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A wizard (from 'wise') is a practitioner of magic, especially in folklore, fantasy fiction, and fantasy role-playing games. In popular use in sixteenth century England it was
used to denonate a helpful male folk magican, a cunning man as they were
usually called, and the male equivalent of a witch. The word does not generally apply to
Neopagans, or to stage magicians (properly termed illusionists) like David Copperfield, Paul
Daniels, or James Randi.
They have historical roots in the Shamans.
Colloquially anyone who is especially adept at some obscure or difficult endeavor may be referred to as a wizard. For
instance someone who is particularly skilled with computers might be referred to as a "programming wizard." (However, normal
usage applies more specialized superlatives to specific fields of endeavor, thus a musician is more likely to be called a
"maestro" than a "wizard").
Related terms
In most cases there is little to differentiate a wizard from similar fictional and folkloric practitioners of magic such as an
enchanter, a magician, a sorcerer, or a thaumaturgist; however specific fantasy authors and role-playing games use the names with narrower
meanings. When such distinctions are made, sorcerers are more often evil, "black magicians" (i.e., practitioners of black magic), and there may be variations on level and type of power associated with
each name.
For example, Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition,
distinguishes between sorcerers and wizards:
- "Sorcerers create magic the way poets create poems, with inborn talent honed by practice."
- "Wizards depend on intensive study to create their magic. ... For a wizard, magic is not a talent but a deliberate rewarding
art."
Another example: "The difference between a wizard and a sorcerer is comparable to that between, say, a lion and a tiger, but
wizards are acutely status-conscious, and to them, it's more like the difference between a lion and a dead kitten." (Steve
Pemberton, The Times & Life of Lucifer Jones)
Lyndon Hardy's Master of the Five Magics suggests ascending ranks of thaumaturgist, alchemist, magician, sorcerer, and wizard.
Famous wizards in folklore and fantasy fiction (sometimes both) include:
- Allanon is a wizard, also known as a
druid and historian, from the Shannara series, which was created by Terry Brooks.
- Belgarath - created by David Eddings as a leading character for The
Belgariad series of fantasy novels (also called 'Belgarath the Sorcerer').
- Chun the Inescapable, Rhialto the Marvelous, and others - from Jack Vance's Dying Earth
stories.
- Crispinophur is the wizard
that helped King Graham in the
King's Quest computer
game series created by Roberta Williams and produced by the
game company Sierra Entertainment.
- Doctor Strange is a wizard superhero and Sorcerer Supreme in the Marvel
Universe. Doctor Fate is the DC Universe equivalent.
- Elminster - featured in many of the Forgotten Realms fantasy novels and RPGs.
- Elric of Melniboné - often called a sorcerer or a wizard - from Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné and its sequels.
- Faust - supposedly a wizard, but maybe more of an alchemist.
- Fizban is the mortal avatar of the god Paladine from the Dragonlance fantasy novels.
- Gandalf and Saruman - from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings - are called Wizards, but are really supernatural entities. In the Middle-earth legendarium, "wizard" is a term
applied only to the five members of the Order of the Istari; the term "wizard" could never be applied to a human, and a human
magic user is simply called a sorcerer.
- Gareth Yaztromo is a major wizard in the world of Titan, which was created by
Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone.
- Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Lord Voldemort, and all other non-Muggle male characters from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the
Philosopher's Stone and its sequels. (The females are witches).
- Merlin - from Arthurian legends and their modern retellings.
- Michael Scot - protagonist of Michael Scott Rohan's
The Lord of Middle Air - a historical figure and an ancestor of the author!
- Mondain was the villainous wizard of
the first Ultima game.
- Obi-Wan Kenobi is the wizard from George Lucas' Star Wars "That old man's just a crazy old
wizard" said Uncle Owen to Luke Skywalker in Episode IV: A New Hope.
- Prospero is the famous wizard in Shakespeare's "The Tempest", also said to be John
Dee.
- Pug is the wizard protagonist of the
fantasy books by Raymond E. Feist.
- Rincewind - strictly a "Wizzard" (it says so on his hat) and the wizards of
Unseen University - from many of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels.
- Sparrowhawk or Ged - from Ursula K. LeGuin's A Wizard of Earthsea and its sequels.
The eponymous character of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a stage magician
pretending to be a genuine wizard.
In some fictional and game settings, wizard or a similar term is the name for a "race" or species, not just a job
description. For example:
- The five Istari in The Lord of the
Rings (also mentioned above)
- "Black Mages" in the video game series Final Fantasy(some games)
- "Demon Sorcerers" in the
TV show Jackie Chan Adventures
See also
External links
Other meanings
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