Update 1 October 2023: I have added a large text about folklore concerning witchcraft in the Netherlands, based on 19th century writings of folklorist Marten Douwe Teenstra, whom I will tell a bit more about in the text below. Translations from Teenstra’s original Dutch text into English are mine.

This text is a work of labour and will grow as I find out more about the phenomena of magic, witchcraft, cunning people, and similar topics in the Northwest of Europe. It roughly concerns the area of the Netherlands and surrounding countries (England, Belgium, the western borders of Germany, and perhaps Luxembourg, northern France and Denmark) – I know this is abritrary, but I want to keep this beast in check, since the topic of magic is huge. 

You will find mention about the most recent update at the top of this text.

Marten Douwe Teenstra

In the early 19^th century, Marten Douwe Teenstra wrote several books about folklore, magic and folktales. Note that he was a man of the Enlightenment, and considered this all mere superstition. He wrote his books as a warning, as much as out of interest and curiosity. That being said, he also wrote a lot about beliefs concerning witches, and it is interesting to read what a man of his time would consider general knowledge about witches.

Some of the text below are quotes directly taken from Teenstra’s work. They are between “ ” and are footnoted. Other information than can be found directly in Teenstra’s books is also footnoted.

Witches, witch masters and tjoensters

From Teenstra (see footnote and sources): “Witch [or Dutch “heks”] (fem.) Witches [or Dutch “heksen”] (plural) Witchmaster [or Dutch “heksenmeester”] (masc.), the same as Druden, Druïden and Drudden, were among other things a kind of sorcerers or sorceresses who through all kinds of magical means worked more on the insides than the outsides of people. Through all kinds of strange mixtures and decoctions they were the causes of many illnesses and failures, insanities and madnesses, plaguing humans and animals alike; – if one detected something weird or a long, lingering disease, superstition immediately named Witchcraft as the cause.”[1]

Note the use of “witchmaster”. This is the name for a male witch or sorcerer. Even though most people condemned because of witchcraft were female, men were far from safe.

In the northern Dutch province of Friesland, which has its own language, witches are known as “tjoensters” (fem. plural) and “tjoenders” (masc. plural). Witches in Friesland were mostly women, tjoensters. They were said to be especially evil sorceresses, concubines of the devil. They were usually poor, old women, and read hair was also a mark that one was a tjoenster[2] (in modern times we note the discrimination against women, poor people and people with certain complexions).

Change and re-creation

Again from Teenstra: “Witches are not only famous for making poisons and lovepotions from all sorts of narcotic plants, to work their magic on others, but it is a far greater art to create or re-create stones, plants or animals in  the blink of an eye. Thus some believe that big [vlenten][3] are creations of witches and that mushrooms and toadstool (Fungi) and also the lizards are being created by her, which both, when the sun shines down on them, are being poisoned; other say that the spirit of witches live in them. The witches possess the ability to change in all sorts of shapes just like Lamiae and from the devil learned the art of flying on broomsticks or scrubstick through the air at night, as happened several times; some have also seen her now and then while flying on winged cats through the air.”[4] Usually the witches would travel so fast that they caused sparks in the air, which when seen by others were often thought to be falling stars.[5]

Fire

Fire caused by witches – who with help of the devil could lead lighting into houses, churches and towers – could only be extinguished with sweet milk. In the church tower of Elburg, some superstitious folks can still find the lines on the walls, caused by the milk streaming down which was being used by the fellows of Oosterwolde in 1695 to extinguish the tower in the a tower and poured into the fire from above.[6]

Another connection to fire and milk can be found in some strange and gruesome folklore found in the area of Doornspijk (Gelderland). There, unborn babies needed to be protected against witches who liked to sneak up on them and took away their little hands, which could serve as lights or candles at night (this may remind one of the ‘hand of glory’, a hanged man’s hand which is also used as a candle). This light could also only be extinguished by sweet milk.[7]

Milk

Milk and magic are a common combination in folk magic. The belief that witches could turn water into milk or butter was far spread in Europe, including the Netherlands. One could see it as a lower, earthly form of alchemy. In folklore however it was usually considered the work of an evil witch stealing dairy from some poor farmer, by ‘milking’ it from something else like a treetrunk. Witches would also make cattle sick so that they could not give milk anymore. The same goes for for a failed harvest; was it just bad luck, or the work of the Devil and his followers? One well-known way to counter the hexing of butter was by throwing a red-hot horseshoe into the butter churn.

Witch knots

Making witch knots for magical purposes is a popular magical pastime among modern witches. This type of magic is based on actual folklore. Teenstra wrote the following about this practice:

“The witches were also very apt at the making of cordknots (nestelknopen); not only was it a beloved pastime of hers, to ruffle the manes of horses, to entangle ropes, bands, cords, ribbons and yarn and to make cordknots in fishnets as to prevent the catching of fish, but through such knots they took away the possibility of some men to procreate, which however they could give back by untying the cordknot.[8]

Animals

Witches are known to be able change in all sorts of animals, such as cats (see also below) and rabbits. Witches could communicate with and influence animals. A Rotterdam witch took out to sea in the shell of a mussel, to a fleet of herrings on the Doggerbank. She enchanted these herrings, so that they would only be caught in the nets of the Rotterdam fishermen and not in the nets of the Schiedam fishermen.[9]

Cats

Cats and witches have a strong bond. Not only are cats considered to be beloved witches’ familiars, but witches are also able to change into cats. In the Betuwe area in Gelderland (East-Netherlands), one witch would change into a big grey cat and steal medicines from the pastor, which he got from his sister (and indication that the sister also concerned herself with witch medicine).[10] Also in the Betuwe, witches were known to gather during a so called “kattendans” or “cat dance”.[11]

Rabbits

On the northern islands of among others Texel, Vlieland and Terschelling people would suspect a large group of rabbits to be witches (tjoensters) in disguise.

Werewolves

The male witches, also known as witch masters (see above) were known to often become werewolves. Apart from withcraft and witches turning into cats, the Betuwe was apparently also an area known for lycanthropy (people turning into werewolves). According to one folklorist, these witch masters would hunt small animals by night but would not hurt humans, even though there were proverbs in the same area that suggest otherwise.[12]

Witch plants

According to Teenstra, superstition attributed herbs and plants to the witches, many of them the most feared poison plants and magic herbs in our part of the world[13]:

• Spurge (Dutch: wolfsmelk) (Euphorbia lathyris)
• Monkshood (Dutch: wolfswortel, monnikskapper) (Aconitum Napellus)
• Hemlock (Dutch: dollekervel) (Chaerophyllum Temulum)
• Datura (Dutch: doornappel) (Datura Stramonium)
• Black nightshade (Dutch: zwarte nachtschade) (Solanum Nigrum)
• Deadly nightshade (Dutch: dolle/dodelijke nachtschade) (Atropa Belladonna)
• Mandragora (Dutch: alruin) (Mandragora Officinarum)
• Henbane (Dutch: bilzekruid) (Hyoscyamus niger)
• Saint John’s wort (Dutch: Sint-janskruid) (Hypericum perforatum)
• House leek (Dutch: huislook) (Sempervivum Tectorum)
• Goldmoss stonecrop (Dutch: huispeper) (Sedum acre)
• Stinging nettle (Dutch: brandnetel) (stinging nettle Urtica dioica and small stinging nettle Urtica Urens)

Fairytale witches

A specific popular source about witches are the folktales and fairytales of old. In these tales, witches are either evil adversaries or ambivalent helpers. They can be humans but they can also be (semi-) otherworldly creatures. They are virtually always women; men are (almost?) never called witches in fairytales.

Aanspreker/lijkbidder

The aanspreker was also known as lijkbidder (corpse prayer). As is usual with people who work with the dead, much superstition surrounded them. When an aanspreker would sit on someone’s chair, that person would soon die. According to one anecdote, an aanspreker in Breukelen (province of Utrecht) visited a sick man, and sat down on the chair of the man’s brother. The man got better, but the brother died.

[1] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 45.

[2] Teenstra, Tooverijen gives several examples on p. 101-103.

[3] This is a Dutch word that I have never seen before and the meaning of which I cannot find after a search in several search engines.

[4] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 59-60.

[5] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 62.

[6] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 49.

[7] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 85.

[8] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 74.

[9] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 83-84.

[10] Teenstra-Tooverijen, P. 90.

[11] Teenstra-Tooverijen, P. 90.

[12] Tdenstra. Tooverijen. P. 90-91.

[13] Teenstra. Tooverijen. P. 49-55.

Sources

Laan, K. ter. Folklore en Volkswijsheden in Nederland en Vlaanderen. Utrecht: Het Spectrum. 2005 (Third print).

Teenstra, Marten Douwes. Verscheidenheden betrekkelijk booze kunden en wetenschappen door eene phantastische wereld geschapen en wel inzonderheid die der tooverijen en waarzeggerijen. Zijnde eene rapsodie van sprookjes van vroegere en latere dagen, uit onderscheiden schrijvers en mondelingen mededeelingen verzameld…Kampen: K. van Hulst. 1846 (Republished 1973).