Magic Words A Dictionary By Craig Conley

Magic Words A Dictionary By Craig Conley
Magic Words: A Dictionary

Magic Words: A Dictionary is a one-of-a-kind resource for magicians and word lovers, exploring the most intriguing magic words and phrases from around the world. 720 essay-style entries touch upon magic words’ multiple meanings, auras of mystery, origins and history, popular variations, amusing trivia, and fascinating examples of usage from literature and popular culture. Sources range from prominent modern stage magicians to their distant ancestors: the hierophants of ancient Egypt; the high priests, medicine men, sorcerers, and alchemists of the Middle Ages; the necromancers and wizards of legend and fairy tale; and the workers of wonders and miracles throughout history—all performers of their day, seeking to mystify, to enchant, and to entertain. This dictionary showcases those powerful words that give shape and form to a magician’s ungraspable feats, like a piece of silk, or that conjure up a puzzling new reality, like smoke and mirrors.

Our current fascination with magic words lies in the revival of interest in the art of close-up magic and grand illusions that began in the late twentieth-century and has continued into the twenty-first, fueled by the work of such performers as Lance Burton, David Copperfield, Siegfried & Roy, David Blaine, and Jeff McBride. Magic words are naturally as old as conjuring itself, echoes of the rhythm and vibration of creative power. Medieval conjurors first began using exotic words to give their performances an air of authentic secret knowledge. Whether they employed pseudo-Latin phrases, nonsense syllables, or esoteric terms from religious antiquity, these magicians were doing far more than merely adding a bit of enigmatic audio to their visuals. They were enhancing their specific illusions with a universal mystery: language as an instrument of creation. A great many magic words have stood the test of time, passed on from master to apprentice, generation through generation, to find expression on the modern stage and street. These ancient, musical, poetic incantations have a profound—but not necessarily unfathomable—mystique. From the familiar but oft-perplexing classics like abracadabra, alakazam, hocus pocus, presto-chango, shazam, and sim sala bim, to lesser known gems like the tongue-twisting tirratarratorratarratirratarratum, to whimsical modern inventions like izzy wizzy let’s get busy, these venerable magic words and phrases warrant a serious, scholarly tribute and indeed have earned a place of honor in their own special dictionary.

There is profound meaning in the clichéd image of a magician pulling a rabbit out of an empty hat with the magic word abracadabra. The magician is speaking an ancient Hebrew phrase that means “I will create with words.” He is making something out of nothing, echoing that famous line from Genesis: “Let there be light, and there was light,” only in this case the light is a white rabbit and perhaps a flash of fire. The magic word, whether it be abracadabra or another of the magician’s choosing, resonates with the audience because there is an instinctive understanding that words are powerful, creative forces. “The word has always held an ancient enchantment for humans,” says scholar Ted Andrews. “It hints of journeys into unseen and unmapped domains.” This dictionary seeks to reinstate dignity to the treasury of magic words that have lost some of their sparkle over the years, as well as to celebrate and codify the new magic words that magicians are adding to the lexicon every day. This dictionary is testament to the magic of language and urges magicians to reinvest their incantations with that primitive power everyone remembers at the deepest level. Whether the reader is a professional illusionist, an amateur at sleight-of-hand, or simply a word lover intrigued by the power of language, this dictionary is meant to enlighten and inspire everyone to create pure wonder and awe whenever they speak.

read the introduction online now »
Chapter 1 » “A Tip of the Hat”

NOTE: We have been pleased to offer the entire contents of Magic Words: A Dictionary for free online viewing since 2004. As of October 2008 we are delighted to offer the dictionary in print by Weiser Books, available from your local bookstore or through online retail channels.