Žemyna
| Žemyna | |
|---|---|
Earth | |
| Consort | Perkūnas or Praamžius |
| Equivalents | |
| Greek | Semele |
| Indo-European | Dʰéǵʰōm |
| Thracian | Zemele |
| Part of a series on |
| Baltic religion |
|---|
Žemyna (also Žemynėlė or Žemelė) (from Lithuanian: žemė – earth) is the goddess of the earth in Lithuanian religion. She is usually regarded as mother goddess and one of the chief Lithuanian gods similar to Latvian Zemes māte. Žemyna personifies the fertile earth and nourishes all life on earth, human, plant, and animal. All that is born of earth will return to earth, thus her cult is also related to death. As the cult diminished after baptism of Lithuania, Žemyna's image and functions became influenced by the cult of Virgin Mary.