Sharing etymological roots in pairs is particularly true when it comes to the word for "raspberry": For example, Lithuanian avietė & Latvian avene. it comes from Proto-Balto-Slavic *áwis "sheep", because to them, raspberries resembled sheep.
You may know well #Thor, the #Norse god of Thunder—but have you head about Perun?
He is often depicted as a powerful, bearded man wielding a hammer or axe. His domain included the sky, where he controlled the weather and protected the earthly realm from evil forces.
In #Slavic belief, thunder was thought to be the sound of Perun striking his enemies with his thunderbolts. As a deity associated with war, Perun was also considered a guardian of justice and order, punishing evildoers and upholding moral law. His cult was widespread among the early Slavic tribes, and he was one of the most important gods in their pantheon.
Perun's importance declined with the spread of #Christianity in Eastern #Europe, where he was often equated with Saint Elias due to their shared associations with thunder and lightning. Nonetheless, Perun remains a significant figure in Slavic folklore and cultural heritage, symbolizing strength, protection, and the forces of nature.
Austeja¹ is one of the #Slavic goddesses of #Spring, known also as "The Weaver", "The Protective Goddess", or "The #Bee Goddess".
It was told that bees were her messengers, and here voice could be heard in their hum.
In Slavic customs, bees tell important news as births or deaths in the household. Also, the soul could take the form of a bee. In #Russia, it is a sacrilege to kill these insects.
The verb "austi" means "to weave": bees were thought to weave the honeycombs inside the hive as the goddess weaved the humans' fate.
About the etymology: Indo-European word "aus" means both "East" and "dawn".
The Proto-Indo-European name of the goddess is thought to be "auesos", which comes from the #Germanic Austron, goddess of dawn and spring.
Her name became Eastre/Eostre² in Old #English, which became… #Easter.
BONUS!
It could be that #Austria was named after the goddess, and Germany after Jarilo's³ "German" title (or maybe Jarila's "Germania")
Participated in #Slavic beginning of #Spring#celebration (Komoeditsa, Polish #holiday name: Jare Gody). Many symbols and #traditions are the same as in #Easter celebration - painted eggs, baskets with food, willow branches... Everything related to rebirth and new beginning.
I took this photo before we lit up ritual fire. My basket was there too :blobcat_amused:
These bird-shaped cakes were used in "calling birds" Spring ritual, later they were eaten.
We celebrated closer to Moon cycle, so we had holiday this week.
In #Polish the word for Germany is Niemcy which is etymologically opposite to #Slavic. ‘[Slavic] … originally denoted "people who speak (the same language)", i.e. people who understand each other, in contrast to the Slavic word denoting "foreign people", namely němci, meaning "mumbling, murmuring people" (from Slavic *němъ "mumbling, mute").’ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavs_(ethnonym)#german#etymology#linguistics#language
Serbia is formally seeking to join the #EU but its increasingly autocratic president Aleksandar #Vučić has refused to join Western sanctions against its #Slavic ally.
Serbia had opened its borders to Russians fleeing the Putin govt but pro-democracy activists in the #Balkan country now say they faced entry bans or had residency permits revoked on grounds that they pose a threat to Serbia’s security.
One of the main concepts we need to realize to better understand old deities, is that the #calendar was divided in two or three #seasons:
If they were shepherds (e.g. #Celts), it was split in two — summer and winter, if the animals had to graze in the fields or stay in the barn
If they were farmers (e.g. #Romans), the seasons were three: spring, summer and #winter
So, gods could have two or three forms, according to the season: in #Slavic religion, there are both examples.
Bialobog and Czarnobog were called "the white god" and "the black god". The first one turned into the black one at the beginning of #November. One is extrovert and joyful; the other is introvert, loves the dark, and stillness. This is a good example of duality.
Other deities have a young form associated to the #spring, an adult one for #summer, and an old one for winter.
One example is Jarila¹ > Siva² > Koliada³
Hi, I’m Silje Susanne Alvestad, a researcher in #Slavic languages and linguistics at the University of Oslo. I’m also the proud manager of the #Fakespeak project - an interdisciplinary project involving linguists at UiO and computer scientists at SINTEF. Our objectives are to reveal the language and style of #fakenews in English, Norwegian and Russian, and to find out whether adding linguistic features to existing fake news detection tools can make such tools better.
@TheEuropeanNetwork It's a shame there's not a single #Slavic#language on this list, especially considering it is the largest linguistic group in #Europe 🙃
And we can be really creative 💀
This week on the blog I'm taking you to the world of Slavic mythology, presenting one of my favourite ancient deities - Veles, the god of forests, animals, and the underworld.
The Oldenburger Burgwall in #Oldenburg is one of the most important #archaeological#monuments in #Schleswig-Holstein. The rampart was built at the end of the 7th century CE, making it one of the oldest #Slavic#castle ramparts in #Germany. Old even for the Slavs - in the 11th century it was referred to in their own language as Starigard "old castle". This term was translated into German as "Aldinburg" (Oldenburg), giving the city its present name. More: https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=58781
I've found this in cultural competency training materials for service coordinators working in Alta California Regional Center. it's a little slavic culture guide. we're easily spooked. gain our trust to get a smile. I'm in tears. #slavic
"Illustration of the idea of greater representation of Slavic lesbians. The tenderness of their feelings is intertwined with motifs of Ukrainian mythology: one of them is a mavka, a kind of spirit of mountain forests, whose appearance is associated with the awakening of nature from its winter hibernation." :lesbian_heart:
I really really really like this piece. The style reminds me of impressionism and feels very warm & unique, plus I don't see transmasc art that often, so to see one with a Slavic folk theme on top of it makes me really happy :) :heart_trans: :blobhaj_flag_transmasc: