''*Dyḗus'' ( lit. "daylight-sky-god"), also ''*Dyḗus ph₂tḗr'' (lit. "father daylight-sky-god"), is the reconstructed name of the daylight-sky god in

Proto-Indo-European mythology Proto-Indo-European mythology is the body of myths and deities associated with the Proto-Indo-Europeans, the hypothetical speakers of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language. Although the mythological motifs are not directly attested � ...

. ''*Dyēus'' was conceived as a divine personification of the bright sky of the day and the seat of the gods, the ''*deywṓs''. Associated with the vast diurnal sky and with the fertile rains, ''*Dyēus'' was often paired with '' *Dʰéǵʰōm'', the Earth Mother, in a relationship of union and contrast. While its existence is not directly attested by archaeological or written materials, ''*Dyēus'' is considered by scholars the most securely reconstructed deity of the Indo-European pantheon, as identical formulas referring to him can be found among the subsequent

Indo-European languages The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...

and myths of the Vedic Indo-Aryans, Latins,

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

, Phrygians,

Messapians The Messapians ( grc, Μεσσάπιοι, Messápioi; la, Messapii) were a Iapygian tribe who inhabited Salento in classical antiquity. Two other Iapygian tribes, the Peucetians and the Daunians, inhabited central and northern Apulia respective ...

Thracians The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

Illyrians The Illyrians ( grc, Ἰλλυριοί, ''Illyrioi''; la, Illyrii) were a group of Indo-European-speaking peoples who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo-Balkan populations, a ...

, Albanians and

Hittites The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-centra ...

Name

Etymology

The divine name ''*Dyēus'' stems from the root ''*dyeu-,'' denoting the "diurnal sky" or the "brightness of the day" (in contrast to the darkness of the night), ultimately deriving from *''di'' or ''dei''- ("to shine, be bright"). Cognates in

revolving around the concepts of "day", "sky" and "deity" and sharing the root ''*dyeu''- as an

etymon Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words and ...

suggest that Dyēus was the vast and bright sky of the day conceived as a divine entity, such as Sanskrit ''dyumán-'' 'heavenly, shining, radiant'. A vṛddhi-derivative appears in *''deywós'' ("celestial"), the common word for "god" in

Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo- ...

. In classic Indo-European, associated with the late

Khvalynsk culture The Khvalynsk culture was a Middle Copper Age ("Eneolithic") culture (c. 4900 – 3500 BC) of the middle Volga region. It takes its name from Khvalynsk in Saratov Oblast. The Khvalynsk culture extended from the Samara Bend in the north (the loca ...

(3900–3500), ''*Dyēus'' also had the meaning of "Heaven", whereas it denoted "god" in general (or the Sun-god in particular) in the Anatolian tradition. The suffix-derivative ''*diwyós'' ("divine") is also attested in Latin, Greek and Sanskrit. The noun ("day"), interpreted as a back-formation of *''deywós'', has descendant cognates in

Vedic Sanskrit Vedic Sanskrit was an ancient language of the Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European language family. It is attested in the Vedas and related literature compiled over the period of the mid- 2nd to mid-1st millennium BCE. It was orally preser ...

''divé-dive'' ("day by day"), Latin '' Dies'', goddess of the day and counterpart to

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Hemera In Greek mythology, Hemera (; grc, Ἡμέρα, Hēméra, Day ) was the personification of day. According to Hesiod, she was the daughter of Erebus (Darkness) and Nyx (Night), and the sister of Aether. Though separate entities in Hesiod's '' ...

, Hittite ''siwat'' ("day"),

Palaic Palaic is an extinct Indo-European language, attested in cuneiform tablets in Bronze Age Hattusa, the capital of the Hittites. Palaic, which was apparently spoken mainly in northern Anatolia, is generally considered to be one of four primary sub ...

''Tīyat-'' ("Sun, day"),

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

''endios'' ("midday"),

Old Armenian Classical Armenian (, in Eastern Armenian pronunciation: Grabar, Western Armenian: Krapar; meaning "literary anguage; also Old Armenian or Liturgical Armenian) is the oldest attested form of the Armenian language. It was first written down at ...

''tiw'' (տիւ, "bright day"),

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...

("nine-day period"), Welsh ("today"), or Slavic '' Poludnitsa'' ("Lady Midday"). While the

Greek goddess A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of d ...

Pandeia or

Pandia In Greek mythology, the goddess Pandia or Pandeia ( grc-gre, Πανδία, Πανδεία, meaning "all brightness") was a daughter of Zeus and the goddess Selene, the Greek personification of the moon. From the '' Homeric Hymn to Selene'', we h ...

( grc-gre, Πανδία, Πανδεία, "all brightness") may have been another name for the

Moon Goddess A lunar deity or moon deity is a deity who represents the Moon, or an aspect of it. These deities can have a variety of functions and traditions depending upon the culture, but they are often related. Lunar deities and Moon worship can be found ...

Selene In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Selene (; grc-gre, Σελήνη , meaning "Moon"''A Greek–English Lexicon's.v. σελήνη) is the goddess and the personification of the Moon. Also known as Mene, she is traditionally the daughter of ...

, her name still preserves the root ''*di''-/''*dei''-, meaning "to shine, be bright".

Epithets

The most constant epithet associated with *''Dyēus'' is "father" (''*ph₂tḗr''). The term "Father Dyēus" was inherited in the Vedic '' Dyáuṣ Pitṛ́'', Greek ''Zeus Patēr'', Illyrian '' Dei-pátrous'', Roman ''Jupiter'' (*), even in the form of "dad" or "papa" in the

Scythian The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Centra ...

''Papaios'' for Zeus'','' or the

expression ''

Tiyaz Tiyaz or Tiyad was the sun god of the Palaians, regarded as the third most important deity in their pantheon. He was also incorporated into Hittite religion. He appears in a ritual written in Palaic, though presumed to belong to a Hittite corpus, ...

'' ''papaz''. The epithet ''*Ph₂tḗr Ǵenh₁-tōr'' ("Father Procreator") is also attested in the Vedic, Iranian, Greek, and perhaps the Roman ritual traditions.

Role

''*Dyēus'' was the Sky or Day conceived as a divine entity, and thus the dwelling of the gods, the Heaven. As the gateway to the deities and the father of both the

Divine Twins The Divine Twins are youthful horsemen, either gods or demigods, who serve as rescuers and healers in Proto-Indo-European mythology. Like other Proto-Indo-European divinities, the Divine Twins are not directly attested by archaeological or writt ...

and the goddess of the Dawn ('' *H₂éwsōs''), ''*Dyēus'' was a prominent deity in the Proto-Indo-European pantheon. He was however likely not their ruler or the holder of the supreme power like Zeus and Jupiter. ''*Dyēus'' was associated with the bright and vast sky, but also to the cloudy weather in the Vedic and Greek formulas ''*Dyēus' rain.'' Although several reflexes of Dyēus are storm deities, such as Zeus and Jupiter, this is thought to be a late development exclusive to Mediterranean traditions, probably derived from syncretism with Canaanite deities and the Proto-Indo-European god '' *Perk^wunos''. Due to his celestial nature, ''*Dyēus'' is often described as "all-seeing" or "with wide vision" in Indo-European myths. It is unlikely however that he was in charge of the supervision of justice and righteousness, as it was the case for Zeus or the Indo-Iranian

Mithra Mithra ( ae, ''Miθra'', peo, 𐎷𐎰𐎼 ''Miça'') commonly known as Mehr, is the Iranian deity of covenant, light, oath, justice and the sun. In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seein ...

–

Varuna Varuna (; sa, वरुण, , Malay: ''Baruna'') is a Vedic deity associated initially with the sky, later also with the seas as well as Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is found in the oldest layer of Vedic literature of Hinduism, such ...

duo; but he was suited to serve at least as a witness to oaths and treaties. Proto-Indo-Europeans also visualized the sun as the "lamp of Dyēus" or the "eye of Dyēus", as seen in various reflexes: "the god's lamp" in

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars a ...

' ''Medes'', "heaven's candle" in '' Beowulf'', "the land of Hatti's torch" (the Sun-goddess of

Arinna Arinna was the major cult center of the Hittite sun-goddess known as dUTU URU''Arinna'' or " Sun-Goddess of Arinna", who is also sometimes identified as ''Arinniti'' or as ''Wuru(n)šemu''. Arinna was located near Hattusa, the Hittite capital. ...

) in a Hittite prayer, Helios as the eye of Zeus,

Hvare-khshaeta Hvare-khshaeta (', ') is the Avestan language name of the Zoroastrian ''yazata'' (divinity) of the "Radiant Sun." Avestan ''Hvarə-xšaēta'' is a compound in which ''hvar'' "sun" has ''xšaēta'' "radiant" as a stock epithet. Avestan ''hvar'' de ...

as the eye of Ahura Mazda, and the sun as "God's eye" in

Romanian folklore The folklore of Romania is the collection of traditions of the Romanians. A feature of Romanian culture is the special relationship between folklore and the learned culture, determined by two factors. First, the rural character of the Romanian ...

Consort

''*Dyēus'' is often paired with ''*D^héǵ^hōm'', the Earth goddess, and described as uniting with her to ensure the growth and sustenance of terrestrial life; the earth becomes pregnant as the rain falls from the sky. The relationship between Father Sky (*''Dyēus Ph₂tḗr'') and Mother Earth (''*D^héǵ^hōm Méh_atēr'') is also of contrast: the latter is portrayed as the vast and dark dwelling of mortals, located below the bright seat of the gods. According to Jackson however, as the thunder-god is frequently associated with the fructifying rains, she may be a more fitting partner of '' *Perk^wunos'' than of ''*Dyēus''. While Hausos and the Divine Twins are generally considered the offsprings of ''*Dyēus'' alone, some scholars have proposed a spouse-goddess reconstructed as ''*Diwōnā'' or ''*Diuōneh₂'', with a possible descendant in Zeus's consort Dione. A thematic echo occurs in the Vedic tradition as Indra's wife Indrānī displays a similar jealous and quarrelsome disposition under provocation. A second descendant may be found in Dia, a mortal said to unite with Zeus in a Greek myth. The story leads ultimately to the birth of the Centaurs after the mating of Dia's husband

Ixion In Greek mythology, Ixion ( ; el, Ἰξίων, ''gen''.: Ἰξίονος means 'strong native') was king of the Lapiths, the most ancient tribe of Thessaly. Family Ixion was the son of Ares, or Leonteus, or Antion and Perimele, or the not ...

with the phantom of Hera, the spouse of Zeus. Another reflex may be found in the

Mycenaean Greek Mycenaean Greek is the most ancient attested form of the Greek language, on the Greek mainland and Crete in Mycenaean Greece (16th to 12th centuries BC), before the hypothesised Dorian invasion, often cited as the '' terminus ad quem'' for th ...

''Diwia'', possibly a feminine counterpart of Zeus attested in the second part of the 2nd millennium BC and which may have survived in the Pamphylian dialect of Asia Minor.Ventris, Michael; Chadwick, John. ''Documents in Mycenaean Greek''. Cambridge at the University Press. 1956. p. 125. The reconstruction is however only based upon the Greek—and to a lesser extent the Vedic—tradition, and it remains therefore not secured. If the female goddesses Hera, Juno,

Frigg Frigg (; Old Norse: ) is a goddess, one of the Æsir, in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about her, she is associated with marriage, prophecy, clairvoyance and motherhood, and dwells in the wet ...

and

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and r ...

share a common association with marriage and fertility,

Mallory Mallory is an Irish surname derived from the Gaelic ''Ó Mallairígh''. Spelling variants include Mallary, Mallery, Malorie, Mallorie, Mallerie and Mallorey. Mallory and Mallerie are also given names derived from the surname. Surname * Arenia ...

and Adams note however that "these functions are much too generic to support the supposition of a distinct PIE 'consort goddess' and many of the 'consorts' probably represent assimilations of earlier goddesses who may have had nothing to do with marriage."

Evidence

Cognates stemming either from the root ''*dyeu'' ("daylight, bright sky"), the epithet ''*Dyēus Ph₂ter'' ("Father Sky"), the vṛddhi-derivative ''*deiwós'' ("celestial", a "god"), the derivative ''*diwyós'' ("divine"), or the back-formation (a "day") are among the most widely attested in

. * PIE: *''d(e)i''-, 'to shine, be bright', **PIE: ''*dyēus,'' the daylight-sky god, *** Indo-Iranian: ''*dyauš'', Lubotsky, Alexander (2011).
Indo-Aryan Inherited Lexicon
. ''Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Project''. Leiden University. s.v. ''dyáv-'' and ''devá-''. ****

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

: '' Dyáuṣ'' (द्यौष्)'','' the god of Heaven, and ''dyú'' (द्यु), the common word for "heaven", ****

Old Avestan Avestan (), or historically Zend, is an umbrella term for two Old Iranian languages: Old Avestan (spoken in the 2nd millennium BCE) and Younger Avestan (spoken in the 1st millennium BCE). They are known only from their conjoined use as the scrip ...

: ''dyaoš'' (𐬛𐬫𐬀𐬊𐬱'')'', "heaven", mentioned in a single verse of the ''

Avesta The Avesta () is the primary collection of religious texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language. The Avesta texts fall into several different categories, arranged either by dialect, or by usage. The principal text in the lit ...

''; Young Avestan: ''diiaoš'', "hell", as a result of the

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic ...

religious reformation, ***

: ''di-we'' (𐀇𐀸 ''/diwei/''),

dative case In grammar, the dative case (abbreviated , or sometimes when it is a core argument) is a grammatical case used in some languages to indicate the recipient or beneficiary of an action, as in "Maria Jacobo potum dedit", Latin for "Maria gave Jacob a ...

of an otherwise scarcely attested name, ****

Cypriot Syllabary The Cypriot or Cypriote syllabary is a syllabic script used in Iron Age Cyprus, from about the 11th to the 4th centuries BCE, when it was replaced by the Greek alphabet. A pioneer of that change was King Evagoras of Salamis. It is descended fr ...

: ''ti-wo'', interpreted as pertaining to Zeus, and the possible genitive ''Diwoi''. *****

: ''

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...

'' (Ζεύς), the god of the Sky; also Boeotian Lac.,

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government refor ...

., Rhod. dialects: ''Deús'' (Δεύς), *** Italic: (), ****

Old Latin Old Latin, also known as Early Latin or Archaic Latin (Classical la, prīsca Latīnitās, lit=ancient Latinity), was the Latin language in the period before 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin. It descends from a common Proto-Italic ...

: ''Dioue'' or ''loue'', *****Latin: ''

Jove Jupiter ( la, Iūpiter or , from Proto-Italic "day, sky" + "father", thus " sky father" Greek: Δίας or Ζεύς), also known as Jove ( gen. ''Iovis'' ), is the god of the sky and thunder, and king of the gods in ancient Roman religio ...

'' (''Iove''), the god of the Sky; and '' Diūs (Fidius)'', the god of oaths, ****

Oscan Oscan is an extinct Indo-European language of southern Italy. The language is in the Osco-Umbrian or Sabellic branch of the Italic languages. Oscan is therefore a close relative of Umbrian. Oscan was spoken by a number of tribes, including ...

: ''Diúvei'' (''Διουϝει''), genitive singular, ****

Umbrian Umbrian is an extinct Italic language formerly spoken by the Umbri in the ancient Italian region of Umbria. Within the Italic languages it is closely related to the Oscan group and is therefore associated with it in the group of Osco-Umbrian ...

: ''Di'' or ''Dei'' (''Grabouie''/''Graboue''), attested in the

Iguvine Tablets The Iguvine Tablets, also known as the Eugubian Tablets or Eugubine Tables, are a series of seven bronze tablets from ancient Iguvium (modern Gubbio), Italy, written in the ancient Italic language Umbrian. The earliest tablets, written in the na ...

, **** Paelignian: ''Ioviois'' (''Pvclois'') and ''Ioveis'' (''Pvcles''), interpreted as a

calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language w ...

of the Greek theonym ''Diós-kouroi,'' ***

Anatolian Anatolian or anatolica may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the region Anatolia * Anatolians, ancient Indo-European peoples who spoke the Anatolian languages * Anatolian High School, a type of Turkish educational institution * Anatol ...

: ''*diéu-, *diu-'', a "god", **** Hittite: ''šīuš'' (𒅆𒍑), a "god" or the Sun-God; a deity named ''Šiušummiš'' is mentioned in the

Anitta text Anitta, son of Pitḫana, reigned ca. 1740–1725 BC (middle chronology), and was a king of Kuššara, a city that has yet to be identified. He is the earliest known ruler to compose a text in the Hittite language. His high official, or ''rabi s ...

. ****

: ''tiuna'', "divine", a "god", **** Lydian: ''ciw-'', a "god"; ''Lefs'' or ''Lévs'', the Lydian Zeus. *** Illyrian: ''dei-'' or ''-dí,'' meaning "heaven" or "God", as in '' Dei-pátrous'', the "sky-father", *** Proto-Messapic: ''*dyēs'', **** Messapic: ''Zis'' or ''Dis'', the sky-god, *** Albanian: '' Zojz'', a sky and lightning god, and '' Perën-di'', a sky and thunder god (the suffix ''-di'' is attached to ''per-en-'', an extension of PIE *''per-'' "to strike"), ***

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

: ''Zi''-, ''Diu''-, or ''Dias''- (in personal names), *** Phrygian: ''Tiy''-. *** Bithynia: ''Tiyes'' and Anatolian city ''

Tium Tium ( el, Τῖον) was an ancient settlement, also known as Filyos ( el, Φίλειος), on the south coast of the Black Sea at the mouth of the river Billaeus in present-day Turkey. Ancient writers variously assigned it to ancient Paphlagonia ...

'' (Τιεῖον).

Sky-Father epithet

Júpiter_y_Tetis,_por_Dominique_IngresFXD

Ritual and formulaic expressions stemming from the form *''Dyēus Ph₂ter'' ("Father Dyēus") were inherited in the following liturgic and poetic traditions: * PIE: ''*dyēus ph₂tḗr,'' 'Father Sky' ( voc. ''*dyeu ph₂ter'', 'O Father Sky'), **

: ''Zeus Patēr'' (Ζεῦς πατήρ; voc. Ζεῦ πάτερ), **

Vedic upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...

: ''Dyáuṣ-pitā́'' (voc. ''Dyáuṣ-pitṛ́'', द्यौष्पितृ), ** Italic: , ***

: ''Dies Pater'',

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandth t ...

(''Iūpiter''), along with the archaic forms ''Diespiter'' and ''Iovispater,'' ***

: ''Dípatír'',

: ''Iupater'' (dat. ''Iuve patre'')'',''

South Picene South Picene (also known as Paleo-Sabellic, Mid-Adriatic or Eastern Italic) is an extinct Italic language belonging to the Sabellic subfamily. It is apparently unrelated to the North Picene language, which is not understood and therefore unclas ...

: ''dipater'' (gen. ''dipoteres''), ** Illyrian: ''

Deipaturos Deipaturos ( Doric Greek: , ; lit. "sky-father") was a deity worshiped in the region of Tymphaea as the Sky Father. Description ''Deipáturos'' was recorded by the Greek grammarian Hesychius of Alexandria (fifth or sixth century AD), in an en ...

,'' recorded by Hesychius as Δειπάτυροϛ (Deipáturos), a god worshiped in

Tymphaea Tymphaea or Tymphaia () was an ancient Greek territory, specifically located in the region of Epirus, inhabited by the Tymphaioi, a northwestern Greek tribe that belonged to the Molossian tribal state or ''koinon''. The tribal territory was annex ...

. Other reflexes are variants that have retained both descendants of the root ''*dyeu-'' ("sky") and the original structure "Father God". Some traditions have replaced the epithet ''*ph₂ter'' with the nursery word ''papa'' ("dad, daddy"): *

Luwian The Luwians were a group of Anatolian peoples who lived in central, western, and southern Anatolia, in present-day Turkey, during the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. They spoke the Luwian language, an Indo-European language of the Anatolian sub-fam ...

: ''Tātis tiwaz'', "Daddy Tiwaz", the Sun-god, *

: ''Tiyaz'' ''papaz'', "Papa

", the Sun-god, *

: ''Papaios'' (''Papa Zios''), "father Zeus", the god of the Sky, *

: ''in'' ''Dagdae Oll-athair'', "Great Father the

Dagda The Dagda (Old Irish: ''In Dagda,'' ga, An Daghdha, ) is an important god in Irish mythology. One of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the Dagda is portrayed as a father-figure, king, and druid.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia' ...

" (from the

Proto-Celtic Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, is the ancestral proto-language of all known Celtic languages, and a descendant of Proto-Indo-European. It is not attested in writing but has been partly reconstructed through the comparative method. Proto-Celti ...

formula ''*sindos dago-dēwos ollo fātir'', "Great Father the Good God"). Other variants are less secured: * Hittite: ''attas Isanus,'' "Father Sun-god"; the name of the sky-god was replaced with a Hattic sun-god loan, but the original structure of the formula left intact, * Latvian: ''Debess tēvs'', "Father of Heaven", *

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...

: ''Óðinn'' ''Alföðr'', " Odin, All-Father" or "Odin Father of All", *

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

: '' Stribogŭ'', "Father God", * Albanian: ''Zot'', "lord" or "God", epithet of Zojz, the sky-father (generally thought to be derived from

Proto-Albanian The Proto-Albanian language is the unattested language from which Albanian later developed. Albanian evolved from an ancient Paleo-Balkan language, traditionally thought to be Illyrian, or otherwise a totally unattested Balkan Indo-European ...

, "heavenly father"; although the etymology , "lord of the house", has also been proposed), * Tokharian B: ''kauṃ-ñäkte'', 'sun, sun-god'.

"Celestial" derivations

Cognates stemming from *''deywós'', a vṛddhi-derivation of *''dyēus'' (the sky-god) are attested in the following traditions: *PIE: *''deywós'' ( lit. ''skyling'', pl. ''*deywṓs''), meaning "celestial, heavenly one", hence a "god", ** Indo-Iranian: ''*daivá'' (''daiua''), a "god", ***

: '' devá'' (देव)'','' meaning "heavenly, divine, anything of excellence", and '' devi'', female title meaning "goddess"; *** Avestan: ''daēva'' (𐬛𐬀𐬉𐬎𐬎𐬀, ''daēuua''), a term for "demons" in

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheisti ...

, as a result of a religious reformation that degraded the status of prior deities, **** Old Persian: ''daiva'' meaning "false deities, demons", **

Balto-Slavic The Balto-Slavic languages form a branch of the Indo-European family of languages, traditionally comprising the Baltic and Slavic languages. Baltic and Slavic languages share several linguistic traits not found in any other Indo-European bran ...

: ''*deiwas'', *** Baltic: ''*deivas'', **** Lithuanian: Diēvas (Old Lithuanian ''deivas''),

Old Prussian Old Prussian was a Western Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European languages, which was once spoken by the Old Prussians, the Baltic peoples of the Prussian region. The language is called Old Prussian to avoid con ...

: Dìews (or ''Deywis''), Latvian: Dievs, supreme god of the sky; and the Baltic ''Dievaitis'' ("Little God" or "Prince"), a name used to refer to the Thunder God

Perkūnas Perkūnas ( lt, Perkūnas, lv, Pērkons, Old Prussian: ''Perkūns'', ''Perkunos'', Yotvingian: ''Parkuns'', Latgalian: ''Pārkiuņs'') was the common Baltic god of thunder, and the second most important deity in the Baltic pantheon after Di ...

, or to the Moon God Mėnuo. ** Germanic: ''*tīwaz'' (pl. ''*tīwōz''), a word for "god", although specifically associated with a Germanic god whose name was supplanted by the title "God", ''*Tīwaz'', ***

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic people ...

, associated with justice; the plural ''tívar'' survived as a poetic word for 'the gods', and ''týr'' appears in

kenning A kenning ( Icelandic: ) is a figure of speech in the type of circumlocution, a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse-Icelandic and Old English ...

s for Odin and

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...

, such as in the Odin's names ''Sigtýr'' ("victory-god"), ''Gautatýr'' ("god of the Geats"), ''Fimbultýr'' ("powerful god"), or ''Hertýr'' ("army-god"), ***

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...

: Tīw (or ''Tīg''),

Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High ...

: ''Zio'' (or ''*Ziu''), a god, *** Gothic: ''*Teiws'', and the associated

rune Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write various Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised ...

ᛏ ('' Tyz''), ***The word '

Tuesday Tuesday is the day of the week between Monday and Wednesday. According to international standard ISO 8601, Monday is the first day of the week; thus, Tuesday is the second day of the week. According to some commonly used calendars, however ...

' in ON ''Týs-dagr'', OE ''Tīwes-dæg'' and OHG ''Zies-tag'', a

of Latin ''dies Martis''; interpreted as a remnant of the sky and war functions of ''*Tīwaz'' by G. Kroonen, although M. L. West views it as unlikely, ** Italic: ''*deiwos'', a "god, a deity", ***

: (), the "gods", ****

: , common name for a "god, a deity"; and ''

Dea The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic en ...

'' ("goddess"), a title assigned to various Roman goddesses like ''

Dea Tacita In Roman mythology, Dea Tacita ("the silent goddess") was a goddess of the dead. Ovid's ''Fasti'' includes a passage describing a rite propitiating Dea Tacita in order to "seal up hostile mouths / and unfriendly tongue" at Feralia on 21 Februa ...

'', ''

Bona Dea Bona Dea (; 'Good Goddess') was a goddess in ancient Roman religion. She was associated with chastity and fertility in Roman women, healing, and the protection of the state and people of Rome. According to Roman literary sources, she was brought ...

'' or ''

Dea Dia Dea Dia (Latin: "Goddess of Daylight", or "Bright Goddess") was a goddess of fertility and growth in ancient Roman religion. She was sometimes identified with Ceres, and sometimes with her Greek equivalent Demeter. She was worshiped during ...

'' ("Goddess of the Daylight" or "Bright Goddess"). *****

Vulgar Latin Vulgar Latin, also known as Popular or Colloquial Latin, is the range of non-formal registers of Latin spoken from the Late Roman Republic onward. Through time, Vulgar Latin would evolve into numerous Romance languages. Its literary counterpa ...

: Deus, the god of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

in the ''

Vetus Latina ''Vetus Latina'' ("Old Latin" in Latin), also known as ''Vetus Itala'' ("Old Italian"), ''Itala'' ("Italian") and Old Italic, and denoted by the siglum \mathfrak, is the collective name given to the Latin translations of biblical texts (bot ...

'' and the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

, ***

: ''deivas'',

Venetic Venetic is an extinct Indo-European language, usually classified into the Italic subgroup, that was spoken by the Veneti people in ancient times in northeast Italy (Veneto and Friuli) and part of modern Slovenia, between the Po Delta and ...

: ''deivos'', "gods", ***

Volscian Volscian was a Sabellic Italic language, which was spoken by the Volsci and closely related to Oscan and Umbrian. Overview Volscian is attested in an inscription found in Velitrae (Velletri), dating probably from early in the 3rd century BC; it ...

: ''deue Decluna'', attested in an inscription from

Velitrae Velletri (; la, Velitrae; xvo, Velester) is an Italian ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, approximately 40 km to the southeast of the city centre, located in the Alban Hills, in the region of Lazio, central Italy. Neighbouring co ...

, possibly from the 3rd century BC. ** Celtic: ''*dēwos'', a "god, a deity", and ''*dago-dēwos'', the "good god", old name of the

, *** Celtiberian: , a "god", ***

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, most of Switze ...

: , a "god", ****Gaulish: '' Devona'' (/deuona/) or ''Divona'' (//), a deity of

sacred waters Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, springs, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with the sacramental blessing of a cleric ...

, springs, and rivers whose name means "Divine", *** Old Welsh: ''Dubr Duiu'' ("Water of the Divinity"), evolving into Mod. Welsh ''Dyfrdwy'' ( River Dee, Wales). The form ''deva'', ''diva'' ("goddess") likewise appears in Celtic river names throughout Western Europe, such as in the Scottish rivers ''Dēoúa'' (modern-day Dee,

Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or ...

), and ''Dēouana'' (Δηουανα; modern-day

Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vill ...

, Aberdeenshire), ***

: ''día'', a "god", and '' An Dag-da'', the druid-god of wisdom, ****

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

: ''Dhe'' ("god"), attested in the modern ''Sùil Dhé mhóir'' prayer ("The eye of the great God", in reference to the Sun), featured in ''

Carmina Gadelica ''Carmina Gadelica'' is a compendium of prayers, hymns, charms, incantations, blessings, literary-folkloric poems and songs, proverbs, lexical items, historical anecdotes, natural history observations, and miscellaneous lore gathered in the Gaelic- ...

''. ** Messapic: ''deiva'', ''dīva'', "goddess", ** Phrygian: ''devos''. Other cognates are less secured: * Slavic: ''*diva'' (> ''*dîvo''), perhaps a word for a "good deity" which progressively took the meaning of "miracle", hence "evil being", ** Old Church Slavonic: ''divo'',

Old Polish The Old Polish language ( pl, język staropolski, staropolszczyzna) was a period in the history of the Polish language between the 10th and the 16th centuries. It was followed by the Middle Polish language. The sources for the study of the Ol ...

: ''dziwo'',

: ''dívo'',

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...

: ''dîvo'', "miracle(s)", ** OCS: ''divŭ'', "demon", South Slavic: ''div'', "giant, demonic being",

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

: ''divo-žena'', "sorceress, witch", Slovak: ''divo'', "monster", although the

Proto-Slavic Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately from the 2nd millennium B.C. through the 6th ...

root ''*divŭ(jĭ)'' ("wild") has also been proposed, **

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

: Dziewanna, Sorbian: Dživica, Slavic equivalent of Diana, however, other etymologies have been proposed. * Lusitanian: '' Reo'', an unknown deity. ** Lusitanian: ''Deiba'' and ''Deibo'', attested in votive inscriptions of altars; taken to mean the "local" or "indigenous" pronunciations of ''Deae'' and ''Deo''. Other cognates deriving from the word ''*diwyós'' (''*dyeu'' "sky" + ''yós'', a thematic suffix) are attested in the following traditions: * PIE: ''*diwyós'', meaning "divine, heavenly", **

: ''di-wi-jo'' (), ''di-wi-ja'' (), ***

: ''dîos'' (δῖος), "belonging to heaven, godlike", also "belonging to Zeus" in

tragedies Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

, ***

: '' Día'' (Δῖα < ''*Díw-ya''), a goddess venerated in classical times at Phlius and Sicyon, and possibly identified with Hebe, the

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person must have been regarded as ...

of the gods, **

: ''divyá'', "heavenly", ** Avestan: ''daeuuiia'', "devilish, diabolic", **

: ''dīus'', "godlike", ***Latin: Diāna (from an older ''Dīāna''), goddess of the moon and the countryside.Green, C. M. C. ''Roman Religion and the Cult of Diana at Aricia''. New York: Cambridge University Press. 2007. pp. 71–73. ***Latin:

Dīs Pater Dīs Pater (; ; genitive ''Dītis Patris''), otherwise known as Rex Infernus or Pluto, is a Roman god of the underworld. Dis was originally associated with fertile agricultural land and mineral wealth, and since those minerals came from undergro ...

, from ''dīves'' ('wealthy, rich'), probably derived from ''dīus'' via the intermediate form ("who is like the gods, protected by the gods").

Legacy

As the pantheons of the individual mythologies related to Proto-Indo-European religion evolved, attributes of ''*Dyēus'' seem to have been redistributed to other deities. In Greek and Roman mythology, ''*Dyēus'' was the chief god, while the etymological continuant of Dyēus became a very abstract god in

Vedic mythology The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...

, and his original prominence over other gods largely diluted.

In Albanian tradition

After the first access of the ancestors of the Albanians to the Christian religion in antiquity the term '' Zot'' has been used for

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

, the Father and the Son (

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

). In

Albanian folk beliefs Albanian folk beliefs ( sq, Besimet folklorike shqiptare) comprise the beliefs expressed in the customs, rituals, myths, legends and tales of the Albanian people. The elements of Albanian mythology are of Paleo-Balkanic origin and almost all ...

the peak of mountains like

Tomorr Tomorr is a mountain range in the region of Berat and Skrapar, in Albania. It reaches an elevation of above sea level at the Çuka e Partizanit, which is the highest peak in central Albania. Mount Tomorr is one of Albania's biggest water-coll ...

in central

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

has been associated with '' Zojz''. The enduring sanctity of the mountain, the annual pilgrimage to its summit, and the solemn sacrifice of a white bull by the local people provide abundant evidence that the ancient cult of the Sky-God on Mount Tomorr continues through the generations almost untouched by the course of political events and religious changes.

In Slavic tradition

At one point,

early Slavs The early Slavs were a diverse group of tribal societies who lived during the Migration Period and the Early Middle Ages (approximately the 5th to the 10th centuries AD) in Central and Eastern Europe and established the foundations for the S ...

, like some

Iranian peoples The Iranian peoples or Iranic peoples are a diverse grouping of Indo-European peoples who are identified by their usage of the Iranian languages and other cultural similarities. The Proto-Iranians are believed to have emerged as a separat ...

after the

religious reformation, demonized the Slavic successor of ''*Dyēus'' (abandoning this word in the sense of "heaven" at the same time, keeping the word for ''day'', however, and abandoning many of the names of the other Proto-Indo-European gods, replacing them with new Slavic or Iranian names), while not replacing it with any other specific god, as a result of cultural contacts with Iranian peoples in the first millennium BC. Hence, after the process of demonization by the Slavs, ''*Dyēus'' is considered to have originated two continuations: ''*divo'' ("strange, odd thing") and ''*divъ'' ("demon"). The result of this demonization may be Pan-Slavic demons, e.g.

and

dziwożona Dziwożona (or Mamuna or Boginka) is a female swamp demon in Slavic mythology known for being malicious and dangerous. Most at risk of becoming one of these demons after death were thought to be midwives, old maids, unmarried mothers, pregnant wom ...

, or Div occurring in ''

The Tale of Igor's Campaign ''The Tale of Igor's Campaign'' ( orv, Слово о пълкѹ Игоревѣ, translit=Slovo o pŭlku Igorevě) is an anonymous epic poem written in the Old East Slavic language. The title is occasionally translated as ''The Tale of the Campai ...

''. According to some researchers, at least some of ''*Dyēuss traits could have been taken over by

Svarog Svarog is a Slavic god of fire and blacksmithing, who was once interpreted as a sky god on the basis of an etymology rejected by modern scholarship. He is mentioned in only one source, the ''Primary Chronicle'', which is problematic in interpret ...

( Urbańczyk: Sun- Dažbóg – heavenly fire, Svarožič – earthly fire, Svarog – heaven, lightning).

Helmold Helmold of Bosau (ca. 1120 – after 1177) was a Saxon historian of the 12th century and a priest at Bosau near Plön. He was a friend of the two bishops of Oldenburg in Holstein, Vicelinus (died 1154) and Gerold (died 1163), who did much to ...

recalls that the Slavs were also supposed to believe in a god in heaven, who only deals with heavenly matters and commands other gods.

In non-Indo-European traditions

Various loanwords of *''deiwós'' were introduced in non-Indo-European languages, such as Estonian ''taevas or''

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

''taivas'' ("sky"), borrowed from Proto-Indo-Iranian.

References

Bibliography

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