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May 17, 2009, 11:30 AM
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#1 (permalink) |
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What is a Warlock anyway?
What is a Warlock anyway? Author: Myk Posted: May 17, 2009 04:36 AM warlock 1.noun. A man who practices witchcraft. 2. WoW Character Class The poor sod who finds that their summoned pet is one shotted by a snake, and targetted by everyone and their granny in PvP. We all know what a Warlock is in WoW, in fact would we even be reading this if we didn't? But where does the idea of a warlock come from? To answer this we first need to find out the meaning behind the word, that is the real meaning and not the RPG version. So with that in mind, lets start at the beginning - I mean where else is there to start? If we started at the conclusion then everything makes little sense, and ultimately you would have wasted your time reading (and my time typing). Perhaps, we could start half way through, as to be honest, what most people believe warlock means starts there - although my personal opinion goes back further. To many, a warlock is a male witch (see above definition) and the media keeps this in mind whenever a male witch is mentioned. A perfect example is the self titled "King of the Witches or High Priest of British Witches", Kevin Carlyon 1. Now a few years back there was an attempt to find the Loch Ness Monster, and this guy with his hangers on cast a spell to hide Nessie from the scientists (and we all know that Ness in fact lives in a small lake in Switzerland to avoid all the publicity). He of course took all the credit for the failure of the scientists - bragging about it to the British media. Now because there is something inbuilt into us British about the words witch and woman going together like jelly and custard, the newspapers named him a warlock. Of course, with the only bit of genuine nature within him, he dismissed it saying that he was not a warlock as a witch is a witch regardless of the gender (male, female, toad). This is continued throughout the media, and to be honest it is only within the last decade that things have begun to change. Slowly, but certainly. Spin back a thousand years or so and you'll find mention of the name warlock. Here, in the highlands of Scotland, the word meant "oath breaker". The word was a stigma on whoever wore it, no one would take him on - no tribe would trust a man who breaks his word. So it also became to mean "outsider". Another meaning bandied about is "deceiver", much the same as the previous two - someone who is not trusted. So, how come nowadays it is associated with magic and demons? Well, according to some, the word warlock has a meaning in old Norse - "summoner of spirits". Due to the mis-translation and some other fancy stuff that I can't be bothered to learn about, it turns out that the word warlock is a false translation, but something along the lines of "warloo" or "warlu" is correct (please don't quote as I'm only going on what I have read and understood - and I'm a thick Geordie! ) as old Norse had problems with the "ck" sound. Still, this planted the idea of a magical warlock for future generations to use, especially those known as "Roleplayers" or "Magicians". Late 19th century and early 20th saw a rise in people studying the occult. "Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn", Aleister Crowley and many others started appearing in both popular press and fictional stories. While it was rare for the word warlock to be associated with themselves, the popular media used such titles as "Magician", and warlock interchangeably - much to the annoyance of many. So bounce forward half a century into the 1950's, in the UK the "witchcraft laws" are repealed allowing many witches to practice without being prosecuted - the main figure head was a Gerald Gardener who "created" the Wicca we know today. So, what has this got to do with warlocks? Well, simply put many people didn't believe that men could be witches, so the title of warlock was used. TA DA!!! Now we have the "idea" of what a warlock should be - someone who deals with spirits/demons or whatever, a magic user, a magician.2 1. As you can probably tell, I have little time for this so called King of the Witches. He claims that he was passed it from those who created "Wicca" and it's off shoots. In fact he is a self serving git, who I wish would fade away from memory like the stain that he is. I have spoken to people who have more claim to that crown, each one a hundred times more genuine than him. Although why should it bother me, I'm a druid... 2. This article, blog or whatever you want to call it, is in no way legally binding or in fact the 100% true history of the word Warlock and all it's derivatives. One persons opinion and research does not make gospel - contrary to what other people might think i.e. politicians, generals, Hollywood stars and people by the name of James. Post a comment... |
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