Werewolf (Old English werewulf,�man-wolf�), according to an ancient superstition, a man who is transformed, or who transforms himself, into a wolf in nature and appearance. The werewolf, sometimes transformed under the influence of a full moon, roams about at night, devouring infants or corpses. Stories of such transformations are given in the works of several classical writers and the superstition was common throughout Europe in late medieval times, when many men were accused and convicted of being werewolves. The term lycanthropy refers to the delusion that one has become a wolf.
Lycanthropy, belief that human beings can be transformed into animals. The original meaning of lycanthropy referred to the transformation of a human into a wolf, or werewolf. It is now customary to apply the term to other animals as well.
Historically, two kinds of lycanthropy have been identified. The first involves a psychological delusion in which an individual believes himself to be a wolf. Pathological lycanthropes have been described in medical writings dating from classical times. Now a medical rarity, pathological lycanthropes were common during a time of hysterical occultism in medieval Europe. Driven into the woods by their mania, the lycanthropes would howl at night and seek victims to mangle.
The other type of lycanthropy is common in the folklore of many cultures. In addition to the werewolf of western Europe, the werehyenas, werefoxes, weretigers, and wereleopards of Ethiopia, China, India, and Malaysia, respectively, all demonstrate a widespread belief in animal metamorphosis, either as an inherent ability or through magic. The antiquity of this belief in human-to-animal shape shifting appears in many myths and sagas (the story of Circe in Homer�s Odyssey is an example) and is documented by the scientific writings of classical authors such as Pliny the Elder.
An upsurge of lycanthropous belief occurred during the wave of satanism and witchcraft that swept through Europe from about 1450 to about 1700. In the 16th century such notorious �werewolves� as Pierre Burgot, Michel Verdun, Gilles Garnier, and Peter Stumpf were placed on trial and executed by French and German ecclesiastical courts. Many superstitions developed about werewolves, including the idea that they could be detected (supposedly by their humanlike eyes and short or missing tails) and that they could be exposed by �repercussion� (inflicting a wound on the suspect animal that is later apparent on the human). Ordeals were once used to get people to confess, which they sometimes did out of morbid craving for attention. In the folklore of Italy, a baby conceived on the night of Saint Paul (June 29) or the Annunciation (March 24) is apt to be a werewolf. As a precaution, the father or grandfather can liberate the child by taking a lighted coal and burning the sole of infant�s foot or nape of the neck.
Lycanthropy, belief that human beings can be transformed into animals. The original meaning of lycanthropy referred to the transformation of a human into a wolf, or werewolf. It is now customary to apply the term to other animals as well.
Historically, two kinds of lycanthropy have been identified. The first involves a psychological delusion in which an individual believes himself to be a wolf. Pathological lycanthropes have been described in medical writings dating from classical times. Now a medical rarity, pathological lycanthropes were common during a time of hysterical occultism in medieval Europe. Driven into the woods by their mania, the lycanthropes would howl at night and seek victims to mangle.
The other type of lycanthropy is common in the folklore of many cultures. In addition to the werewolf of western Europe, the werehyenas, werefoxes, weretigers, and wereleopards of Ethiopia, China, India, and Malaysia, respectively, all demonstrate a widespread belief in animal metamorphosis, either as an inherent ability or through magic. The antiquity of this belief in human-to-animal shape shifting appears in many myths and sagas (the story of Circe in Homer�s Odyssey is an example) and is documented by the scientific writings of classical authors such as Pliny the Elder.
An upsurge of lycanthropous belief occurred during the wave of satanism and witchcraft that swept through Europe from about 1450 to about 1700. In the 16th century such notorious �werewolves� as Pierre Burgot, Michel Verdun, Gilles Garnier, and Peter Stumpf were placed on trial and executed by French and German ecclesiastical courts. Many superstitions developed about werewolves, including the idea that they could be detected (supposedly by their humanlike eyes and short or missing tails) and that they could be exposed by �repercussion� (inflicting a wound on the suspect animal that is later apparent on the human). Ordeals were once used to get people to confess, which they sometimes did out of morbid craving for attention. In the folklore of Italy, a baby conceived on the night of Saint Paul (June 29) or the Annunciation (March 24) is apt to be a werewolf. As a precaution, the father or grandfather can liberate the child by taking a lighted coal and burning the sole of infant�s foot or nape of the neck.