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“THE DEVIL WAS WITH HER”: OTHERED SOCIAL IDENTITY OF A FINLAND-SWEDISH OSTROBOTHNIAN CUNNING-­WOMAN.

The article examines evidence for normativity and transgression in stories surrounding Lovisa Törndal who was rumored to practice witchcraft in Ostrobothnia, Finland during the 19th- and 20th-centuries. Topics include a background on Törndal and the reputation she acquired as a cunning-woman, the pr...

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Published in:Magic, Ritual & Witchcraft Vol. 18; no. 1; pp. 54 - 80
Main Author: KOUVOLA, KAROLINA
Format: Article
Published: University of Pennsylvania Press Spring2023
Subjects:
Witches
Witchcraft
Cunning folk
Normativity (Ethics)
Transgression (Ethics)
Pohjanmaa (Finland)
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Summary:The article examines evidence for normativity and transgression in stories surrounding Lovisa Törndal who was rumored to practice witchcraft in Ostrobothnia, Finland during the 19th- and 20th-centuries. Topics include a background on Törndal and the reputation she acquired as a cunning-woman, the preservation of primary source materials about Törndal in the archives of the Society of Swedish Literature in Finland, and how a witch is described in Ostrobothnian belief narratives.