Necronomicon
The Necronomicon is a fictional book of magic created by the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. It is a Greek-sounding word commonly translated as "book of dead names". It is pronounced "neck-ro-nom-ih-kon". Like most of his ideas, the Necronomicon came to Lovecraft in his dreams. Lovecraft let his friends write stories about the Necronomicon. Eventually, fake Necronomicons were written.
Fictional History
According to Lovecraft, the Necronomicon was written in the eighth century by a crazy Arabian man named Abdul Alhazred. Alhazred (who was also fictional) practiced evil magic. He assembled a collection of evil spells into a manuscript (a book with loose pages and no cover) which he called Al Azif. Lovecraft said this as an Arabian phrase for a scary sound, like a scream. Later, the original manuscript was translated into Greek. It was given the title Necronomicon. Olaus Wormius (a real person) then translated the Greek version into Latin. John Dee (also real) translated the Necronomicon into English. Lovecraft liked to mix in real people and places in his fiction. This made the stories seem more real. Some people were fooled into thinking what he wrote was true.
"Real" Necronomicons
Since Lovecraft's death, several authors have written their own versions of the Necronomicon. They are the author's imagination of what the Necronomicon would be like, if it were real. A few claim to be the actual Necronomicon. The most famous case of a "real" Necronomicon is the "Simon" Necronomicon. Simon is a fake name. It was published in the 1970s. The "Simon" Necronomicon is based on Sumerian mythology. It has nothing to do with H. P. Lovecraft's fiction. Some people dislike the "Simon" Necronomicon. They do not like that it pretends to be real. Sometimes, people believe it to be real. Simon has written several books about the Necronomicon's "discovery".
Here are some hoax Necronomicons (books that the authors claim are the real Necronomicon):
- The True Story of the Necronomicon, author unknown
- George Hay Presents: The Necronomicon, by George Hay
- Al Azif: The Necronomicon, by L. Sprague de Camp
Here are some books that are the authors' imaginations of what the Necronomicon might be like:
- Necronomicon: The Wandering of Alhazred, by Donald Tyson
- Alhazred: Author of the Necronomicon (a novel about the life of Abdul Alhazred, also by Donald Tyson)
- Grimoire of the Necronomicon (a book of real spells inspired by the fiction of H. P. Lovecraft, also by Donald Tyson)
Here are all the books by Simon about the Necronomicon:
- Necronomicon Spellbook (an instruction manual of how to use the Necronomicon's spells safely)
- Dead Names: The Dark History of the Necronomicon
- Gates of the Necronomicon (a book explaining the Walking of the Seven Gates, a long and complicated ritual that all first-time users of the Necronomicon must perform)
Related pages
Necronomicon Media
Statue of H. P. Lovecraft, the author who created the Necronomicon as a fictional grimoire and featured it in many of his stories.
First page of the manuscript of History of the Necronomicon by Lovecraft
A fan-created prop representing the Necronomicon (2004)
