#witchy warning
Image: https://www.deviantart.com/vincent-engelmann/art/Witch-Boy-796388985
Warlocks are witches who betray other witches, however in media they are thought to be the male equivalent. This is untrue, as all genders are simply referred to as witches. Warlocks has a traditionally negative connotation of betrayal and negativity towards fellow witches, and it defined as an outcasted witch because of this.
There’s a certain perception of the word warlock claiming it as being a translation of a Saxon word meaning oath breaker. This word, wǣrloga, Also means traitor, liar, devil, and other equivalents. There have been attempts by some pagans to reclaim the word warlock, which brought about the popularity of a theory that the word may have roots in Norse mythology.
“In one of the poetic eddas, in The Saga of Eirik the Red, a sacred song called the Vardlokkur is sung, to ward off evil spirits during a religious ceremony. The idea is that the Vardlokkur, as applied to a person, is a “spell singer,” rather than a liar or oath-breaker. Included as part of the practice of seidhr, the Vardlokkur was chanted not only to keep evil spirits at bay, but also to take the singer into a trance-like state for the purpose of prophesying.” - Meanings and Use of the Word “Warlock”
In this case, the word warlock would instead see the name for a specific type of magic involving music (specifically singing). These attempts, however, are not entirely widely known, so those who call themselves warlocks are still debated against by other witches. But all in all, the reality of the situation is that words such as this are extremely hard to trace back to their core roots, so it has become much more widely accepted that warlocks is simply a negative term instead of a positive one. This is especially the case seeing as music which is already exists and call themselves just that or they call themselves art witches.
“Though some may go by “Wizard” or “Warlock,” the majority of men involved in magick, Paganism and Wicca are happy to be known by one familiar term: witch… As for the whole wizard/warlock differentiation, there’s some debate. By Wicca Daily’s definitions, most witch-related terms are gender-neutral, but they do indicate skill, seniority and ethics. A wizard could be any witch of advanced skill, while sorcerers are the most advanced, elite of the wizards. Warlocks, however, are distinctly male –– but not male witches. Instead, warlocks are evil male practitioners of magick, traitors of the art. The female version of a warlock might be called a wicked witch, says MysticInvestigations.com.” - Just What is a Male Witch, Anyway?
http://wiccadaily.com/witch-wizard-or-warlock/
https://www.learnreligions.com/warlock-word-meaning-and-uses-2561729
https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/just-what-is-a-male-witch-anyway
