''The Long Hidden Friend'', ''The Long Lost Friend'', or ''The Long Secreted Friend'' (among other titles) are English language titles of a book by

John George Hohman Johann Georg Hohman (also spelled John George Hohman, and his surname sometimes misspelled as Hoffman) was a German-American printer, book seller and compiler of collections of herbal remedies, magical healings, and charms. He immigrated to t ...

first known to be published in German in 1820 and titled ''Der lange verborgene Freund''. Hohman was a

Pennsylvania Dutch The Pennsylvania Dutch (), also referred to as Pennsylvania Germans, are an ethnic group in Pennsylvania in the United States, Ontario in Canada, and other regions of both nations. They largely originate from the Palatinate (region), Palatina ...

powwower and the book is a collection of

folk remedies Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

. Historically, powwowers utilized a corpus of literature, some of which prescribed rituals and incantations. These include the use of Bible verses,

Albertus Magnus Albertus Magnus ( 1200 – 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great, Albert of Swabia, Albert von Bollstadt, or Albert of Cologne, was a German Dominican friar, philosopher, scientist, and bishop, considered one of the great ...

's ''Egyptian Secrets'', less commonly the ''

Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses The ''Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses'' is an 18th- or 19th-century magical text allegedly written by Moses, and passed down as hidden (or lost) books of the Hebrew Bible. Self-described as "the wonderful arts of the old Hebrews, taken fr ...

'', but often Hohman's ''Long Hidden Friend''.Kreibel 2006: 102. For more discussion from Kreibel on this and related books, see Kreibel 2017: 343-347. Hohman's book was especially influential. For example, scholar Don Yoder references to it as "a standard printed corpus of magical charms for the Pennsylvania Germans". Hohman, a German migrant who arrived in Philadelphia in 1802 and authored a variety of publications before disappearing from the historic record after 1846, remains a mysterious figure. As Yoder summarizes, Hohman was "intentionally or unintentionally, a mystery man, one of the most influential and yet most elusive figures in Pennsylvania German history".Yoder 1976: 235-236. ''The Long Hidden Friend'' functioned as a standardized repertory for many powwowers but it was preceded by and used in parallel with an independent manuscript tradition, which some powwowers preferred. Powwowers also used variations on material found in Hohman's book.Yoder 1976: 238-239. Hohman's book was also influential in regions like

Appalachia Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...

in the early 20th century and in the

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.Kriebel 2007: 80: "As anthropologist Jean Moser points out (Barney 2000, 26), by the early twentieth century Hohman's "powwow book" served as a critical reference for many Appalachian people."Milnes 2007: 39. Over time, the use of powwow texts significantly declined among traditional powwowers. During fieldwork performed in the 2000s, Kriebel found only a single individual who used any manual or spellbook beyond the Bible. According to Kleiber, "It can be speculated that the decline in the use of such books is a result of the 1929 York 'Witch Trial' and the subsequent calls for 'superstition' to be eradicated by the introduction of scientific education."

Editions

Hohman's book has been published under a variety of titles both in German and in English. Of these, two separate English translations of Hohman's original text circulate: *''The Long Lost Friend'' (Harrisburg, printed at latest 1850)Hohman 1850. *''The Long Hidden Friend'' (Carlisle, printed at latest 1863)Hohman 1904: 95, commentary by Walter James Hoffman: "A few words must now be said as to the several editions of "The Long Hidden Friend." When the reprinting of the book was undertaken the only edition at hand was the one printed at Carlisle in 1863. After the type had already been set up, the existence of two other editions was discovered. One of these is in German, printed at Harrisburg by Theo. F. Scheffer, without date. The only known copy of this edition is in the possession of Rev. J. W. Early of Reading. He has kindly furnished a careful transcript of the text for the purpose of comparison. The title-page and introduction of this German edition will be found in the following pages at the foot of the English text. The other edition is in English, with the title, "The Long-Lost Friend." Like the German edition, it was printed by Scheffer at Harrisburg. The title-page bears the date 1856." These editions do not provide the names of the translators and are referred to by their publication location. The two English translations notably differ: 1850 German edition:Hohman 1850: 3. :Eines gutes mittel für die Mutterkrankheit, welches drei Mal gebraucht werden muß. :Leg das oberste Glied am Daumen, das bei der Hand ist, auf die bloße Haut über der Herzgrube, auf das Knöchlein, das heraus steht, und sprich dabei: ::Bärmutter, Schermutter, leg dich die nieder in der rechten Statt, ::Sonst wird man dich oder mich am dritten Tag tragen in das Grab. ††† Harrisburg:Harrisburg 1850: 9. :''A good Remedy for Hysterics, (or Mother-Fits,) to be used three times''. :Put that joint of the thumb which sits in the palm of the hand on the bare skin covering the small bone which stands out above the pit of the heart, and speak the following at the same time : ::Matrix, patrix, lay thyself right and safe, ::Or thou or I shall on the third day fill the grave. ::††† Carlisle:Hohman 1904: 107. :1. A good remedy for Disease of the Womb. It must be used three times. :Place the upper joint of the thumb—the one next the hand—on the bare skin, over the pit of the stomach, on the point of the bone that projects there, and repeat this:— ::Uterus, womb, lay thyself down in the right place, ::Else thee or me will they carry on the third day to the grave. ††† The term ''powwow'' first appears in the title of an English language edition from around 1900 of Hohman's ''Der lang verhorgene Schatz und Haus Freund'' (''Pow-Wows; or, Long Lost Friend'').Harms 2012: 22: "Issued by Philadephia's Royal Publishing Company, this might be first edition to include the phrase 'pow-wows' in the title." In 1904, the ''

Journal of American Folklore The ''Journal of American Folklore'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Folklore Society. The journal has been published since the society's founding in 1888. Since 2003, this has been published at the University of I ...

'' published a critical edition of the Carlisle edition with commentary from foklorist Walter James Hoffman.Hohman 1904. In 2012, Daniel Harms published a new critical edition (''The Long-Lost Friend: A 19th Century American Grimoire'').Harms 2012.

Notes

References

*Harms, Daniel (2012). ''The Long-Lost Friend: A 19th Century American Grimoire''.

Llewellyn Worldwide Llewellyn Worldwide (formerly Llewellyn Publications) is a New Age publishing, publisher based in Woodbury, Minnesota. Llewellyn's mission is to "serve the trade and consumers worldwide with options and tools for exploring new worlds of mind & sp ...

. *Hohman, John George (1850). ''The Long Lost Friend''. Harrisburg, PA. *Hohman, John George (1904). "The Long Hidden Friend". ''

'', vol. XVII. April-June 1904. No. LXV. * Kriebel, D. W. (2006). "Powwowing: A Traditional Pennsylvania German Healing Practice". ''Yearbook of German-American Studies'', 2, ppp. 101–110
Web
* Kriebel, David W. (2007). ''Powwowing Among the Pennsylvania Dutch: A Traditional Medical Practice in the Modern World''.

Pennsylvania State University Press The Penn State University Press, also known as The Pennsylvania State University Press, is a non-profit publisher of scholarly books and journals. Established in 1956, it is the independent publishing branch of the Pennsylvania State University ...

. * Milnes, Gerald (2007). ''Signs, Cures, & Witchery: German Appalachian Folklore''.

University of Tennessee Press The University of Tennessee Press is a university press associated with the University of Tennessee. UT Press was established in 1940 by the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees. The University of Tennessee Press issues about 35 books each ...

. * Kriebel, David W. (2017) "Medicine" in ''Pennsylvania Germans: An Interpretive Encyclopedia'', pp. 341–360.

Johns Hopkins University Press Johns Hopkins University Press (also referred to as JHU Press or JHUP) is the publishing division of Johns Hopkins University. It was founded in 1878 and is the oldest continuously running university press in the United States. The press publi ...

. * Yoder, Don (1976). "Hohman and Romanus: Origins and Diffusion of the Pennsylvania German Powwow Material". Wayland Debs Hand (Editor). ''American Folk Medicine: A Symposium''.

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

External links

Scans of the 1850 English translation ("The Long Lost Friend", Harrisburg) at Archive.orgScans of an undated German edition from the 1800s at Archive.orgScans of an 1853 German language edition containing material from George F. Helfenstein at Archive.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pow-Wows or, Long Lost Friend 1820 books Grimoires Occult books Pennsylvania Dutch culture