "golden age". The use of Hebrew in [[Judaism]] is an example.<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|182}}

Another potential source of the power of words is their secrecy and exclusivity. Much sacred language is differentiated enough from common language that it is incomprehensible to the majority of the population and it can only be used and interpreted by specialized practitioners ([[magician (paranormal)|magicians]], [[priests]], [[Shamanism|shamans]], or [[Imams]]).<ref name="Malinowski"/>{{rp|228}}<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|178}} In this respect, Tambiah argues that magical languages violate the primary function of language: communication.<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|179}} Yet adherents of magic are still able to use and to value the magical function of words by believing in the inherent power of the words themselves and in the meaning that they must provide for those who do understand them. This leads Tambiah to conclude that "the remarkable disjunction between sacred and profane language which exists as a general fact is not necessarily linked to the need to embody sacred words in an exclusive language."<ref name="Tambiah"/>{{rp|182}}

==Examples of charms==
[[File:A_compleat_history_of_magik,_sorcery,_and_wi_Wellcome_L0026620.jpg|thumb|A complete history of magik, sorcery, and wi Wellcome L0026620]]
* The [[Anglo-Saxon metrical charms]]
*Thoth's Tarot Card deck by Aleister Crowley
* The ''[[Carmina Gadelica]]'', a collection of [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]] [[oral poetry]], much of it charms
* The [[Atharvaveda]], a collection of charms, and the [[Rigveda]], a collection of [[hymns]] or incantations
* [[Hittite ritual texts]]
* The [[Greek Magical Papyri]]
* [[Maqlû]],  Akkadian incantation text 
* The [[Merseburg charms]], two medieval magic spells, charms written in Old High German
* [[Cyprianus]], a generic term for a book of [[Scandinavian folklore|Scandinavian folk spells]]
* ''[[Pow-Wows; or, Long Lost Friend]]''
* [[Babylonian religion|Babylonian]] incantations<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.speechisfire.com/|title=The Recordings: BAPLAR: SOAS|work=speechisfire.com|access-date=2010-06-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716114724/http://www.speechisfire.com/|archive-date=2011-07-16|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Ancient Mesopotamian religion|Mesopotamian]] incantations were composed to counter anything from witchcraft ([[Maqlû]]) to field pests ([[Zu-buru-dabbeda]]).

==See also==<!-- PLEASE RESPECT ALPHABETICAL ORDER -->
* ''[[Carmen (verse)|Carmen]]'', a term for an Ancient Roman incantation
* [[Curse (disambiguation)]]
* [[Dharani]], common term for Mahayana Buddhist mantras 
* [[Finnic incantations]]
* [[Hex (disambiguation)]]
* [[Magic in Harry Potter|Incantations]] in the ''[[Harry Potter]]'' series
* [[Incantation bowl]], an ancient Middle Eastern protective magical tool
* [[Jinx (disambiguation)]]
* ''[[Kotodama]]'', the Japanese belief in the power of words and names
* ''[[Lorica (prayer)|Lorica]]'', Irish protective prayer
* [[Mantra]], a sacred sound, word, or phrase, often repeated multiple times, in meditation
* [[Paritta]], common term for Theravada Buddhist mantras
* [[Spell (ritual)]]
* ''[[Yajna]]'', Hindu sacrificial offering
* ''[[Zagovory]]'', East Slavic spells

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category inline|Incantations}}

{{Fantasy fiction}}
{{witchcraft}}
{{Neopagan witchcraft}}
{{Paganism}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Incantation| ]]
[[Category:Magic (supernatural)]]
[[Category:Magic rituals]]
[[Category:Prayer]]
[[Category:Witchcraft]]
[[Category:Recurrent elements in fairy tales]]
[[Category:Fantasy tropes]]
[[Category:Recurring elements in folklore]]