In Latvian mythology , the term Māte stands for "mother", sometimes written in English as Mahte . It was an epithet applied to some sixty-seventy goddesses . They were clearly distinct goddesses in most or all cases, so the term definitely referred to the mother-goddess of specific phenomena. According to professor Lotte Motz , scholar Haralds Biezais mentioned there were at least 70 characters in Baltic religion identified with the title of Mate .
17-600: Zeme may refer to: Zemes māte , the Slavic and Latvian goddess of the earth, identical to Lithuanian Žemyna Zeme, Lombardy , a village in Italy Zeme people , a Naga tribe of North-East India Zeme language , the Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the tribe Zeme languages , a group of languages that includes the Zeme language Zeme,
34-479: A central character of the webseries 'Zeme N Deme' Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Zeme . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zeme&oldid=983622530 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
51-503: A golden throne at the base of the Cosmic Tree , wielding a sword. Symbolically, the Nav has also been described as a huge green plain—pasture, onto which Veles guides souls . The entrance to Nav was guarded by a Zmey . It was believed the souls would later be reborn on earth. It is highly likely that these folk beliefs were the inspiration behind the neopagan idea of Jav, Prav and Nav in
68-601: A great number of mentions in the dainas (Latvian folksongs). Following are some of the Mate characters: Scholarship on Baltic and Latvian folklore remarks that some of the Mahte characters comprise a complex of deities related to that phenomenon. It is also remarked that, out of this mother cult, "the main Latvian mother deities are those of the dead, the sea, the forest, and the wind". For instance, goddess Zemes Mate ('earth mother')
85-865: Is a phrase used to denote the souls of the dead in Slavic mythology . The singular form ( Nav or Nawia ) is also used as a name for an underworld , over which Veles exercises custody—it is often interpreted as another name for the underground variant of the Vyraj ( heaven or paradise ). The words nawia , nav and its other variants are most likely derived from the Proto-Slavic * navь- , meaning "corpse", "deceased". Cognates in other Indo-European languages include Latvian nāve ("death"), Lithuanian nõvis ("death"), Old Prussian nowis ("body, flesh"), Old East Slavic навь ( navʹ ) ("corpse, dead body") and Gothic 𐌽𐌰𐌿𐍃 ( naus , "dead body, corpse"). Nyavka could be cognate with
102-609: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Zemes m%C4%81te Latvian ethnographer Pēteris Šmits noted that the Mahtes seem to be a phenomenon exclusive to Latvian mythology, with no equivalent either in its Baltic neighbours (Prussian and Lithuanian), nor in other Indo-European mythologies. Scholars (e.g., Miriam Robbins Dexter, Lotte Motz. David Adams Leeming , Martin Litchfield West ) note that these deities were invoked with
119-402: Is invoked as a person's final resting place. A second personage is named Veļu māte or Vélių motę (Mother of the souls/spirits of the deceased), etymologically connected to Lithuanian veles 'shades of the dead', velionis 'dead person' and Latvian Vels 'god of the underworld' (as mentioned by scholar Marija Gimbutas ) and, by extension, with some relation to Slavic Veles , deity of
136-615: Is said to rule the seas as a goddess. Deity Bangu mate is considered to be a recent and more poetical appellation of the Mother of the Water and Mother of the Sea. Lithuanian scholar Marija Gimbutas pointed out that Latvian traditions contain a Uguns mate ('Mother of the Fire') as a counterpart to Lithuanian Gabija , a deity of the hearth and protectress of house and family. Other deities associated with
153-512: The Sanskrit word Naraka , referring to the concept of hell in Hinduism . The nawie , nawki , sometimes also referred to as lalki (Polish language; all plural forms) were used as names for the souls of the dead. According to some scholars (namely Stanisław Urbańczyk , among others), this word was a general name for demons arising out of the souls of tragic and premature deaths, killers, warlocks,
170-455: The nawie usually took the form of birds. The phrase Nawia (Polish) or Nav (used across Slavic tongues) was also utilised as a name for the Slavonic underworld, ruled by the god Veles , enclosed away from the world either by a living sea or river, according to some beliefs located deep underground. According to Ruthenian folklore, Veles lived on a swamp in the centre of Nav, where he sat on
187-535: The Fog") and Lietus mate ("Mother of Rain"). Veju Mate (or Veja mate) is said to be the goddess of winds and ruler of the weather. Another group is composed of several water divinities: Juras Mate ("Mother Ocean", "Mother of the Seas" or "Sea-Mother"), a goddess of waters; Udens Mate ("Mother of Waters"); Upes Mahte ("Mother of Rivers"), Bangu Mate ("Mother of Waves"; counterpart to Lithuanian Bangputys ). Juras Mate
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#1732899165143204-408: The epithet "mate" 'mother' and individually oversaw several aspects of nature, including features of the environment (forests, fields, mushrooms, sea, the wind, etc.), animals (for instance, elks), as well as cultural aspects, such as death and interrement, or milk and cattle. According to scholar Elza Kokare, the authenticity of some Mahte deities is dubious, but some are firmly established due to
221-646: The household and domestic affairs are Mãjas gars ("Spirits of the House") and Pirts mate ("Mother of the Bathhouse"). Mahte deities related to fields and agriculture include Lauka mate ("Mother of the Plough-Land"), a deity said to be worshipped at ploughing time. Nav (Slavic folklore) Nav ( Croatian , Czech , Slovak : Nav , Polish : Nawia , Russian : Навь , Serbian : Нав , Slovene : Navje , Ukrainian : Мавка , Mavka or Нявка , Nyavka )
238-577: The murdered and the Drowned Dead . They were said to be hostile and unfavourable towards humans, being jealous of life. In Bulgarian folklore there exists the character of 12 navias that sucked the blood out of women giving birth, whereas in the Ruthenian Primary Chronicle the navias are presented as a demonic personification of the 1092 plague in Polotsk . According to folk tales,
255-629: The underworld. She is considered to be a chthonic goddess and "queen of the dead", who welcomes them at the cemetery. Another figure named Nāves māte ("Mother Death") was presumed by scholar Nikolai Mikhailov to be connected to Slovenian word navje , an etymon related to the Nav of Slavic folklore , a designation for the dead. He also cited the possibility that Naves mate is another name for Latvian Velu mate and Lithuanian Veliona. The word nāve also means 'death' in Latvian . Other deities connected with
272-566: The worship of the dead were Kapu māte ('Mother of Graves', 'Mother of the Grave' or 'Graveyard-Mother') and Smilšu māte ('Mother of Sand' or 'Mother of the Sand Hillock'). Another set of Mahte figures relate to the natural world, such as Veju Mate ("The Mother of Winds"); Meža mate ("Mother of the Forest"; counterpart to Lithuanian Medeina ), protectress of wild life; Miglas mate ("Mother of
289-428: Was associated with receiving the dead and acting as their ruler and guardian. In Latvian dainas , Zemes Mate is associated with fellow Mahte ("Mothers") Velu Mate ('Mother of Dead Souls') and Kapu Mate ('Mother of Graves'). According to researcher Elza Kokare, Zemes Mate and Kapu Mate act as the resting places of the dead, guarding its body and holding the key to their graves. As an individual character, Zemes mate
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