Wicca been influenced by other Pagan religions, thus making clear-cut distinctions between them more difficult for religious studies scholars to make. The terms "wizard" and "warlock" are generally discouraged in the community. In Wicca, denominations are referred to as "traditions", while non-Wiccans are often termed "cowans". When the religion first came to public attention, it was commonly called "Witchcraft". For instance, Gerald Gardner—the man regarded as the "Father of Wicca"—referred to it as the "Craft of the Wise", "witchcraft", and "the witch-cult" during the 1950s. There is no evidence that he ever called it "Wicca", although he did refer to the
Central Valley Wicca of the material is unique, and their lore is similar but not identical. Central Valley Wicca Central Valley Wicca, sometimes abbreviated as CVW, refers to a particular group of traditions within the Neopagan religion of Wicca which trace their roots to a group of Wiccan practitioners who brought their practice from England to the Central Valley of California at some point in the early 1960s. It is one branch of British Traditional Wicca, alongside Gardnerian, Alexandrian Wicca and Mohsian, as defined by New Wiccan Church in California. There are several theories about the origins of Central Valley Wicca, leading to