The article is based on the data collected in the period from 1999 to 2005 during the author’s field work among the Old-Believers of the Urals and Udmurtia (Verkhokam’e historical region). The author examines beliefs in spirit possession which have existed in this region since at least the beginning of XVIII century. Local synonymous terms for spirit possession are ikota and poshibka. In the...
The article examines the vibrant commercial magic and fortune- telling industry in Russia today. Based on fieldwork in Petersburg conducted in 2006, supplemented by printed and, in particular, web material, it seeks to show that, despite the many similarities with its counterparts in Europe and North America, Russian fortune-telling and magic are clearly shaped by local traditions. In the...