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A Ranked Demonology — Cross-Referenced Hierarchy

A synthesis across the six sources in md/demonology/. Organized by the classical grimoire ranks (King, Duke, Prince, Marquis, Earl, President, Knight) as used in the Ars Goetia / Pseudomonarchia Daemonum.

Scope rule: only entities that recur across two or more of the six source documents are included. Hundreds of one-off names (the bulk of the Field Guide's world-folklore catalog and the rank-and-file of the Goetia 72) are deliberately excluded; each entry below is attested in at least two books.

Per-entry fields: rank & domain · signs / identification · origins & aliases · source citations.

Source key

Tag Source Character
[FG] A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels… (Mack & Mack) Global folklore catalog, by habitat
[DM] Dark Mirrors: Azazel and Satanael in Early Jewish Demonology (Orlov) Enochic / Second-Temple, Watcher myth
[PU] Personal or Impersonal: Karl Barth & Merrill Unger… Theology; treats the demonic as personal vs. "nothingness"
[SP] Spiritism and the Fallen Angels… Protestant polemic; demons behind mediumship/idolatry
[DJ] Daemonologie (King James I) + News from Scotland Witch-hunt theology; rejects the grimoire hierarchy as a fraud
[EN] The Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology (Guiley) Reference; full Goetia 72, seven princes, Watchers, Testament of Solomon

A note on "rank" before the ladder

There is no single demonic hierarchy in these sources — there are competing schemes that the tradition never reconciled:

  • The grimoire ranks (King, Duke, Prince, Marquis, Earl, President, Knight,
    • legions commanded) — almost entirely from [EN]'s Ars Goetia. This is the ladder this document uses.
  • The seven Princes of Hell tied to the seven deadly sins ([EN]) — Lucifer/ Pride, Satan/Anger, Beelzebub/Gluttony, Mammon/Avarice, Leviathan/Envy, Belphegor/Sloth, Asmodeus/Lust.
  • The four directional Kings who command the 72 ([DJ] and [EN]): Amaymon (East), Corson (West), Zimimar (North), Gaap (South).
  • The Enochic Watcher chiefs — a separate, older "chief-of-tens" command structure ([DM], [EN], [SP]).

King James [DJ] names the grimoire ranks only to deny them: he insists Satan, Beelzebub and Lucifer are merely "diverse names" for one prince, and that the elaborate hierarchy of Kings and Presidents is a deception the Devil feeds to magicians (Bk III Ch V). Treat the ladder below as one tradition's cosmology, faithfully reported — not a fact the sources agree on.

I. The Supreme Tier — Emperors, the Devil, and the Seven Princes

The demons every source returns to. At this altitude "rank" is honorific and the names blur together by alias.

Satan / the Devil

  • Rank & domain: Head of all demons; "Prince of Darkness," "prince of the power of the air," "the god of this world." Sin = Anger; archdemon of Kether. Tempter, accuser, ruler of Hell, holder of "the power of death." The one figure in all six books.
  • Signs / identification: The dragon/serpent of Revelation 12; disguises as "an angel of light" (2 Cor 11:14); a shape-shifter — luminous angel, serpent, wild beast [DM]. To witches he appears as a man in black, or a voice; cold to the touch; marks his servants with the Devil's mark [DJ]. Walks "as a roaring lion" [SP].
  • Origins & aliases: Originally an exalted cherub fallen through pride (Isa 14 / Ezek 28) [SP]. Aliases: the Devil, Lucifer, Sammael, Satanael, the dragon, Apollyon, Beelzebub, Belial, the Adversary, Diabolos, the Deceiver, Iblis. [DJ] insists Satan = Beelzebub = Lucifer (mere "diverse names").
  • Citations: [DM] "Satan and the Visionary" pp. 107–112; [PU] §1.3 "Satanology"; [SP] Ch. III "Satan—Or Spiritism at its Source" pp. 27–38; [DJ] Bk III Ch V (~p. 175); [EN] "Satan" ~21423; [FG] PSYCHE.

Lucifer

  • Rank & domain: Emperor of Hell (ranked above Satan in [EN]'s scheme); the prideful fallen archangel. Sin = Pride (symbol: lion); archdemon of Kether.
  • Signs / identification: When conjured, appears as a beautiful child [EN]. Associated with Venus / the morning star.
  • Origins & aliases: Latin lucem ferre, "light-bearer," from the Day Star (Isa 14:12) [DJ] [EN]. = Satanael in 2 Enoch [DM]; treated as the pre-fall name of Satan [PU] [SP]. [DJ] calls it only an allegorical name for "Satan before his fall."
  • Citations: [DM] "The Watchers of Satanael" pp. 85–99; [PU] Lutzer quote ~line 8030; [DJ] Bk I Ch VI (~p. 90); [EN] "Lucifer" ~15055; [FG] PSYCHE.

Beelzebub

  • Rank & domain: Prince of Demons — "prince of the demons" [SP], commander of the decan-demons [EN]. Sin = Gluttony; archdemon of Chockmah. Reigns over the witches' sabbats; arouses lust, war, murder.
  • Signs / identification: A gigantic ugly fly, or a giant enthroned with swollen face, horns, bat wings, duck feet, lion's tail; thwarted by the oath Elo-i [EN]. One of the six signatures on the Grandier pact [DJ].
  • Origins & aliases: "Lord of the Flies," from Baal-zebul; highest-ranking fallen angel; the chief possessing demon at Aix and Loudun [EN].
  • Citations: [SP] p. 28 (Satan's names) & Ch. IV p. 42; [DJ] Bk III Ch V (~p. 175); [EN] "Beelzebub" ~2732; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

Belial (Beliar)

  • Rank & domain: King, 80 legions (Goetia #68); "chief of demons" (per Paul); leader of the Sons of Darkness; titled Prince of Darkness, King of Evil [EN]. Domain: worthlessness, fornication, lies, treachery. At Qumran, head of "the men of the lot of Belial" [DM].
  • Signs / identification: A deceptively beautiful, soft-voiced angel in a fire-dragon chariot; "visage like a viper" (Testament of Amram) [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: Hebrew "without worth"; one of the Watchers; synonym for Satan/Antichrist. In [SP] (via Milton) a chief of the fallen who, "before the flood… with his lusty crew" coupled with the daughters of men.
  • Citations: [DM] "Eschatological Yom Kippur" p. 40 (Qumran); [SP] p. 28 & Milton quote p. 52; [EN] "Belial" ~2945.

Astaroth (Ashtaroth)

  • Rank & domain: Grand Duke and Treasurer of Hell, 40 legions (Goetia #29); one of the three supreme demons (with Beelzebub and Lucifer) in the Grand Grimoire [EN]. Teaches all sciences; keeper of past/present/future secrets; encourages sloth; necromantic divination.
  • Signs / identification: An ugly (or beautiful) angel astride a dragon, holding a viper; foul, stinking breath (hold a magic ring to your face); conjured Wednesday 10–11 pm [EN]. A signatory of the Grandier pact [DJ].
  • Origins & aliases: A male demon derived from the goddess Astarte/ Ashtoreth; fallen seraph, prince of thrones; archdemon of Chesed. In [SP], Milton lists "Ashtaroth" among the feminine chiefs of the fallen angels ("spirits… can either sex assume").
  • Citations: [SP] Ch. VI p. 65 (Milton); [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 10 (~p. 97); [EN] "Astaroth" ~2279.

Asmodeus (Asmoday, Ashmedai, Aeshma)

  • Rank & domain: King, 72 legions (Goetia #32), first under Amaymon; one of the seven princes, sin = Lust. Ruler of gambling. Domain: lust, jealousy, anger, revenge; wrecks marriages, forces adultery; teaches arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, handicrafts [EN]. Ruler of the shedim [EN].
  • Signs / identification: Three heads (ogre, ram, bull), cock's feet, a serpent's tail and wings; rides a fire-breathing dragon; fears water; thwarted by the smoke of fish liver and gall (Book of Tobit) [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: Persian, from the daeva Aeshma "of the bloody mace" [EN] Zoroastrian section; son of Naamah and Shamdon; fallen seraph; husband of Lilith. [DJ] cites "Asmoday… a great King ruling seventy-two legions" from the Goetia as a specimen of the hierarchy he rejects.
  • Citations: [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 8 (~p. 96); [EN] "Asmodeus" ~2170 + Testament of Solomon + Zoroastrian "Aeshma" ~642; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

Leviathan

  • Rank & domain: King of beasts; sin = Envy [EN]. Primordial, near-invulnerable sea monster; the "Arch-Fiend" who drags down ships (Paradise Lost); swallowed Jonah.
  • Signs / identification: Whale-like, shield-scaled, flaming breath, "eyes like the dawn" [EN]. Beheld in Abraham's vision of the abyss [DM]. On the Grandier pact he "signed with a particularly heavy hand" [DJ].
  • Origins & aliases: Job / Jonah. Female aspect the "Tortuous Serpent" linked to Lilith; male the "Slant Serpent"; a Loudun possessing demon [EN].
  • Citations: [DM] "The Likeness of Heaven" p. 21; [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 10 (~p. 97); [EN] "Leviathan" ~14260; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

Moloch (Molech)

  • Rank & domain: With Satan, "first of the evil demons of the Tree of Life" (Kether); "prince of the valley of tears"; Sun god of detrimental rays, cause of plagues [EN].
  • Signs / identification: A bull-headed man with long arms on a brass throne; children burned alive in his hollow bronze belly — the rite of passing "through the fire" [SP] [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: Ammonite/Phoenician god; identified with Baal, Malik, and Greek Cronos.
  • Citations: [SP] Ch. VII "Abominations of the Canaanites" p. 71; [EN] "Moloch" ~17459.

Mammon

  • Rank & domain: Archdemon and prince of tempters; sin = Avarice (symbol: wolf); Hell's ambassador to England [EN]. Personification of greed and riches.
  • Origins & aliases: Aramaic "riches"; a fallen angel, often equated with Lucifer/Satan/Beelzebub [EN].
  • Citations: [EN] "Mammon" ~16356; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

Belphegor (Baal-Peor)

  • Rank & domain: Archdemon of the sixth sephirah (Tipareth); sin = Sloth; infernal ambassador to France [EN]. Governs riches, inventions and discoveries; misogyny and licentiousness.
  • Signs / identification: Sits on a pierced chair (excrement is his offering); appears as a beautiful young girl to tempt men [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: The Moabite god Baal-Peor (phallus worship); a fallen Principality.
  • Citations: [EN] "Belphegor" ~2993; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

Mephistopheles

  • Rank & domain: One of the seven great princes of Hell; the Devil's representative / pact-familiar [EN]. The famulus who serves and then damns Faust.
  • Signs / identification: A tall man in black; shape-shifts to grey friar, fiery bear, bald dwarf, an invisible ringing bell [EN]. The archetypal pact-serving demon [DJ].
  • Origins & aliases: Faust-legend figure, named by Trithemius; from Marlowe's Doctor Faustus and Goethe's Faust.
  • Citations: [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 4 (~p. 95); [EN] "Mephistopheles" ~16801; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

II. The Four Kings of the Quarters

The infernal "directional" kings who command the 72 — named together in [DJ] (as a hierarchy James rejects) and confirmed in [EN].

King Quarter Attestation
Amaymon East [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 8 (~p. 96); [EN] (Asmodeus, Gaap, Seere serve "under Amaymon")
Corson (Curson) West [DJ] note 8 (~p. 96); cf. [EN] Goetia #20 Purson/Curson*
Zimimar (Zimimay, Ziminiar) North [DJ] note 8 (~p. 96); [EN] (Goetia conjuration of the four kings)
Gaap (Goap) South [DJ] note 8 (~p. 96); [EN] Goetia #33

* [DJ]'s directional king Corson and the Goetia's Duke Purson/Curson (#20) are often conflated but may be distinct figures; flagged here as uncertain.

III. Goetia Officers Attested in 2+ Sources

Of the 72 Spirits of Solomon, only a handful surface outside [EN]. These do — listed with their full grimoire rank.

Baal (Bael) — King

  • Rank & domain: King ruling the East, 66 legions (Goetia #1). Imparts invisibility and wisdom [EN].
  • Signs: Triple-headed — a man's head flanked by cat and toad heads; a hoarse voice [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: Canaanite fertility lord, "son of El." In [SP], Milton names "Baalim" among the male chiefs of the fallen, and the Baal-worship of Ahab's prophets is read as Satanic mediumship.
  • Citations: [SP] Ch. VI p. 65 & Ch. VIII p. 86; [EN] "Baal" ~2494.

Gaap (Goap) — President and Prince

  • Rank & domain: President and Prince, 66 legions (Goetia #33), under Amaymon; also the directional King of the South in [DJ]. Teaches philosophy, excites love/hate, transports people, gives familiars [EN].
  • Signs: A human with huge bat wings, preceded by four kings, when the Sun is in the southern signs [EN].
  • Citations: [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 8 (~p. 96); [EN] "Gaap" ~9168.

Foras (Forcas) — President

  • Rank & domain: President, 29 legions (Goetia #31). Teaches logic, ethics, the virtues of herbs and gems; makes invisible; finds treasure; grants eloquence and longevity [EN].
  • Signs: A strong man, or a chevalier [EN].
  • Citations: [DJ] Bk I Ch VI note 8 (~p. 96, "Foras, a mighty President"); [EN] "Foras" ~9075.

Berith / Baalberith — Great Duke

  • Rank & domain: Great Duke, 26 legions (Goetia #28). Gives true answers, turns metals to gold, a great liar; notarizes infernal pacts [EN].
  • Signs: A red-skinned soldier in a golden crown on a red horse; the conjurer must wear a silver ring [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: A fallen cherub-prince; "Baalberith" links him to Baal.
  • Citations: [EN] "Berith" ~2920; alias overlap with Baal worship in [SP].

IV. The Watcher Tier — Fallen Angels of the Enochic Command

A separate, older hierarchy: 200 angels organized under "chiefs of tens" who descended, took human wives, and fathered the Nephilim. Central to [DM], with parallels in [EN] and [SP].

Azazel (Asael, Azael)

  • Rank & domain: Chief of the fallen — elevated in the Apocalypse of Abraham from "a leader among the fallen" to the arch-demon, who "rules the stars and most men" [DM]. King of the seirim (goat-spirits) [FG] [EN]; governs "the lot of Azazel" (the wicked / the Gentiles). Taught weapon-making, cosmetics, and forbidden secrets.
  • Signs / identification: The scapegoat of Yom Kippur driven to the wilderness pit Dudael (Lev 16); appears as an "unclean bird" descending on sacrifices; in the protological vision, a serpent with human hands/feet and twelve wings [DM]. Goat-like; dwells in the desert [FG].
  • Origins & aliases: A Watcher who lusted after mortal women (1 Enoch 6–11); bound by Raphael in Dudael. In Islam = Iblis's pre-fall name [FG] [EN]; later conflated with Satan.
  • Citations: [DM] "The Likeness of Heaven," "Eschatological Yom Kippur," "The Garment of Azazel" (throughout); [FG] DESERT "Azazel" pp. 144–145; [EN] "Azazel" ~2411.

Semyaza / Shemihazah

  • Rank & domain: Leader of the Watchers (the 200); proposed the binding oath on Mount Hermon (1 Enoch 6) [DM]. In 2 Enoch this leadership is reassigned to Satanael.
  • Signs / identification: Hung upside-down in Orion as punishment [EN]; father of the giants Hiwa/Hiya (Ohya/Ahya).
  • Origins & aliases: Shemyaza, Semjaza, Shemhazai; paired with Azael as the two arch-Watchers.
  • Citations: [DM] "The Watchers of Satanael" pp. 85, 94, 100; [EN] "Semyaza" ~22117.

Satanael

  • Rank & domain: Prince of the Watchers leading 200 myriads (2 Enoch) [DM]; the chief celestial rebel of the Adamic myth who refused to venerate Adam.
  • Signs / identification: Flies "ceaselessly above the abyss" after his fall; planter of the cursed vine [DM]. Made dark and ugly, loses creative power, and loses the "-el" to become Satan [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: = Lucifer ([EN]), folds into Satan/Samael. The bridge figure between the Watcher myth and the Devil of the upper tier.
  • Citations: [DM] "The Watchers of Satanael" pp. 85–99; [EN] "Satanail" ~21556.

Samael (Sammael)

  • Rank & domain: "The first prince and accuser, the commander of jealousy" [DM]; chief of the ten evil sephirot; "prince of Rome"; "venom of God," executioner of God's death sentences [EN].
  • Signs / identification: The rider on the serpent — "Samael came down from heaven riding on this serpent" (Zohar) [DM]; the dark spots of the Moon are his excrement [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: The serpent who tempted Eve; uncircumcised husband of Lilith; equated with Satan. Listed among Satan's aliases in [FG].
  • Citations: [DM] "The Garment of Azazel" pp. 76–77; [EN] "Samael" ~21366; [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES, "Sammael").

Uzza, Azza & Azael (the three Watchers)

  • Rank & domain: A trio of fallen angelic leaders who opposed the creation of man and taught humanity sorcery, by which Enosh's generation fell into idolatry [DM].
  • Origins & aliases: Reworked Watcher names echoing Shemihazah/Asael; Uzza is also the tutelary (fallen) spirit of Egypt [EN].
  • Citations: [DM] "The Watchers of Satanael" pp. 90–91, 100–101 (3 Enoch); [EN] "Uzza" ~25329.

The Nephilim (with Ohya & Ahya) — the giant offspring

  • Status: Not rulers but the monstrous progeny of the Watchers and the daughters of men; the antediluvian corruption that brought the Flood. Two named sons of Semyaza: Ohya and Ahya (Heb. Hiwa/Hiya) [DM] [EN]. In [SP] identified with the Genesis 6 "mighty men… of renown" and the post-Flood "sons of Anak."
  • Citations: [DM] "The Flooded Arboretums" pp. 113–125; [SP] Ch. VI pp. 51, 57; [EN] "Nephilim" ~17925.

V. Other Recurring Named Spirits

Attested in 2+ sources but outside the grimoire/Watcher spines.

Iblis & the Shaitan

  • Rank & domain: Chief of all djinn, King of the Shaitans [FG]; the arch-demon of Islam, "spirit of doubt," commanding an army of marid. The Shaitan are a type of djinni, invariably evil, ruled by Iblis [FG] [EN].
  • Signs / identification: A fallen angel "puffed up with pride" who refused to bow to Adam ("you created me of fire, him of clay") [FG].
  • Origins & aliases: Closely identified with Azazel (his pre-fall name) [FG] [EN].
  • Citations: [FG] DESERT "Iblis" p. 146 & "Shaitan" pp. 151–153; [EN] "Iblis"/"Shaytan."

Lilith

  • Rank & domain: Bride of Samael; archdemon "The Seducer" of Yesod; rides with 420 legions on the Day of Atonement [EN]. Night demon and succubus — strangles newborns, seduces sleeping men to spawn demons.
  • Signs / identification: A beautiful woman with long red hair and a body of fire (or hairy, bestial legs); a screech owl; power peaks at the dark Moon; repelled by iron and the names Sanvi/Sansanvi/Semangelaf [EN]. Kabbalistic "queen of hell," conflated with the Roman strix/stirges owl-demon [DJ].
  • Origins & aliases: Adam's first wife (Isa 34:14); Babylonian lilitu; mother of the lilin. In [FG] she is also the mother of Norway's Huldrefolk.
  • Citations: [DJ] Bk III Ch I note 4 (~p. 154); [EN] "Lilith" ~14415; [FG] MOUNTAIN (Huldrefolk) & DOMICILE (ALL NAMES).

Python / Pytho (the oracular spirit)

  • Rank & domain: A familiar / oracular possessing spirit of divination — "the same that guided the Delphic oracle" [SP]; the power behind the Philippian "damsel… possessed with a spirit of divination" (Acts 16).
  • Signs / identification: Speaks oracular/future words through a possessed woman ("by her tongue," not at her command), marking true possession [DJ]. The host swells, "full of the god" [SP].
  • Origins & aliases: From the serpent-dragon Python slain by Apollo at Delphi; "Pythoness" generalized to any oracular woman — incl. the Witch of Endor (1 Sam 28) [DJ].
  • Citations: [SP] Ch. III p. 37 & Ch. IX pp. 97–99; [DJ] Bk II Ch I (~pp. 106–107).

Diana (of the night-court)

  • Rank & domain: Pagan goddess reinterpreted as a demonic power. In [SP], "the goddess" of Ephesus, object of demon-worship and magic (Acts 19). In [DJ], head of the fourth class of spirits — "Diana and her wandering court," the witches' nocturnal flying host (the fairies / "Good Neighbours").
  • Signs / identification: Women "seduced by the illusions of demons" believe they ride by night with Diana over vast distances [DJ] (quoting Regino of Prüm).
  • Citations: [SP] Ch. IX p. 100; [DJ] Bk III Ch V (~p. 173) & note 1.

Apollyon / Abaddon

  • Rank & domain: Prince ruling the seventh hierarchy (the Furies); king of the abyss / bottomless pit; death and devastation (Rev 9:11) [EN].
  • Origins & aliases: Hebrew "place of destruction" personified; Greek Apollyon, "the destroyer"; equated with Satan/Samael. Listed as a name of Satan in [SP].
  • Citations: [SP] p. 28 (Satan's names); [EN] "Abaddon" ~437.

Legion

  • Rank & domain: Not a single rank but the collective of demons possessing the Gerasene demoniac — "many demons as one" (Mark 5). Cited as proof of demonic personhood [PU].
  • Signs / identification: A "persistent negotiator" who bargained with Jesus and transferred into the swine [PU]; in [FG] the "Gerasene Demon."
  • Citations: [PU] §1.7 (~lines 2434–2450); [FG] PSYCHE (ALL NAMES).

The Shedim / Seirim (goat-demons)

  • Rank & domain: A class, not an individual: Hebrew wilderness demons. The seirim ("goat demons"/"satyrs," Lev 17:7, Isa 34:14) and shedhim (recipients of idolatrous child-sacrifice, Deut 32:17, Ps 106:37) [PU]. In [EN], the shedim are ruled by Asmodeus.
  • Signs / identification: Hairy, horned, wide-mouthed, with lolling tongues and wings; "eat, drink, marry, and die like men"; haunt ruins and waste places [FG]. Azazel is their king [FG] [EN].
  • Citations: [PU] §2.5.2 (~lines 3285–3317); [FG] FOREST "Shedim" pp. 125–127; [EN] "Shedim" ~22557.

Ahriman (Angra Mainyu)

  • Rank & domain: The Zoroastrian "demon of all demons," the Destructive Spirit and source of all evil; created the diseases, six archdemons, and the dragon Azhi Dahaka [EN]. In [FG], the Persian principle of cosmic darkness.
  • Origins & aliases: Twin of Ahura Mazda; commands the daeva. His lieutenant Aeshma is the root of Hebrew Asmodeus — tying this tradition back to Tier I.
  • Citations: [FG] (ALL NAMES, "Ahriman / Angra Mainyu"); [EN] "Ahriman" ~695.

Pazuzu

  • Status: Mesopotamian wind/plague demon; appears in both [FG] (DOMICILE) and [EN] (Mesopotamian section). Included for completeness as a 2-source recurrence; little rank detail given in either.
  • Citations: [FG] DOMICILE (ALL NAMES); [EN] "Pazuzu."

VI. The Recurrence Map

How many of the six sources name each principal entity (aliases merged):

Entity [FG] [DM] [PU] [SP] [DJ] [EN] Count
Satan (Devil/Sammael/Satanael) ● ● ● ● ● ● 6
Lucifer ● ● ● ● ● ● 6
Beelzebub ● ● ● ● 4
Leviathan ● ● ● ● 4
Azazel (Iblis) ● ● ● 3
Samael ● ● ● 3
Belial ● ● ● 3
Asmodeus (Aeshma) ● ● ● 3
Astaroth ● ● ● 3
Mephistopheles ● ● ● 3
Lilith ● ● ● 3
Nephilim ● ● ● 3
Watchers / Semyaza ● (●) ● 3
Shedim / Seirim ● ● ● 3
Python ● ● 2
Diana ● ● 2
Moloch ● ● 2
Baal / Bael ● ● 2
Mammon ● ● 2
Belphegor ● ● 2
Apollyon / Abaddon ● ● 2
Legion ● ● 2
Iblis / Shaitan ● ● 2
Ahriman ● ● 2
Gaap / Foras / Amaymon (Goetia in [DJ]) ● ● 2
Pazuzu ● ● 2

(● = named; (●) = present by close cognate.) Only Satan and Lucifer appear in all six. The hierarchy's "depth" is an artifact of [EN] alone — every rank below Prince that lacks a second ● is a single-source figure and was excluded from the entries above.

VII. What the sources actually disagree about

  1. Is the demonic personal at all? [PU] frames the whole question: Unger says demons are real personal beings with names and ranks; Barth says the demonic is das Nichtige ("nothingness"), a shadow of creation — so a "ranked hierarchy" is, for Barth, a category error.
  2. Is the hierarchy real or a fraud? [EN] reports the grimoire ranks straight; [DJ] (King James) says the ranks are lies the Devil tells magicians to flatter them — there is one Devil under many names.
  3. Who leads the fallen? [DM] shows the leadership migrating: Azazel → Shemihazah/Semyaza → Satanael → Satan, as later texts overwrite earlier ones. The "supreme" slot is a moving target.
  4. Where do the demons come from? Three incompatible origin myths coexist: fallen angels of pride (Isa 14 / Ezek 28, [SP] [EN]); the lustful Watchers of Genesis 6 / 1 Enoch ([DM]); and pagan gods demonized by monotheism (Baal, Astarte, Diana, Moloch, Ahriman — [SP] [FG] [EN]).

The ladder in this document is the [EN]/grimoire answer, cross-checked against the others wherever they name the same entity. Read it as one coherent tradition rendered in full — not as a fact the six books endorse together.

Sources: the six documents in md/demonology/. Page/line citations point into those converted files (----- page boundaries; ~NNNN = approximate line in the Encyclopedia). Aliases are merged to the most common form; see the Recurrence Map for which books attest each name.

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