Editing Werewolf (section)

{{Short description|Mythological human with acquired ability to transform into a wolflike creature}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{hatnote group|
{{redirect-several|Werewolf|Loup-garou|Lycanthrope|Lycanthropy}}
{{for|the episode of ''Grimm''|Lycanthropia (Grimm)}}
}}
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{{Infobox mythical creature
| name = Werewolf
| image = WeirdTalesv36n2pg038 The Werewolf Howls.png{{!}}class=skin-invert
| caption = Illustration of a werewolf in the woodlands at night in the story ''The Werewolf Howls'' (November 1941)
| Grouping = Mythology
| Sub_Grouping =
| AKA = Lycanthrope
| Similar_entities = [[Skinwalker]]
| Folklore = Worldwide
}}
{{Paranormal}}
In [[folklore]], a '''werewolf'''{{efn|1=Also spelled '''werwolf'''. Usually pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|w|ɛər|w|ʊ|l|f}} {{respell|WAIR|wuulf}}, but sometimes {{IPAc-en|ˈ|w|ɪər|w|ʊ|l|f}} {{respell|WEER|wuulf}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|w|ɜr|w|ʊ|l|f}} {{respell|WUR|wuulf}}.}} ({{etymology|ang|{{wikt-lang|ang|werwulf}}|man-wolf}}), or occasionally '''lycanthrope'''{{efn|Pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|l|aɪ|k|ən|θ|r|oʊ|p}} {{respell|LY|kən|throhp}}.}} (from [[Ancient Greek]] {{wikt-lang|grc-Latn|λυκάνθρωπος|lŭkánthrōpos}} {{gloss|wolf-human}}), is an individual who can [[shapeshifting|shapeshift]] into a [[wolf]], or especially in modern film, a [[Shapeshifting|therianthropic]] [[Hybrid beasts in folklore|hybrid]] wolf–humanlike creature, either purposely or after being placed under a [[curse]] or affliction, often a bite or the occasional scratch from another werewolf, with the transformations occurring on the night of a [[full moon]].{{efn|1={{qi|... the motif of the full moon is a modern invention, since historical sources do not mention it as an instigator of metamorphosis.}} ({{harvnb|de Blécourt|2015|pp=3–4}}).}} Early sources for belief in this ability or affliction, called '''lycanthropy''',{{efn|Pronounced {{IPAc-en|l|aɪ|ˈ|k|æ|n|θ|r|ə|p|i}} {{respell|ly|KAN|thrə|pee}}.}} are [[Petronius]] (27–66) and [[Gervase of Tilbury]] (1150–1228).

The werewolf is a widespread concept in [[European folklore]], existing in many variants, which are related by a common development of a [[Christianization|Christian interpretation]] of underlying European folklore developed during the [[Middle Ages]]. From the early modern period, werewolf beliefs spread to the [[New World]] with [[colonialism]]. Belief in werewolves developed in parallel to the belief in [[European witchcraft|witches]] during the [[late Middle Ages]] and the [[early modern period]]. Like the witchcraft trials as a whole, the trial of supposed werewolves emerged in what is now [[Switzerland]], especially the [[Valais]] and [[Vaud]], in the early 15th century and spread throughout Europe in the 16th, peaking in the 17th and subsiding by the 18th century.

The persecution of werewolves and the associated folklore is an integral part of the "[[witch-hunt]]" phenomenon, albeit a marginal one, with accusations of lycanthropy being involved in only a small fraction of witchcraft trials.{{efn|1=Lorey (2000) records 280 known cases; this contrasts with a total number of 12,000 recorded cases of executions for witchcraft, or an estimated grand total of about 60,000, corresponding to 2% or 0.5% respectively. The recorded cases span the period of 1407 to 1725, peaking during the period of 1575–1657.}} During the early period, accusations of lycanthropy (transformation into a wolf) were mixed with accusations of wolf-riding or wolf-charming. The case of [[Peter Stumpp]] (1589) led to a significant peak in both interest in and [[Werewolf witch trials|persecution of supposed werewolves]], primarily in French-speaking and German-speaking Europe. The phenomenon persisted longest in Bavaria and Austria, with the persecution of [[Wolfssegen|wolf-charmer]]s recorded until well after 1650, the final cases taking place in the early 18th century in [[Carinthia]] and [[Styria]].{{efn|1=Lorey (2000) records six trials in the period 1701 and 1725, all in either Styria or Carinthia; 1701 Paul Perwolf of Wolfsburg, Obdach, Styria (executed); 1705 "Vlastl" of Murau, Styria (verdict unknown); 1705/6 six beggars in Wolfsberg, Carinthia (executed); 1707/8 three shepherds in Leoben and Freyenstein, Styria (one lynching, two probable executions); 1718 Jakob Kranawitter, a mentally disabled beggar, in Rotenfel, Oberwolz, Styria (corporeal punishment); 1725: Paul Schäffer, beggar of St. Leonhard im Lavanttal, Carinthia (executed).}}

After the end of the witch trials, the werewolf became of interest in [[folklore studies]] and in the emerging [[Gothic horror]] genre. [[Werewolf fiction]] as a genre has premodern precedents in medieval [[Romance (heroic literature)|romances]] (e.g., ''[[Bisclavret]]'' and ''{{Lang|fr|[[Guillaume de Palerme]]}}'') and developed in the 18th century out of the "semi-fictional" [[chap book|chapbook]] tradition. The trappings of horror literature in the 20th century became part of the horror and fantasy genre of modern [[popular culture]].