Magician

A Magician (魔術師) is a person who is trained to use magic. A 'normal' person can also use magic, as Tsukuyomi Komoe demonstrated in the 1st story arc of the anime and the 1st Light novel, though a normal person will suffer more severe consequences than a magician if they fail. It seems that the Espers concentrated in Academy City are blissfully unaware of the existence of magic users, since Shirai Kuroko mistook Sherry Cromwell as a Power User when the latter summoned a golem. Magicians are typically distinguished from Espers due to the former's use of items with occult properties

Western magicians carve their sorcery name onto their souls. Their sorcery name is normally the reason they took up magic, or the one dream which they would sacrifice their life for. An exception are Saints, who may carve it onto their chest/heart instead, as shown by William Orville. Stiyl Magnus once said the real reason for having sorcery names is long forgotten, now it is only used in battle as a gesture to say 'it will now be a fight to the death'.

Western Magicians since the end of the 19th century, according to Tsuchimikado Motoharu, are beings that "whose wishes are not fulfilled, whose prayers to God went unanswered - people who have lost their way and turned towards this back door called Magic". According to him, most magicians are like children in the aspect they fight honorably and let emotion cloud their judgment - whereas other professionals such as soldiers will shoot without remorse; magicians are like "Children who hold knives. And also as Children who have been betrayed by the world, trembling and crying at the same time". As such, magicians have very little loyalty to organisations - they are willing to betray the group to which they are affiliated to if it somehow clashes with their own dreams/goals.

Other magicians (like the Etzali of the Aztecs) might not follow the Western rule of sorcery names, or became mages for the same reason.