New Findings - Aradia legend

[raven grimassi]

Some recent research from anthropologist Sabina Magliocco sheds new light on the Aradia legend. She has contributed a chapter titled Aradia in Sardinia: The Archaeology of a Folk Character and it appears in a new book titled Ten Years of Triumph of the Moon - a collection of essays.

Here are some interesting excerpts:

"Ronald Hutton in fact suggested that the name Aradia was actually Leland's Italianization of Jules Michelet's witch goddess 'Herodiade' from his novel La Sorciere (1862) (Hutton, 1993, 307). While Michelet's romantic, egalitarian portrayal of witchcraft certainly influenced Leland, who may well have based his assumption that Aradia was in fact Herodias upon the work of Michelet, my research suggests that Aradia already existed in Italian folklore; she did not need Leland to invent her." - page 43

"In this paper I present indirect evidence that a medieval Italian character by the name of Aradia must have existed, for she survived in Sardinia under a slightly different name until the late 20th century. I will demonstrate that she is linked to medieval legends of Herodias and Diana, and that her name is a Sardinian version of the Italian 'Aradia.' My hypothesis is that at some point before the late 19th century, legends about an Italian character by the name of Aradia, corresponding to medieval legends of Herodias and Diana and linked to witches and fairies, were brought to Sardinia, where they developed separately." - page 43-44

"The survival in Sardinian folklore of the 1980s of a character related to Aradia attests to the longue duree of narratives about Diana and Herodias, and the possibility that they could have existed in Tuscany a century earlier. Thus it becomes more plausible that his informant Maddalena may have presented Leland with this character even as late as the 1890s" - page 44

These are just some teasers, and the chapter is well worth reading.

[David19]

Interesting, thanks for posting the excerpts, I'll keep an eye out for it.

[Strega Seer]

Oh no, Raven, you left out one the best ones! Here it is:

“From this very brief study, two important conclusions can be drawn. The first, which will be if interest to historians of contemporary Paganism, is that at some point, there was a character known in Italian folklore as Aradia, derived from medieval legends of Herodias and linked with night flights, entry into homes, spinning, weaving, and magic. While she seems to have disappeared from the folklore of Tuscany and Emila, where Charles Leland reportedly found her in the late 19th century, she still exists in Sardinia, albeit in a localized form” – page 58

Pre-exists Leland!! :abanana:

[Linchetto]

Oh no, Raven, you left out one the best ones! Here it is:

“From this very brief study, two important conclusions can be drawn. The first, which will be if interest to historians of contemporary Paganism, is that at some point, there was a character known in Italian folklore as Aradia, derived from medieval legends of Herodias and linked with night flights, entry into homes, spinning, weaving, and magic. While she seems to have disappeared from the folklore of Tuscany and Emila, where Charles Leland reportedly found her in the late 19th century, she still exists in Sardinia, albeit in a localized form” – page 58

Pre-exists Leland!! :abanana:

Well, there ya go! It was only a matter of time for something like this to come out. Can't wait to see what's next.

Here's to Aradia - :cheers:

[Mike Abruzzo]

Greetings everyone – it’s been a while since I put my two-cents in, but I recently came across some cross-culturally supportive material to the Aradia legend.

In the book Moon, Sun and Witches: Gender Ideologies and Class in Inca and Colonial Peru, by Irene Marsha Silverblatt (1987) there appears the strikingly similar story of Catalina Guacayllano. Catalina was revered as a native Andean priestess and teacher. She was a guardian of Pre-Colombian customs. She directed the community’s veneration of their principal ancestor deities in spite of Spanish Catholic opposition. Catalina also instructed others in the rites, perpetuating an indigenous priesthood. According to Spanish Inquisitional records, she taught others to be “witches” – to practice traditional ritual, to heal, perform divination and serve as an oracle of pagan deities.

Although she taught men and women equally, Catalina chose women to maintain the old ways. Her daughter – also named Catalina – succeeded her. Catalina The First (also called “La Doctora,” an honorific title bestowed on wise people) preached her doctrine in her native village as well as traveling to neighboring communities. She trained “disciples” to ensure her beliefs would be diffused and continue after her death. Author Silverblatt describes Catalina as “not only defending her faith, but aggrandizing it.” She is described as replacing “twofold” those images of pagan deities burned by the Spaniards, in open resistance. Somehow she managed to elude the Inquisition. When she died, her followers worshipped her. Spaniards found her tomb and destroyed it.

It’s quite easy to see connections and striking parallels to the Aradia legend as conveyed by Raven as well as Charles Leland, in this piece of actual recorded history. This is not something open to dispute – it actually happened, with Church documents to support it. It suggests that if it can happen and be recorded historically in one culture (in this case Peru), why then could it not have happened in our own Italian culture in the person of Aradia? For me this just further confirms the possibility of a living Aradia at some point in Italian Witchcraft history. I can’t help but find this information inspiring and exciting. Thought you might too!

[*Rasenna*]

Mike, excellent post! Your points are well taken. Models like the one you mention do support the general theme of Aradia. Thanks for the input.

BTW - I ordered the book from Amazon because of your post. :reading: