Line #198 Characters/SlavicMythology


1	%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.
2	As has been stated on the [[Myth/SlavicMythology main page]], Slavic mythology is still unclear to a large extent. Since we lack sources, a big part of it -- pretty much the whole part about the relations between the gods -- had to be reconstructed. Don't treat what is written here as a reliable source; it is perhaps closer to a quick round-up of the mythology as it is ''generally'' considered to have been, or a list of tropes one might expect of fictional appearances of the Slavic deities, together with explanations, put together for your convenience. For actual reliability, much more research would need to be done.
3	----
4	[[foldercontrol]]
5
6	!Major deities
7	The gods and goddesses described here are considered to have been the most important in Slavic pantheon, or at least the characteristic ones. Fiction (at least the up-to-date) striving to [[ShownTheirWork show its work]] in depiction of Slavic mythology will probably attempt to include some of them.
8
9	[[folder:Perun]]
10	The thunder god (his name literally means "lightning"), locked in constant fight with his nemesis (and antithesis), Veles. He was associated with sky, fire, wind, and lightning, and his attributes included axes (preferably stone), carts, and oak tree. He has also been depicted as a man with gold hair and/or copper beard, riding a cart, and carrying an axe, a hammer or a bow. Perun is considered to have been the chief god of the Slavic pantheon, as traces of him are quite common in Slavic folklore, and he fits well the pattern of dominant sky deities. In Slavic {{creation myth}}s, creation of the world is usually attributed to him.\
11
12	In comparative mythology, Perun is a descendant of proto-Indo-European Perkwunos and a brother to figures such as Thor (mighty bearded thunderer), Zeus (supreme ruler of the sky), Indra (the Vedic TopGod who wielded thunderbolts) or Baltic god Perkūnas (notice the almost unchanged name). It also appears that the Nordic rulers of Novgorod and Kiev embraced him as an equivalent of Thor, or perhaps Odin. In the syncretic Dvoyeveriye cults of Old Russia, he was worshipped as Elijah the Prophet, because Elijah is also known as, "the Thunderer."
13	----
14	* BlowYouAway: He's a god associated with wind.
15	* ElementalPowers: He's a god associated with sky, fire, wind, and lightning, and in comparative mythology, he is the brother of various storm/lightning gods like Thor, Indra, and Zeus.
16	* MakingASplash: In the form of rain.
17	* OhMyGods: Rus nobles swore by him, and even today, many Slavs use varieties of his name as an expletive.
18	* PlayingWithFire: Possibly because lightning can start fires.
19	* ShockAndAwe: His powers of thunder and lightning are his most famous.
20	* TopGod: The best contender for this position, recorded by Byzantine writer Procopius of Cesarea as the only god of the Slavs, and appearing in pretty much all of Slavdom.
21	* WarGod: He's possibly the purest case; his domains tend to be the most martial of the whole pantheon, and warriors of the Rurikids saw him as their patron. But keep in mind that such ostensibly non-martial deities as Yarilo have also been known as war gods.
22	[[/folder]]
23
24	[[folder:Veles]]
25	Perun was a "dry" sky god, Veles was a serpentine, cthonic, "wet" ruler of earth and water, slithering around to hide from Perun's thunderbolts. The patron of cattle -- his name is related to the Slavic words for oxen or hair, which is [[ItMakesSenseInContext not as ridiculous as it sounds]], as ancient breeds of cattle were pretty woolly. Thus, he is thought to have been depicted as hairy and horned, and possibly partially serpentine. He rules over the underworld, is a patron of magic and music, and as a lord of cattle he is also the giver of wealth. Perhaps because of this, he is considered a common man's god.\
26
27	Thought to be a descendant of PIE snake deity Welnos, and may be likened to Germanic Loki, the Vanir or even Jörmungandr; the Greek Hermes, Hades, and Typhon; and the Vedic Vritra. In the syncretic Dvoyeveriye cults of Old Russia, he was worshipped as Saint Blaise.
28	----
29	* {{Arcadia}}: How the underworld, Nav, was depicted. This name occasionally served as an alternate name of Veles.
30	* CainAndAbel: He and Perun were most likely brothers as well as bitter rivals. However, neither of them was the ''evil'' twin, per se; they were just different.
31	* CompositeCharacter: Some researchers believe that his patronage over cattle came from an unrelated Byzantine saint of accidentally similar name, St. Vlas (Blaise), whose name Veles assumed in the later syncretic cults (dvoyeveriye).
32	* DishingOutDirt: As a god of the earth, it only follows.
33	* ElementalPowers: He is a cthonic god of [[DishingOutDirt earth]] and [[MakingASplash water]], and is considered the "wet" ruler of them.
34	* EverybodyHatesHades: Once averted (the nobles swore by Perun, common folk by him), but then he got [[HijackedByJesus demonized]] into a Satan-like figure by Christian religions.
35	* HornedHumanoid: Well... Possibly.
36	%%* MagicMusic
37	* MakingASplash: While associated with the earth, he was also seen as being associated with water, particularly underground sources of water.
38	* OurDragonsAreDifferent: He was often depicted as a snake with the head of a bear and possibly the horns of a cow, which fits the modern conceptions of dragons quite well.
39	* PlagueMaster: But he uses plagues to punish the oath-breakers.
40	* ScaledUp: Sort of, as he was often depicted with dragon and snake-like characteristics.
41	* TricksterGod: The tales don't say much about him tricking people, but he fits into the mold of "mighty warrior god vs. sly trickster god" archetypes.
42	[[/folder]]
43
44	[[folder:Svarog, Svarozic & Dazbog]]
45	A trio of gods who clearly were important deities, as they crop up in various parts of Slavdom. However, their relation to each other is difficult to pin down: does "Svarozic" mean "[[{{UsefulNotes/Patronymic}} son of Svarog]]", or is it merely a diminutive, alternate version of the name?\
46
47	To solve this conundrum, several theories have been proposed. One of them posits that Svarog is the fire god, and the father to both [[TheBlacksmith Svarozic]] and [[ThePowerOfTheSun Dazbog]]. Another, that there are only two gods, Svarog the sky god, and his son Dazbog the god of fire, Svarozic being an alternate name for one or another.\
48
49	Svarog himself is mentioned in only one source, where he is the equivalent of Hephaestus. But he is also a contender for the title of the top Slavic god. Dazbog is generally considered a sun god, although according to some, Dazbog had a dual nature as both the diurnal god of the sun and nocturnal protector of the underworld. Svarozic, interestingly enough, is sometimes considered to have been identified with Perun. It seems that regional preferences might have been of matter.\
50
51	In comparative mythology, analogies are drawn to the proto-Indo-European sky god Dyaeus Pater, a predecessor of figures such as Zeus and Jove; as well as to Hephaestus and other mythical smiths. In the Dvoyeveriye cults, Svarog and Svarogic turned into St. Cosmas and St. Damian (Kuzma i Demyan).
52	----
53	* TheBlacksmith: It's usually accepted that Svarog was a god of smithing.
54	* GeniusCripple: Some of the folk tales depict Svarozic/Dazbog as lame, which draws interesting parallels with all the rest of the lame smithing gods.
55	* GodOfFire: Svarog is sometimes considered to be a god of fire.
56	* LightEmUp: Svarog literally means "shining god" or "light god". A massive debate about whereas these are solar, lunar or day deities is fueled by their unambiguous connections with light.
57	* {{Lunacy}}: The moon might have also been Dazbog's area of competence.
58	* PlayingWithFire: Essentially, the whole trio represents different aspects of fire and heat.
59	* ThePowerOfTheSun: If not for Dazbog, it would have been assumed the Slavs had a female solar deity, as much (ie. comparisons to neighbouring peoples) points to that. [[ViewerGenderConfusion Go figure]]. A different possibility is that they were ''day'' deities (which are not the same as solar deities, and can co-exist with them, such as [[Myth/NorseMythology Dagr and Sól]]), something implied by Svarog's possible connections to the proto-indo-european Dyeus Phter, the god of the daylit sky.
60	* TopGod: Svarog is a contender for this position. His claim is weaker than Perun's, but he seems to be more popular in fiction.
61	[[/folder]]
62
63	[[folder:Yarilo]]
64	The Slavic patron of the harvest, vegetation, and fertility. The name, in the form of Yarovit, appears only in one written source, but is much more common in folklore. It has been reconstructed that he is one of the life-death-rebirth gods, whose life and death symbolize changing seasons. In this version, he's the son of Perun, abducted by Veles, where he herded his stepfather's cattle. He returned in the spring, bringing new life with him, married his sister Morana on the day of summer solstice, and restored peace between Veles' and Perun's domains, but in the autumn he died together with the reaped wheat -- by hand of his wife, whom he wronged, and who in rage and despair brought in the winter. He was probably depicted as riding a horse.\
65
66	As some sources compare him to Mars, his patronage of farming might have gone hand in hand with patronage over warring. In comparative mythology, he's also rather similar to Dionysus, particularly the older, chthonic Dionysus of Mycenaean Greece, and the Mesopotamian Dumuzi/Tammuz, who was also a god agriculture and fertility and died for betraying his wife. Post-Christianization, he was equated with Saint George of Lydda and Saint John the Evangelist.
67	----
68	* BrotherSisterIncest: After leaving Veles, he would marry Morana, which means {{Twincest}} might also count since they're twins. If the reconstruction is correct, of course.
69	* CoolHorse: There were temples dedicated to him, where black horses made prophecies by walking over rows of spears.
70	%%* FertileFeet
71	* GreenThumb: As the god of spring, he personified the growth of plants.
72	* APartyAlsoKnownAsAnOrgy: Seems he wasn't averse to these kinds of festivities in his honour.
73	%%* SeasonalBaggage
74	[[/folder]]
75
76	[[folder:Morana]]
77	The goddess of death and winter, and also nightmares, although some researchers hold her to have been on a sub-deity level, as some kind of demonic being. Reconstructions, whether the one described above or others, generally consider her a part of a duo, the other being a deity of life and/or spring.\
78
79	In comparative mythology she's close to Hecate, but has also been likened to Ceres.
80	----
81	* EvilIsDeathlyCold: She wasn't really the most beloved deity.
82	* AnIcePerson: As the goddess of winter, natch.
83	* LadyOfBlackMagic: She's very much associated with magic and witchcraft.
84	* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: The Indo-European particle "mor", which means "death."
85	* SeasonalBaggage: A case interesting in comparison. As opposed to, say, Greek mythology, where a single goddess's mood brings both summer and winter, in Slavic mythology winter is ruled by a separate deity. Morana's death allows the spring to come.
86	* WomanScorned: In aforementioned reconstruction.
87	[[/folder]]
88
89	[[folder:Mother Earth (Mat Zemlya)]]
90	The earth goddess herself. To the Slavs, like to many other peoples, the earth bearing crops was much like a woman bearing a child; thus, as it was particularly evil to assault a pregnant woman, there was plenty of taboos concerning the treatment of the earth before the wheat grew. She can be compared to gods and goddesses of the harvest and/or fertility, not unlike Freyja or Demeter. In the Dvoyeveriye cults, she was worshipped under the name "St. Paraskeve of Iconium" (a saint whose biggest claim to fame is exactly this).
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92	* AnthropomorphicPersonification: She was worshipped as the soil itself.
93	* MotherNature: She is an earth goddess who bears crops like a woman bears children. Because of this, assaulting pregnant women was considered a heinous crime, and there were plenty of taboos considering the treatment of the earth.
94	* TeamMom: More nurturing than most other earth goddesses. Or, at least, not known to be as nasty.
95	[[/folder]]
96
97	[[folder:Dodola]]
98	According to some interpretations, the goddess of rain and the wife of Perun. Mostly known from southern Slavic regions, where folklore retained traces of offerings to her. As in other cases, it's possible that she was a facet or a local variety of another goddess.
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100	%%* GreenThumb
101	%%* HappyRain
102	%%* TheHighQueen
103	* IHaveManyNames: Also known as Perperuna (pretty much "Mrs. Perun"), and one source's mention of a goddess "Dzidzileyla" might have referred to her.
104	%%* MakingASplash
105	%%* PetalPower
106	[[/folder]]
107	----
108	!Pantheon of Kiev
109	The pantheon of [[UsefulNotes/KievanRus Vladimir of Kiev]]. Vladimir apparently wanted to codify the pantheon, as a state religion to support his rule, and erected effigies for this purpose. In any case it didn't serve him for long, as it was soon discarded in favour of Christianity. The above mentioned Perun and Dazbog are also members of the pantheon.[[note]]The fact that Vladimir picked specifically Dazbog (of the whole trio) may or not be relevant.[[/note]]
110
111	[[folder:Mokosh]]
112	Another feminine goddess. Might have been a wife of Perun, Veles, or [[MarryThemAll both]]. She might be the same as Mother Earth, but if not, she's held to have been a goddess of feminine labours like spinning and weaving. One might say that Mokosh, as a feminine goddess, shows similarity to both Hestia and Demeter. Much like Mother Earth, she was shoehorned into the syncretic dvoyeveriye cults as St. Paraskeve.
113	----
114	* CanonImmigrant: Possibly a Finno-Ugric borrowing, possibly not. Her name might've come from the [[MakingASplash Slavic word for wet/rain]].
115	* MarryThemAll: In some reconstructions, she's speculated to have been the wife of both Perun ''and'' Veles.
116	* TextileWorkIsFeminine: As the goddess of weaving.
117	[[/folder]]
118
119	[[folder:Hors]]
120	A god worshipped in Eastern Slavdom; his effigy was one of the six on the court of Vladimir I of Kiev. Mostly assumed to be a solar god borrowed from Turkic or Iranic peoples inhabiting the steppes, or a merge with Slavic Dazbog, although some claim he was a lunar god. Confusingly, the worship of the Moon is also thought to be an Eastern influence. His apparent sharing of the solar domain with Dazbog has been compared to the relation between Helios and Apollo, Hors representing the Sun as a celestial body and Dazbog personifying its live-giving power.
121	----
122	* CanonImmigrant[=/=]CompositeCharacter: Likely coming from Iranic steppe peoples.
123	* {{Lunacy}}[=/=]ThePowerOfTheSun
124	[[/folder]]
125
126	[[folder:Simargl]]
127	Another of the gods from the pantheon of Vladimir. Seems to be nothing more than a borrowing of Persian mythic griffin-dog Simurgh[[note]]who was re-imagined by ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' into what has been described as a possible mascot for a furry Gay Pride parade[[/note]] by a ruler bent on creating a codified political religion. However, some have tried to find a more Slavic background, divining his name from "seven-headed". He also exists in a story related to the Zoryas.
128	----
129	* CanonImmigrant: May have been imported from the Persians.
130	* MultipleHeadCase: As some scholars think.
131	* SealedEvilInACan: Hard to say if it was so on Vladimir's court, but definitely in the aforementioned story. Details are in the description of Zoryas.
132	[[/folder]]
133
134	[[folder:Stribog]]
135	The god of the wind, also known among Southern Slavs.
136	----
137	* BlowYouAway
138	[[/folder]]
139	----
140	!Western Slavs
141	The Polabian Slavs[[note]]"Polabian" means "along the Elbe [River]", ie. in what is now eastern Germany. You may also encounter the name "Lusatian", which is a subgroup of them, unless you define Polabians as specifically excluding the Lusatians (there are linguistic differences to consider), or "Wends", which is an old, well-established German exonym for the whole lot. Don't confuse with a specific Polabian Slavic tribe also known as the Polabians. Yeah, it's a bit messy.[[/note]] had a multitude of bigger and lesser gods, of which we know comparatively much due to these peoples' constant fighting with the Germans, and with it, consequent interest of German chroniclers (Danish sources occasionally throw in their two cents as well). The Polabian Slavs were unique in Slavdom for the highly organised nature of their cult; they had a priestly class and erected opulent temples. The Lutici, and later, the Rani tribe hosted sanctuaries of trans-regional influence (offerings came from as far as Denmark), whose priests often had the final word in their politics.\
142
143	From what we know, it appears each tribe, or possibly even sub-tribal entities had their own patron, often multi-headed or multi-faced. It's unclear whether they were separate from each other, or local varieties of the same deities, much like the multitude of effigies of Mary in folk Catholicism.
144
145	[[folder:Svarozic]]
146	See above. German chroniclers wrote down his name as "Zuarasic".
147	[[/folder]]
148
149	[[folder:Svantevith]]
150	The four-faced patron of [[WarGod war]], divination, fertility, and abundance, and possibly the best-known Slavic deity. His name means "holy lord", although for many years it has been assumed to refer to the four faces, as it sounds very much like "world-seer"; also very much like "Saint Vitus", thus a claim that the saint has somehow been adapted into a Slavic god. His worship is most strongly linked with the fabled Arkona on the Rügen Island, last vestige of Slavic paganism destroyed in 1168. Thus it is possible that he was a local deity of the Rani, or a local variety of another god (presumably Perun, or Svarog alternatively). The most famous depiction of him comes from Ukraine, but nowadays its authenticity is disputed.
151	----
152	* CanonImmigrant: Possibly, but it's also likely it was a misunderstanding on part of the Christian chroniclers, or even an attempt to fabricate a claim to the island.
153	* CoolHorse: Another oracular horse, this time white. Svantevith was believed to ride it around the island in the night.
154	* IconicItem: His drinking horn.
155	* MultipleHeadCase: Four faces.
156	* SpellMyNameWithAnS: His many-faced effigies caused some confusion about his name, although it'll sound the same anyway to a speaker of non-Slavic language. Somewhat confusingly, the outdated version of his name is considered acceptable for the Zbruch idol, as long as it refers to the idol and not the deity.
157	[[/folder]]
158
159	[[folder:Triglav]]
160	The Three-Headed One. It has been said that his heads watch over the three worlds: the heavens, the earth, and the underworld, though some scholars question that. It is also believed he might have been a syncretic god, whose worship was a reflection of the unification of Polabian Slavic tribes.
161	----
162	* CompositeCharacter: His three heads are said to be three other gods, for example Perun, Svarog, and Veles. The first two tend to stay, who the third one is varies.
163	* CoolHorse: One of his symbols was a black horse.
164	* DarkIsNotEvil: Was often represented by a black horse.
165	* HijackedByJesus: Some believe the part about watching over three worlds was not his original attribute, but a mistake or an over-interpretation on the part of Christian chroniclers.
166	* MultipleHeadCase: Three heads.
167	[[/folder]]
168
169	[[folder:Chernobog]]
170	Chances are, he was a local, Polabian deity. But the thing is, his name probably had a lot more influence over his reception than any description of him. The fact that his name is probably the only one recognised globally (but without actual knowledge of the mythos behind him) likely does not help.
171	----
172	* AdaptationExpansion: [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff A minor deity, with a big career in pop-culture]], probably thanks to [[WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}} a certain movie]].
173	* GodOfEvil: Or not. Sources mention that misfortune was attributed to some supernatural force or deity, but this trope would probably be a stretch.
174	* HijackedByJesus: as the Satan equivalent, or even literal Satan-worship.
175	* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: The Black God.
176	* SadlyMythtaken: The original ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' depicts him as a terrifying, demon-like being whose role can be likened to Satan. In real life, the Slavic tribes attributed all things dark and evil to him, but accepted him as a figure of worship in accordance to their belief in duology, and never demonized him for his role/nature.
177	[[/folder]]
178	----
179	!Others
180	Minor deities, local, known from limited sources, or hard to pin down.
181
182	[[folder:Ziva]]
183	The goddess of life, beauty, and love. Apparently.[[note]]Etymologically, her name seems to be cognate to the Slavic word ''*živa'', related to the semantic field of 'life, living'.[[/note]]
184	----
185	* LoveGoddess: Possibly, though they Zoryas may have shared that duty.
186	[[/folder]]
187
188	[[folder:Zaria]]
189	The goddess of beauty and possibly also sunrise. Given how her name sounds very similar to "Zorya", chances are there was some cross-contamination on part of the research.
190	[[/folder]]
191	----
192
193	[[folder:The Zoryas]]
194	The two goddesses of sunrise and sunset, charged with opening and closing the gates before the Sun, and keeping the watch over apocalyptic hound Simargl (who in this story is less divine, and more a dog-like mythological beast).
195	----
196	* BarrierMaiden: Both of them. Though it has to be noted, concerning maidenhood, there is no consensus on their marital status.
197	* TheHecateSisters: Averted. We mention it here to [[SadlyMythtaken avoid confusion]]: The third one is an invention of Creator/NeilGaiman.
198	** To be fair, in some Slavic languages (Polish and Ukrainian), there ''are'' mentions of ''three'' Zoras (Zoryas, etc.) in folk charms.
199	* LoveGoddess: It's speculated that they were such as a result of comparative mythology, though no surviving myths outright say so.
200	[[/folder]]
201
202	[[folder:Berstuk]]
203	Lusatian god of the forest. Seems like these people weren't too keen on communing with Nature, as he seems to have been rather scary and unfriendly deity.
204	----
205	* NatureIsNotNice: He's the Lusatian god of the forests. No one liked him because he was a rather scary and unfriendly god.
206	[[/folder]]
207
208	[[folder:Lada]]
209	A goddess once considered a popular deity, whose domain would have been that of a protector of hearth or a mother goddess figure. Nowadays, her existence is controversial, but she tends to appear relatively often in fiction, especially when it's somewhat old.
210	----
211	* CanonForeigner: As she might not have ever actually been worshipped at all.
212	%%* TheHeart
213	[[/folder]]
214
215	[[folder:Rod]]
216	Supposedly a top-level god, patron of fate or the creator god, whose name is related to Slavic words for family and descent. We say "supposedly", because researchers usually have somewhat disapproving views. However, this hasn't stopped certain strands of Slavic Neopagans, amongst whom he's very big. If this god was actually known in the old days, he was likely ''deus otiosus'', or the non-interfering god, who created the world (for example) [[DivineDelegation but generally leaves day-to-day running to lesser deities]].
217	----
218	* CanonForeigner: Generally the research doesn't attribute that much importance to him as do some modern worshippers.
219	%%* TopGod
220	[[/folder]]

Context Characters / SlavicMythology