#sorgina

I think, now that it’s halloween, that it is important to remember the real witches: the herbalists and healers that got turned into evil creatures by christianism, and the people that suffered and got murdered after being accused of witchcraft.

A case that I hold very dear to my heart is that of the Witches of Zugarramurdi

In 1609 Henry IV of France commissioned judge Pierre de Lancre to put an end to the "witch plague" in the french side of the Basque Country.

Since he didn't understand basque,after interrogating locals, he reached the conclusion that there was over 3000 witches in the area.

The panic of the accusations spread and reached the spanish side of the basque country,  and a new hotspot for witchcraft was supposedly in the little village of Zugarramurdi, where hundreds of women, men and children were accused of being witches.  Many people were tortured and jail for years, some without even knowing why.

In the Auto-da-fé of 1610 carried on by the Spanish Inquisition, 6 women were burned alive, 5 were burned in effigy because they died during the tortures, and 18  got spared after confessing. 

Basque "sorginak" weren't treated as witches until the arrival of christianism to the basque country. The first clear documentation of basque "witches" is from 1415, where two women were were accused as "sorginas erboleras et faytilleras" (herbalist and witch sorginak).

The sterotype of "witch" was however set after the publication of Malleus Malleficarum in 1484, after which they were accused of having done pacts with the devil,being able to fly, and having evil powers. The Inquisition decided they were dangerous and should be eliminated.

Sorginak are hags in Basque mythology. The assistants of the weather goddess Mari, they are believed to have dwelled in the Basque Country for centuries, and are specifically associated with many places, including a bridge in the settlement Andoain which the Sorginak are said to have built, and the Biscay town of Durango, where witch trials took place during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Witches and pagan priestesses are sometimes called Sorginak in Basque culture. As such, stories of real life witches are sometimes confused with the myths of the legendary Sorginak.

Image source.

Monster master list.

basque mythology | witches from the north of spain, sorginak

Sorgina A Tale of Witches Update v20170929-BAT

Read changelog.txt for information on updated content! Genre: Adventure, IndieDeveloper: Binary SoulPublisher: Binary Soul Release Name: Sorgina.A.Tale.of.Witches.Update.v20170929-BATSize: 243.58 MBLinks: STEAM | NFO | Torrent...

Sorgina A Tale of Witches Update v20170929-BAT

Read changelog.txt for information on updated content! Genre: Adventure, IndieDeveloper: Binary SoulPublisher: Binary Soul Release Name: Sorgina.A.Tale.of.Witches.Update.v20170929-BATSize: 243.58 MBLinks: STEAM | NFO | Torrent...