Witch

""The Italians call them Strega. The Yoruba of West Africa call them Aje, meaning mother. Where my mother was from, they called them Häxa. And here, we call them witch. Over the centuries, vampires have fought them and fought beside them, bedded them and burned them. Whether adversary or ally, they have been a force to be reckoned with.""

- - Elijah about witches in Après Moi, Le Déluge

Witches are supernatural beings who are born with the power to affect change by magical means, known as witchcraft. While many witches are the self-proclaimed "Keepers of the Balance," other witches have been known to work against the Balance and use their power for personal gain.

The Balance of Nature
The Balance of Nature is a spiritual belief system based around the observance of the Earth and reverence of Mother Nature. The goal of many witches is to honor the design of Nature and to maintain balance within the natural world. The Balance of Nature is intimately tied to one's spiritual relationship with the Earth, and the idea that all living things are considered sacred, as they are all different aspects of nature. Contemporary witches often use ceremonies, rituals, or shamanic practices to attune themselves with the natural rhythms of Nature in their efforts to obtain guidance and knowledge from wiser known witches called "the Spirits" or from their ancestors. However, according to Gloria, who referred to herself as an "old-school voodoo" practitioner, not all witches follow this belief system and have free will to choose how they practice their power.

History
The origin of witchcraft remains unknown, however, witches have existed for many centuries passing down their knowledge and skills through generations of family lines. Contrary to popular belief, witches do not receive their powers from demons, nor do they worship the Devil. Instead, witches consider themselves "the Servants of Nature," as they make it their duty to maintain balance within the world. Sheila Bennett had once stated to Bonnie that "witchcraft was rooted in psychic energy".

Magic
Witchcraft is the practice of magic. However, before a witch has come into their power, they're considered "untapped", and their magic is considered pure. After awakening their power, witchcraft can encompass many different types of activities including astrology, divination, spell casting, and spirit communication. It includes the practices of many cultures, nations, and religions as well as many books and writings dating back to ancient times. Depending upon the individual, some witches practice their power by certain belief systems, such as Shamanism, Voodoo, Wicca, or any number of other magical practices from countries and cultures all around the world. Although the majority of traditional witches are commonly portrayed as being kind and selfless humans who use their powers to maintain balance within the world, some witches are not and go directly against the Balance of Nature by practicing their powers for dark and sinister or selfish deeds. A few darker witches go so far as to subvert the very laws that govern Nature.

Basic Powers
The basic powers of every witch include:
 * Spell Casting: The power to change and control events through the use of incantations.
 * Channeling: The power to invoke extra forms of energy by focusing on external forces.
 * Potion Brewing: The power to brew and concoct potions, remedies, and elixirs that have supernatural properties.

Other Powers

 * Telekinesis: The power to move objects and persons through mental influence.
 * Pain Infliction: The power to create excruciating migraines or aneurysms through supernatural means.
 * Elemental Control: The power to control and manipulate the elements of air, earth, fire, and water.
 * Divination: The power to divine future, past, and present events based on extrasensory perception.
 * Clairvoyance: The power to divine future, past or present events through instinctive knowledge.
 * Intuition: The power to divine future, past or present events through the use of instinctive knowledge.
 * Premonitions: The power to divine future, past or present events through the observation and study of dreams.
 * Psychometry: The power to divine future, past or present events through contact with or proximity to a certain object or person.

Uncommon Powers

 * Projection: The power to separate from one's body and project the mind to another location or to instantaneously travel from one point to another.
 * Transmogrification: The unique power to alter the physical structure of objects living or dead, changing their form.
 * Telepathy: The power that allows witches to access the minds of others through spells.
 * Possession: The power to jump one's spirit into the body of another, taking control of said host body.
 * Illusions: The power to alter the senses of others to perceive a false reality.
 * Dream Manipulation: The power to control people's dreams through spells.
 * Resurrection: The power to bring someone or one's self back from the dead.

Weaknesses

 * Disbelief: The act of denying or disbelieving in one's potential could cause a witch to inadvertently suppress their magical power.
 * Distraction: Denying a witch from concentrating or giving full attention to their spells, may render them ineffective. Since most spells are spoken verbally and take time to take effect, witches are vulnerable to attack before their completion. Additionally, certain spells require items, tools, and/or special events during casting, therefore they can't be invoked on a mere whim.
 * Emotions: A witch's magic is subject to the influence of their emotional state and may fluctuate according to them when untrained. According to Sheila Bennett, strong emotions such as worry and anger can fuel a witch's power while emotions such as fear may prevent a witch from properly accessing their powers.
 * Herbs: Ingestion of certain herbs can cause a witch to lose consciousness and prevent them from using magic for an undetermined amount of time. The Lobelia flower prevents concentration and, therefore, the practice of magic and can be used to temporarily weaken a witch.
 * Witchcraft: Witches are still susceptible to the powers of witchcraft. This is inclusive of mystical and dark objects. A siphoner can siphon the magic from a witch and prolonged exposure can lead to death.
 * Mortality: Despite their mystical attributes, witches are still human and share many of the same weaknesses as non-supernatural beings (e.g. age, decapitation, disease, heart-failure, suffocation, snapped neck, etc.). However, witches can temporarily get around this weakness through the use of protection spells.
 * Overexertion: The excessive use of magic can lead to disorientation, nose bleeds, unconsciousness, and if taken to the extreme, death.
 * Nature: It is said that Nature will always find a balance when witchcraft is performed, thus spells will always have loopholes. This means, among other things, that no being can be truly immortal.
 * Mystic Falls Founders Bell: An indestructible bell that amplifies the effects of the Staff of Arcadius when combined with the Maxwell Striker. When struck, it produces a high frequency that has some minor effects on witches and siphoners, giving them painful headaches, though it does not affect their ability to perform magic and cast spells.

Tools

 * Amulets: An object that is used to protect its wearer from harm.
 * Athames: A ceremonial dagger with a double-edged blade that is commonly used to direct energy.
 * Candles: A block of solid wax with an embedded wick that is commonly lit to amplify a witch’s spell.
 * Cauldrons: A large metal pot that is commonly used to hold the ingredients for elixirs and potions.
 * Grimoires: A family journal is documented with magical recipes, rituals, and spells. Grimoires can also be used as a Talisman to represent a witch.
 * Herbs: Various flora used as ingredients to be incorporated into spells as binding agents.
 * Stones: Various minerals and ores used to boost or bind a witch's spell.
 * Symbols: Seals drawn or written used as physical representations of spells.
 * Talismans: Objects that can be used to magnify a witch's power and/or represent them supernaturally.

Spells and Rituals
One of the defining characteristics of a witch is their ability to cast spells; a "spell" being the word used to signify the means employed to carry out a magical action. A spell could consist of ritual action, a set of words, a verse, or any combination of these. For reasons unknown, the majority of spells used by practitioners of Spirit Magic and/or Traditional Magic are spoken in an ancient language similar to Latin. However, witches who practice other forms of magic have been known to use spells in different languages; for example, the French Quarter witches of New Orleans performs many of their spells in language similar to French Creole. However, the ancient witches Dahlia and Freya Mikaelson have been known to perform spells using a language similar to Old Norse.

Nature
""Witches have a connection to the Earth. We can literally feel nature.""

- - Bonnie in Break On Through The relationship between Nature and witches is a very deep and spiritual connection. While the majority of witches seem to respect Nature with just as much commitment and reverence as religious factions do about their churches or mosques, it has been proven that not all witches share this belief and have made malevolent acts that go against the Balance of Nature.

Witches
""Well, the way he sees it all witches are family. We're all bonded together by a code of loyalty to help each other.""

- - Luka in By the Light of the Moon The relationship among witches is generally a positive relationship where witches not only help and protect each other but often treat one another as members of an extended family. However, while the majority of witches feel they have to help their fellow man, it has been proven that some witches may disregard this belief and turn against their people if it comes to it, such as with their safety, that of their loved ones or that of their own beliefs.

Humans
""They also know it's absurd. Can't be true. I'm just the kooky old lady who teaches occult at the university. No one truly believes. They just poke fun. And let 'em, don't let them know the truth.""

- - Sheila in Haunted The relationship between humans and witches is generally positive, although this was not always the case. Throughout the past, more than half of the human population lived in fear of the supernatural community. This fear caused many human parents to teach their children to hate and persecute all creatures who were different from them, especially witches. This eventually led to some of the world's most infamous witch trials that massacred hundreds (possibly thousands) of witches. While it has been implied that more than half of those who were accused were entirely innocent, according to Elijah Mikaelson, many of those who were killed in Mystic Falls were true witches. Throughout the centuries, it appears that the belief in the occult has dramatically declined to the point where Sheila Bennett suggested that many humans like to poke fun at witchcraft, a behavior many witches encourage to ensure their anonymity to the human world and allow them to quietly practice their craft in private.

Shamans
""Hear me, great spirit, hear me. We call upon you in this moment of need. We bring you an offering. A woman who desires justice for herself, for our tribe.""

- - Shaman Leader in This Woman's Work The relationship between shamans and witches is largely unknown, but given their similar practices, one could speculate it would be neutral or positive. Like witches, they share a very deep and spiritual connection towards Nature, abiding by its laws while even calling upon it to create the powerful Shamanistic Huntress to oppose vampires.

Siphoners
""Before the 1900s, your mother fell in with a group of witches that were cast out of the Gemini Coven. They were known as Heretics, Siphoners like Kai.""

- - Josette in I Never Could Love Like That The relationship between siphoners and witches is largely a negative one. Witches, rather the Gemini Coven, see siphoners as abominations of Nature. All known siphoners have originated from the Gemini Coven. Six siphoners were cast out of the Gemini Coven sometime between 1858 and 1903, and during their exile, they crossed paths with the ripper vampire, Lillian Salvatore. She indirectly turned the first and eventually the rest into true witch-vampire hybrids, a coven called the Heretics, who could retain their ability to siphon magic even after their transformation into vampires. In 1972, another siphoner, Malachai Parker, was born into the Gemini Coven. Since he had a twin sister, Josette, either twin could become the leader of the coven depending on who survived the Merge ceremony. However, since Kai was still viewed as an abomination by the coven, including his parents, he began to distance himself from his family. Kai's parents saw that Kai was not fit to be the leader of the Gemini Coven, but also knew that if he were to Merge with Jo, his siphoner nature would allow him to beat her, killing her and winning the leadership of the coven. With the establishment of the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young & Gifted, the relationship between siphoners and witches has shifted to a positive one where neither Lizzie or Josie suffered persecution due to their ability to siphon magic.

The Spirits
""Witches talk, even on the Other Side. Who do you think makes all the rules?""

- - Sheila in Ghost World The relationship between the Spirits and witches was more of a political relationship than a spiritual one. The Spirits were highly involved in the activities of witches and often communed with them during their rituals and spells. The Spirits were known to have created the laws of witchcraft and distributed punishments to any witch who disobeyed their rules. Since the collapse of the Other Side, all relationships between the Spirits and the witches have become extinct. However, a faction of witches in New Orleans is known to commune with a subsection of spiritual witches known as "the Ancestors."

The Ancestors
""New Orleans is full of ghosts. Our dead are always here, hovering. When supernatural creatures die they're doomed to spend eternity alone watching the world go on without them. Of course, that's not the cause for the ancestral witches, we linger in a different way. Consecrated in the Earth, replenishing its power.""

- - Genevieve in A Closer Walk With Thee The relationship between the Ancestors and the New Orleans witches was more of a political relationship than a spiritual one, as they were the power source of all New Orleans covens. They seemed to be a near-divine pantheon to the living witches of New Orleans; the orders of the Ancestors were treated as divine edicts that were to be obeyed. However, the relationship between the Ancestors and the New Orleans witches varied from witch to witch. While some witches, such as the Elders, had a deep and powerful reverence for the Ancestors, other witches, such as Davina Claire had a negative relationship, to which both viewed the other's ethics and political agendas as corrupt and sinister. Nevertheless, the Regent of the Nine Covens of New Orleans, had full access to the power of the Ancestors and could call upon them for assistance. When a New Orleans witch died, their body was consecrated and the magic in their bones and their spirit was released into the Ancestral Well. While this restricted the witches, both living and dead, to New Orleans, it gave the coven the power and knowledge of centuries worth of witches. However, every three hundred years, the connection between the living and dead witch would wane. To rebuild this connection, the Harvest Ritual was performed, in which the living would sacrifice four girls for the Ancestors to resurrect and subsequently guide them to become pillars of the community. In 2014, the relationship between the living and dead witches resulted in the severing of the Ancestral Plane from Lafayette Cemetery. However, five years later, the link was re-established through a second Harvest Ritual, and peace was retained for seven years. Despite this peace between the living and dead witches, Vincent, in particular, realized that the witches' reliance on their Ancestor's power had become very toxic; as the living witches grew in power, their dead languished in the Ancestral Well. In 2026, Vincent and many other New Orleans witches freed their Ancestors from the Ancestral Plane allowing their Ancestors to finally find peace, effectively ending their relationship as well as their source of power.

Vampires
""Witches being pulled down by vampire problems. As much as we try to do to stay out of it.""

- - Sheila in Fool Me Once The relationship between the vampires and the witches is a complicated one that is more often negative than positive. This is mainly due to the notion that since vampires were created from dark magic, and flout the natural design that all living creatures must die. Nevertheless, some witches, such as Genevieve or Davina, are free-thinkers who have not only aided vampires but befriended them. Other witches, however, have been known as "Witches for Hire" in regards to vampires, such as working to accomplish a common goal, combat threats from other vampires, or for simple business arrangements. While some are forced to work alongside vampires, these witches are not particularly fond of this label. With the establishment of the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young & Gifted, the relationship between vampire and witch students remain positive while Alaric and others continue to foster peace between the supernatural factions.

Werewolves
""Long ago, the witches and the wolves were at peace. Then came the vampires.""

- - Esther in Alive and Kicking The relationship between werewolves and witches is neutral to a negative relationship. Werewolves and witches are at odds more than allies. The two species did once have a strong relationship with one another, however, this was ruined by the inception of the vampires. However, witches and werewolves have been known to ally themselves with each other against their common enemy (the vampires), though these alliances are typically short-lived due to werewolves not wanting to be controlled. It was further revealed that the Werewolf Curse was cast upon a Native American tribe of Witches begetting the seven werewolf bloodlines.

Psychics
""My Grams used to say that all witchcraft was rooted in psychic energy. Before I knew I had magic, I believed I was psychic.""

- - Bonnie in The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You The relationship between psychics and witches remains largely unknown. Given Shelia's statement to Bonnie, that witchcraft was rooted in psychic energy, Bonnie implies that there's some connection between the two species, though no such indication is accurately known.

Dragons
""On their own, no faction was any match for dragons. So an unholy alliance was formed. A witch, a werewolf and a vampire [...]"

- - Ryan in I'll Tell You a Story The relationship between dragons and witches, as well as other supernatural factions, was largely adversarial around a millennia ago. In certain parts of the world, there was no monster more terrifying than dragons. Witches alone were no match for dragons, so an unholy alliance was formed with a werewolf, and a vampire. As a result, this unholy union, combining blood and black magic, gave birth to the golem known as Malivore — capable of consuming the dragons. With the dragons consumed and forgotten in the world, they've since only been regarded in myths and legends.

Trivia

 * According to Abby, all magic is monitored by Nature and has consequential effects. She explained this to her daughter, Bonnie, when she informed her of how she always dreamed of a normal life and how after she defeated an Original vampire named Mikael. She decided to abandon her family to live the life she so desperately desired outside of Mystic Falls. As punishment for deserting her lineage, Abby said that it was Nature and not the Spirits, that slowly took away her magic until she was completely powerless.
 * According to Bonnie, all witches have a spiritual connection to the elements of the Earth and the forces of Nature. Since most witches derive their magic from Nature, Bonnie explained how witches can feel the essence of life itself.
 * According to Emily, vampirism was an evil curse created from dark magic. She explained how some humans, such as Stefan Salvatore, are unfit to become vampires due to their gentle nature. Since vampirism is known to enhance the characteristics and magnify the emotions of a person, humans who are naturally benevolent will become even more benevolent as a vampire. However, since the basic nature of a vampire is to kill, many kindhearted vampires struggle to fight their urges to murder and more often than not, fall off the wagon by cutting off their humanity and going on a killing spree. These vampires become known as "Rippers."
 * According to Esther, the creation of the Original vampires was an accident as she never intended to turn her family into monsters, but merely to protect them from harm. After the death of her youngest son, Henrik, Esther and her husband, Mikael, feared the power of the werewolves and wanted to exceed them in superiority. With the support of her husband, Esther created a spell that would not only grant her family immortality but would also make them faster and stronger than the wolves. Despite the countless warnings given by her mentor, Ayana, Esther used Dark Magic to successfully enact the spell, not knowing that violent behavior and an insatiable thirst for blood would become permanent side-effects.
 * According to Sheila Bennett, the Spirits are responsible for creating the laws on magic. Contrary to her granddaughter, Bonnie Bennett, Sheila has presumably always practiced spirit magic whereas Bonnie originally practiced Traditional Magic. Sheila hinted that she practiced Spirit Magic when she first met Damon Salvatore, whom she immediately disliked. When Damon asked how Sheila could hate him without even knowing him, Sheila informed Damon how the Spirits "talked" to her, and told her that he was an enemy of the Bennett family and discouraged her from trusting him. One year after her death, when Bonnie performed the Manifestation Spell which allowed the supernatural spirits of Mystic Falls to materialize Sheila confirmed that the Spirits were responsible for creating the rules on witchcraft.
 * While the term "warlock" was originally used to differentiate the male witches from the female witches, it appears that "witch" is a gender-neutral term that applies to men and women. Luka Martin and Papa Tunde are the only characters that have been referred to as warlocks.
 * A subsection of witches known as siphoners are the only witches who have the potential to be turned into witch-vampire hybrids, as they keep their ability to practice magic after being turned into vampires as a result of their siphoning ability.
 * As hybrids, they can draw upon their vampirism as a limited source of power.
 * This is contradictory to what was previously shown; however, as all witches can gain power from external sources, to channel, yet none of these witches turned vampires could do so considering they are aberrations of Nature.
 * However, the fact that witches also possessed their own power in addition to their ability to channel magic from other sources is why they were unable to keep their ability to practice magic following their transformations. Siphoners, however, do not possess their own magic, and as a result, fall into a loophole of Nature's laws.
 * Following this, witches would still be able to draw magic in from outside sources. Furthermore, they should not be able to wield magic, regardless of how they obtain it.
 * Of the many witches shown throughout the series, only four have been explicitly stated to be among the most powerful in history, or a variation thereof: Esther, Qetsiyah, Dahlia, and the Hollow. However, no official hierarchy has been made among these four and are listed in order of appearance.
 * Executive producer Michael Narducci has previously stated that Dahlia is "the most powerful thing we've ever seen in this universe."
 * According to Michael Narducci, Hope Mikaelson "is the most powerful witch in the world."
 * Bennett Witches are well-known in the witch community. Considered one of the most powerful lineages of magic, many powerful spells have been linked to the blood of a Bennett witch, requiring a Bennett witch to successfully perform them.
 * In New Orleans, there are nine main witches covens that form the majority of the witch community there.
 * Practitioners of Ancestral Magic can be stripped of additional power supported by the Ancestors if their Coven shuns them, weakening them.
 * Also, as it was revealed by Davina Claire if a witch tries to murder the Regent they shall be hanged as punishment.
 * Ancestral witches, that have been shunned, can further be punished if they continue to practice magic in New Orleans, as seen with Vincent Griffith.
 * The term "Seer" is a titular name for witches gifted with seeing into the past, present, and future, more than a subset of witches. In other words, all Seers are clairvoyant witches (witches gifted with seeing into the past, present or future) but not all clairvoyant witches are Seers (specialize in the field).
 * Various other cultures of witches have been mentioned, though not elaborated upon, such as the following: "Strega" of Italy; "Aje" of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, West Africa; "Häxa" of Sweden, as well as Latvian (of Latvia), Santería (of Morocco), and Obi (or Obeah of Nigeria) witches. Pyromancers, of unknown origins but found mostly in East Asia, are another unique but rare type of fire-breathing witch; however, only a couple dozen remain.