{"id":4778,"date":"2026-04-21T09:29:49","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T09:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/striga\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:29:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:29:05","slug":"striga","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/striga\/","title":{"rendered":"Striga"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"4778\" class=\"elementor elementor-4778 elementor-846\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-10fdade e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"10fdade\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herohlft0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herohlft0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c3ceb64 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"c3ceb64\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-96ae5e1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"96ae5e1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Striga, the Witch-Vampire of the Roman Night<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e45238a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e45238a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Witch-vampire of the Roman night<\/strong>, a blood-sucking night bird and early form of later vampire and witch figures.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klsbdg01 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"klsbdg01\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klshtm01 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"klshtm01\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Demon: A supernatural being with a mostly harmful or ambivalent effect. It stands between gods and humans, causes illness, temptation or misfortune, and is warded off through invocation, apotropaic objects and rituals.\">Demoness<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/rome\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Roman religion from the monarchy to late antiquity, syncretistic with Greek and Etruscan layers.\">Rome<\/a><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f74855 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3f74855\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1c30362 elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"1c30362\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herorght0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herorght0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-heroimg00 iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"heroimg00\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/geister_rom_striga-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-4779\" alt=\"Striga - spirits from the Roman tradition, historical and illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/geister_rom_striga-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/geister_rom_striga-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/geister_rom_striga-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/geister_rom_striga.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-32917199 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"32917199\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-26e916cb e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"26e916cb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-253a40d4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"253a40d4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1200c304 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1200c304\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Striga<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-11758e7f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"11758e7f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Striga (Latin <em>strix<\/em>, plural <em>striges<\/em>) is one of the most consequential motifs of Roman demonology. Originally understood as a nocturnal bird of prey, a demonic owl or a bird-like <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being that unites the features of various living creatures.\" tabindex=\"0\">hybrid being<\/span> that attacks newborns and pregnant women. It sucks blood, swaps infants for straw, and enters houses through windows and keyholes.<\/p><p>At the same time, the Striga merged early on with the notion of the witch: a woman who turns into a bird at night.<\/p><p>This double nature, animal and woman, runs through all of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Era of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">antiquity<\/span>, becomes in the Middle Ages the foundation of the notion of the witch and the origin of the vampire <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring thematic element in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span>. The Slavic word <em>strzyga<\/em> and the Romanian <em>strigoi<\/em> go back directly to the Latin strix.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-159dcf9a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"159dcf9a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-48cee66f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"48cee66f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Short Profile: Striga<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f50d82c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3f50d82c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Type:<\/strong> Nocturnal bird <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span>, later also a witch<br>Origin: Roman <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Religious ideas and customs that are widespread in everyday life.\" tabindex=\"0\">folk belief<\/span>, probably going back to Greek precursors (Strix)<br>Texts: Ovid (<em>Fasti<\/em> VI), Petronius, Apuleius, Pliny<br>Period: Republic to <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Transitional era between antiquity and the Middle Ages, roughly the 3rd to 7th century.\" tabindex=\"0\">late antiquity<\/span>, with medieval and early modern reception<br>Distribution: Italy, the Empire, Slavic and Balkan folk traditions<br>Warding off: Hawthorn, the bulla <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, evil-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">amulet<\/span>, rituals at the threshold, trails of salt<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18613602 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"18613602\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-262b8a9f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"262b8a9f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Historical Classification<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46dcb7d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"46dcb7d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-61d3ab3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"61d3ab3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-117c166 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"117c166\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Period of the Texts<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-73997a0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"73997a0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>First attested in the Republic, described in detail by Ovid (<em>Fasti<\/em> VI) for the year 6 AD. Pliny, Petronius and Apuleius develop the figure further. In the Middle Ages, the notion of the witch and the vampire grew out of this, and in the Slavic region the <em>strzyga<\/em> or <em>strigoi<\/em>.<\/p><p><strong>Mythological classification<\/strong><\/p><p>In Roman and later European <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, the Striga is a night demon or witch who drinks blood and digs up corpses. In Eastern European traditions she is the origin of the vampire <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span>. Strigae are shape-shifters who roam at night. They are not necessarily dead, but rather damned.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d47b156 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d47b156\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ff38c2b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"ff38c2b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Area of Distribution<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4e49fcc elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4e49fcc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Italic cultural sphere as the origin; anchored in all the provinces through the Empire. In the Middle Ages and the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch roughly from the 15th to the 18th century.\" tabindex=\"0\">early modern period<\/span>, a strong presence in the Slavic region, the Balkans and Romania. The Strigoi tradition continues to influence modern vampire literature.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-db03c39 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"db03c39\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-229a87b e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"229a87b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f471fc elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1f471fc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">State of the Sources<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36b1201 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"36b1201\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>In literature: Ovid, Pliny (Naturalis Historia), Petronius, Apuleius, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The theology and writings of the Church Fathers (2nd to 8th c.), e.g. Augustine, Jerome, Origen, Chrysostom.\" tabindex=\"0\">patristic<\/span> authors. Densely attested in <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmitted popular culture with customs, narratives, and songs.\" tabindex=\"0\">folklore<\/span> within Slavic and Balkan traditions. Frequent in medieval witch-trial documents.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3ae0637c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"3ae0637c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31d07739 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"31d07739\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Name<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b7642947 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"b7642947\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a086266 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a086266\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Latin:<\/strong> <em>strix<\/em> (singular), <em>striges<\/em> (plural), later <em>striga<\/em>.<br>Slavic: <em>strzyga<\/em> (Polish), <em>strigoi<\/em> (Romanian).<br>Greek: <em>\u03c3\u03c4\u03c1\u03af\u03b3\u03be<\/em> (strinx), a night bird.<\/p><p>The name originally refers to a nocturnal bird, presumably an eared owl or a similar species of owl. By folk etymology the screeching (&#8220;stridere&#8221;) was interpreted as the source. From the animal name arose the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span>, and from the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down narrative about gods, origins and the order of the world.\" tabindex=\"0\">myth<\/span> the medieval witch, in Italy the <em>strega<\/em>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-709a44a8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"709a44a8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2f585873 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2f585873\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Characteristics<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-70621c12 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"70621c12\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4296eb49 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4296eb49\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Appearance<\/strong><\/p><p>Animal form: a large night bird, owl-like, with curved talons and a sharp beak. In the witch form: an old woman who turns into the bird at night. Mixed forms are reported, a woman with bird wings, a bird with a human face.<\/p><p><strong>Behavior<\/strong><\/p><p>The Striga flies at night, enters houses (through windows, chimneys, keyholes), seeks out infants and pregnant women, sucks their blood, or steals the child and replaces it with straw or a bundle of rags.<\/p><p><strong>Sphere of action<\/strong><\/p><p>Night, the bedroom, the childbed. Especially dangerous in the first days after birth, as long as the child is still &#8220;not yet bound&#8221; into the community.<\/p><p><strong>Mythological origin<\/strong><\/p><p>No clearly formulated mythic genealogy. Ovid tells a primal scene in which the nurse Crane drives the strix away from an infant with hawthorn, an aetiological narrative that legitimizes the protective <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span>. In Slavic tradition the Striga arises from a person with two hearts or two souls.<\/p><p><strong>Appearance and symbolism<\/strong><\/p><p>Strigae are described as hideous old women with bird features and enormous breasts. They can take on human form. Owls and night shadows accompany them. Blood and the desecration of corpses are their urge. An aura of age, hunger and damnation emanates from them.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-44e71476 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"44e71476\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3c1fc3f0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3c1fc3f0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Profile: Striga<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-84f33b8e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"84f33b8e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-hqkdc67p elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"hqkdc67p\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The most important aspects of the Striga at a glance. The detailed account of name, description, warding off and parallels can be found in chapters 2, 3, 5 and 6.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qh9oavvu iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"qh9oavvu\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-awzx8k2k elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"awzx8k2k\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Tradition<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-x6rowhv0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"x6rowhv0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>From Roman folk belief, with Greek precursors. Later merging with the notion of the witch, a woman who turns into a bird.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8e3o4kxs iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"8e3o4kxs\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-08rkdgov elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"08rkdgov\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Object of Effect<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-uwjelx8s elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"uwjelx8s\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Above all infants and small children, and secondarily women in childbed. In the later witch discourses the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express thanks, a request or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">victim<\/span> spectrum expands to the whole population, with illness, the dying of livestock and weather damage all attributed to the Striga.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-jm2n74ec iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"jm2n74ec\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8vufse4c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8vufse4c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Appearance<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-mwb9u015 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"mwb9u015\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A large night bird (owl-like) or an old woman who transforms. Mixed forms: a woman with bird wings, curved talons, a bloody muzzle.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-37ss2yr6 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"37ss2yr6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3v0wp3wx elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3v0wp3wx\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Sphere of Action<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-w3247g2m elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"w3247g2m\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Blood-sucking, child theft, the swap for straw. A slow wasting away of the infant, often noticed only after days or weeks.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0qpjal9w iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0qpjal9w\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6ndoih0o elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6ndoih0o\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Protection<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6684tyh9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6684tyh9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Hawthorn branches at windows and doors, salt on the thresholds, burning lamps in the bedroom. A bulla <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, evil-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">amulet<\/span> for the child. Ovid describes the hawthorn <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> of the nurse Crane.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3lfi7x32 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3lfi7x32\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0kg99ga1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0kg99ga1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Striga's Parallels<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-n0fum6kp elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"n0fum6kp\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Direct precursor: <a href=\"\/en\/lamia\/\">Lamia<\/a> (Greek). Related by class: <a href=\"\/en\/lamiae\/\">Lamiae<\/a> (Roman). In the Jewish context: <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/lilith\/\">Lilith<\/a>. The Strix tradition lives on in the Italian <em>strega<\/em>, the Romanian <em>strigoi<\/em> and the Polish <em>strzyga<\/em> into the modern era. Functionally related: <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/empusa\/\">Empusa<\/a>, <a href=\"\/en\/baba-yaga\/\">Baba Yaga<\/a>, and the German Druden.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7533bc7a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"7533bc7a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2447d18d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2447d18d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Protective Practice<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d5d0260c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d5d0260c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-341be2ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"341be2ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Rituals for warding off<\/strong><\/p><p>Ovid describes the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A fixed, recurring religious act.\" tabindex=\"0\">rite<\/span> of the nurse Crane: she taps the doorpost with a hawthorn branch, sprinkles the dwelling with water, lays the entrails of a young pig on a dish and calls on the Striga to fall upon those instead. After that the child is protected.<\/p><p><strong>Invocations<\/strong><\/p><p>Short folk formulas at the threshold, especially at night. In <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A verbal formula intended to inflict misfortune on a person or thing.\" tabindex=\"0\">curse<\/span> tablets (defixiones) the Striga is named as an instrument of attack against enemies. In the later Slavic region, long protective formulas against the strigoi develop.<\/p><p><strong><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, misfortune-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">Amulets<\/span> and protective symbols<\/strong><\/p><p>A bulla <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, evil-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">amulet<\/span> for Roman children, filled with <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magical<\/span> contents. Salt, hawthorn, laurel, garlic. Later Slavic traditions add crosses, images of saints and special burial rites for those suspected of being strigoi.<\/p><p><strong><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">Cult<\/span> and veneration<\/strong><\/p><p>Strigae are not venerated but warded off. Iron under the bed, red threads and garlic were common. Graves were guarded. Priests and magicians could banish them. In some cultures there was an attempt to treat them respectfully.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a584676 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"5a584676\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6d0757bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6d0757bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Striga, Parallels in Other Cultures<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60563f68 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"60563f68\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a93fdd6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5a93fdd6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Models and relatives:<\/strong> The Mesopotamian Lil\u012btu and the Jewish Lilith, the child-murdering demoness as a widespread <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A recurring element of content in art or narrative.\" tabindex=\"0\">motif<\/span> of the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Epoch of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ancient<\/span> Near East. The Greek Lamia and Empusa as literarily related figures.<\/p><p><strong>The Middle Ages<\/strong><\/p><p>The medieval witch inherits many Strix features: nocturnal flight, transformation, attack on infants. The Italian <em>strega<\/em> (&#8220;witch&#8221;) derives directly from Strix.<\/p><p><strong>The modern vampire figure<\/strong><\/p><p>The Romanian <em>strigoi<\/em> is the immediate precursor of the modern vampire figure. Bram Stoker&#8217;s Dracula and his successors carry Strix elements within them, especially the entry through a window, the bite at the neck and the draining of blood.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpf0a1835 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cpf0a1835\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpbaafb51 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cpbaafb51\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Ancient Sources: Ovid, Petronius and Pliny<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpd54957b e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpd54957b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp12a0820 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp12a0820\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The <em>striga<\/em> or <em>strix<\/em> is one of the few Roman figures of misfortune for which several independent <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Era of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">ancient<\/span> sources survive. The most detailed account is given by Ovid in the <em>Fasti<\/em>, the festival calendar, in the entry on the events of June.<\/p><p>There he describes the <em>striges<\/em> as nocturnal birds with a large head, fixed eyes, a hooked beak and grey feathers, which fly in the darkness and seek out infants whose entrails or blood they suck out.<\/p><p>Ovid then tells of the threat to the little prince Proca and of the warding off by the goddess Carna or Cardea, who drives away the bird with an arbutus branch and a pig <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express thanks, request, or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">sacrifice<\/span>.<\/p><p>In the <em>Satyricon<\/em>, Petronius has the figure of Trimalchio and his guests tell of the <em>strigae<\/em>: in one episode the corpse of a boy is swapped by witches and replaced with a bundle of straw, and a man who tries to disturb them is badly mauled.<\/p><p>Here the <em>strigae<\/em> are already female sorceresses, not merely birds. Pliny the Elder mentions the <em>strix<\/em> in the <em>Naturalis historia<\/em> in a zoological context and notes that the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A handed-down narrative with an often historical core and marvellous features.\" tabindex=\"0\">legend<\/span> has it that they give infants the breast with their milk, but he expresses skepticism about the existence of the bird.<\/p><p>These sources show the figure in the decisive suspension between animal and human, between natural history and haunting. Already in <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Era of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">antiquity<\/span> it was unclear whether the <em>strix<\/em> was a real night bird with an uncanny cry, a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which a harmful or ambivalent effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span> or a woman who turns into a bird.<\/p><p>This ambivalence is not a flaw of the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span> but its core: the Romans themselves debated the status of the being.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpca1320f e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cpca1320f\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp8bd5c6a elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp8bd5c6a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Bird and the Witch: An Unresolved Double Nature<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpb8767c3 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpb8767c3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpc2cfa9c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cpc2cfa9c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The ambiguity of the <em>strix<\/em> has a long history of research. Linguistically, <em>strix<\/em> is at first a bird name, related to the Greek <em>strinx<\/em>, and probably denotes a species of owl; the uncanny, screeching cry of nocturnal owls is regarded as the starting point of the notion.<\/p><p>Out of the real night bird with its cry, felt to be gruesome, came a bird of ill omen, then a blood-sucking demonic being.<\/p><p>In parallel, the meaning shifted toward the human. In the Latin literature of the imperial period, and especially in the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Transitional epoch between antiquity and the Middle Ages, roughly the 3rd to 7th century.\" tabindex=\"0\">late antique<\/span> and medieval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>, <em>striga<\/em> increasingly means a sorceress-woman who goes out at night to cause harm.<\/p><p>The notion that such women can transform themselves or send out their <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A bodiless being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> connects both strands: the witch takes on the form or the properties of the bird.<\/p><p>This development cannot be described as a simple line. In the sources, the purely animal belief, the demonological interpretation and the human witch coexist side by side, often within the same text.<\/p><p>Research, such as the studies on Roman folk <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span> and on the prehistory of European witch belief, therefore sees in the <em>striga<\/em> an important junction: through her one can study how, over several centuries, the notion of the harmful sorceress grew out of an animal omen.<\/p><p>Medieval Latin then often uses <em>striga<\/em> and <em>strix<\/em> synonymously for &#8220;witch,&#8221; and in several Romance languages the word lives on in precisely this meaning.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp043516e e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp043516e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp5d8d185 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp5d8d185\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Legal History: The striga in the Germanic Folk Laws<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp657a03d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp657a03d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpb1f0e81 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cpb1f0e81\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A distinct trail leads the <em>striga<\/em> into early medieval legal history. The word appears in several of the so-called folk laws, the recorded tribal laws of the early Middle Ages.<\/p><p>Particularly well known is the provision in the <em>Lex Salica<\/em>, the law of the Franks, which sets a fine for anyone who wrongly insults another as a <em>stria<\/em> or accuses them of having &#8220;eaten&#8221; a person. The <em>Lex Salica<\/em> thus punishes not witchcraft itself but the unfounded accusation.<\/p><p>Even more revealing is a provision connected with the Lombard king Rothari: his edict from the seventh century expressly forbids killing a maidservant or a free woman as a <em>striga<\/em>, and declares that a Christian must not believe that a woman can devour a human being from within.<\/p><p>Here secular legislation turns against folk belief and protects the accused.<\/p><p>These legal testimonies are of high value for research, because they show that belief in man-eating witches was alive and consequential in the early Middle Ages, long before the great witch persecutions of the early modern period. At the same time they document an official skepticism toward this belief, in part supported by the church.<\/p><p>The famous <em><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The collection of sacred scriptures recognised as binding by a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">Canon<\/span> episcopi<\/em>, a text of canon law, classified the belief in nocturnal flights of women as a delusion. The line from the Roman <em>strix<\/em> through the folk laws to these ecclesiastical statements is one of the most important prehistories of the later image of the witch.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpab64a98 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cpab64a98\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpcc7199c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cpcc7199c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Afterlife in Southeastern Europe: The strigoi Tradition<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp60a32fb e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp60a32fb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpd8b5efd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cpd8b5efd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The word <em>striga<\/em> has a remarkably long later history in the languages of Southeastern Europe. In Romanian, <em>strig\u0103<\/em> developed from it, and above all <em>strigoi<\/em>, a term for a returning dead person or a living person with a harmful supernatural power.<\/p><p>The <em>strigoi<\/em> of Romanian folk tradition is a complex figure: there is the <em>strigoi viu<\/em>, the living one, and the <em>strigoi mort<\/em>, the dead one, who returns from the grave, haunts the livestock and relatives and drains their life force.<\/p><p>This tradition was documented by folklorists in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and later entered international vampire research. The <em>strigoi<\/em> belongs to the East-Central European notions of the revenant that helped shape the Western image of the vampire, even though the folk figure is far more multilayered than the literary one.<\/p><p>Linguistically related terms are found in the wider Balkan region, which points to an old common layer. From the perspective of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span>, it is interesting that this word history reveals a long shift of meaning: from the Roman night bird through the medieval witch to the modern revenant.<\/p><p>The word remained stable while the notion adapted to the respective fears and needs for explanation. Whoever places the <em>striga<\/em> of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Era of Greek and Roman culture, roughly 800 BC to 600 AD.\" tabindex=\"0\">antiquity<\/span> and the <em>strigoi<\/em> of the Romanian villages side by side sees not an identical figure but a continuous line of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">transmission<\/span>.<\/p><p>Related notions of the blood-sucking dead are also found in the Slavic region, for example with the <a href=\"\/en\/upyr\/\">Upir<\/a>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36dd7469 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"36dd7469\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-13760ab4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"13760ab4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Further Links<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-28c87796 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"28c87796\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5d6538df elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5d6538df\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Recommended internal links:<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/rome\/\">Rome<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/lamiae\/\">Lamiae<\/a> (related class)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/lilu-and-lilitu\/\">Lil\u00fb and Lil\u012btu<\/a> (precursors)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/lilith\/\">Lilith<\/a> (Jewish parallel)<\/li><li>The medieval notion of the witch<\/li><li>Vampire figures and their origins<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-grl4kl40 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"grl4kl40\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bzsbfrmh elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"bzsbfrmh\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Scholarly Literature<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2c13224a e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2c13224a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0eymh9ub elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0eymh9ub\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<footer class=\"iwg-literatur\" data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p>A selection of key works on Striga and related figures:<\/p><ul><li><span data-nosnippet>Oliphant, Samuel Grant: &#8220;The Story of the Strix.&#8221; In: <em>Transactions of the American Philological Association<\/em> 44 (1913).<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Burkert, Walter: <em>Structure and History in Greek <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of the transmitted divine narratives of a culture.\" tabindex=\"0\">Mythology<\/span> and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An ordered sequence of symbolic acts with religious or cultural meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">Ritual<\/span><\/em>. Berkeley 1979.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Murgoci, Agnes: &#8220;The Vampire in Roumania.&#8221; In: <em><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The handed-down popular culture with customs, narratives and songs.\" tabindex=\"0\">Folklore<\/span><\/em> 37 (1926).<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Barber, Paul: <em>Vampires, Burial, and Death<\/em>. New Haven 1988.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Bl\u00e9court, Willem de \/ Davies, Owen: <em>Witchcraft Continued<\/em>. Manchester 2004.<\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/footer>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qv846qv e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"qv846qv\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qv846qvh elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"qv846qvh\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Related Protective Symbols<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qv846qvb e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"qv846qvb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qv846qvt elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"qv846qvt\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-querverweis-grid\" style=\"display:grid;grid-template-columns:repeat(auto-fit,minmax(220px,1fr));gap:16px;margin:16px 0;\"><div class=\"iwg-querverweis-card\"><a href=\"\/en\/evil-eye\/\" class=\"iwg-querverweis-link\"><strong>The Evil Eye<\/strong><br><span class=\"iwg-querverweis-teaser\">A global belief in harm, against which the nazar boncu\u011fu, mati and malocchio offer protection<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><style>.iwg-querverweis-card{padding:16px;border:1px solid var(--e-global-color-f443515,#e6c45a);border-radius:8px;background:rgba(0,0,0,0.22);}.iwg-querverweis-link{color:var(--e-global-color-accent,#e6c45a);text-decoration:none;}.iwg-querverweis-teaser{color:#e8e8e8;font-size:13px;line-height:1.4;}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgca-striga-sec e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgca-striga-sec\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" id=\"iwg-ca-striga\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgca-striga-te iwg-ca-textwrap elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgca-striga-te\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p class=\"iwg-ca-bridge\">The protective practice described here is a religious-studies classification of historical traditions. iWell Guard ties into this cultural-historical line of wearable protective objects and represents a contemporary form of it. <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/about-iwell-guard-the-protective-pendant-in-detail\/?utm_source=iwell-guard.com&#038;utm_medium=text-link&#038;utm_campaign=schadwesen-tradition\">More about the iWell Guard \u2192<\/a><\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Striga, the Witch-Vampire of the Roman Night Witch-vampire of the Roman night, a blood-sucking night bird and early form of later vampire and witch figures. DemonessRome Table of Contents Striga Striga (Latin strix, plural striges) is one of the most consequential motifs of Roman demonology. Originally understood as a nocturnal bird of prey, a demonic [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4779,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Striga","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Striga: Spirit of the Roman Tradition","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Striga, blood-sucking night bird of Roman tradition. Early form of the later vampire and witch figure: Pliny, Ovid and the legacy in folk belief.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[81,79,80,82,108,93],"class_list":["post-4778","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-child-demons","category-cultures","category-demons","category-night-beings","category-rome","category-spirits"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Striga: Spirit of the Roman Tradition<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Striga, blood-sucking night bird of Roman tradition. 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