Human geography and the occult: Weird walks, writing, and re-enchanting the landscape

This article traces geographical writings on monstrosity, magic(k) and spectrality which have developed over the last three decades. By framing these various works as ‘occult geographies’ and ‘geographies of the occult’, we show how this work is both thematically and theoretically linked and impacts current and emerging lines of thought in human geography more broadly. Surveying a body of non-specialist writings on occult landscapes, this paper contributes to human geography by showing how these practices and writings inform experiences of environment, identity, and belonging, whilst revealing political tensions for those deploying occult terminology and phenomena in their human geographical accounts.

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Publication Details

Journal
Progress in Human Geography
Published
2026-01-16
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/03091325251411557
Primary Topic
Religious Tourism and Spaces
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Human geography and the occult: Weird walks, writing, and re-enchanting the landscape

Julian Holloway, James Thurgill
Progress in Human Geography
Religious Tourism and Spaces
article

Human geography and the occult: Weird walks, writing, and re-enchanting the landscape

Julian Holloway, James Thurgill
article en

Abstract

This article traces geographical writings on monstrosity, magic(k) and spectrality which have developed over the last three decades. By framing these various works as ‘occult geographies’ and ‘geographies of the occult’, we show how this work is both thematically and theoretically linked and impacts current and emerging lines of thought in human geography more broadly. Surveying a body of non-specialist writings on occult landscapes, this paper contributes to human geography by showing how these practices and writings inform experiences of environment, identity, and belonging, whilst revealing political tensions for those deploying occult terminology and phenomena in their human geographical accounts.

Progress in Human Geography
Manchester Metropolitan University (GB), The University of Tokyo (JP)
Openalex Percentile: Top 88%
Religious Tourism and Spaces
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Human geography and the occult: Weird walks, writing, and re-enchanting the landscape — Julian Holloway, James Thurgill · Progress in Human Geography (2026) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS