Taara (variations of the name include Tooru, Tharapita and Tarapitha), also known as Uku or Jumal, is a prominent god in
Estonian mythology
Estonian mythology is a complex of myths belonging to the Estonian folk heritage and literary mythology. Information about the pre-Christian and medieval Estonian mythology is scattered in historical chronicles, travellers' accounts and in eccles ...
, with a strong resemblance to the Finnish
Ukko
Ukko (), Äijä or Äijö ( Finnish for 'male grandparent', 'grandfather', 'old man'), parallel to Uku in Estonian mythology, is the god of the sky, weather, harvest and thunder in Finnish mythology.
Ukkonen, the Finnish word for thunder, ...
and the Germanic
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 ...
.
History
The
Chronicle of Henry of Livonia
The ''Livonian Chronicle of Henry'' ( la, Heinrici Cronicon Lyvoniae) offers a Latin narrative of events in Livonia (roughly corresponding to today's inland Estonia and the northern part of Latvia) and surrounding areas from 1180 to 1227. It was ...
mentions Tharapita as the superior god of the
Oeselians
Oeselians ( la, Oesel, , sv, Ösel, da, Øsel, fi, Saarenmaa) is a term historically applied before the Northern Crusades up to the 13th century to people who were living on the island of Saaremaa or Oesel as it was known back then, an island ...
(inhabitants of
Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the isla ...
), also well known to
Vironian tribes in northern
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
. According to the chronicle, when the
crusaders
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
invaded Vironia in 1220, there was a beautiful wooded hill in Vironia, where locals believe Tharapita was born and from which he flew to Saaremaa. The hill is believed to be the
Ebavere Hill (''Ebavere mägi'') in modern
Lääne-Viru County.
Tharapita also inspired an Estonian
neopagan movement, known as ''
taaralased'' or ''
taarausulised''. In the middle of the 19th century, Taara became popular in the national movement, as an anti-German and anti-Lutheran symbol, and creators of Estonian pseudomythology made Taara the supreme god of the Estonian pantheon. From that period, Estonia's second-biggest city
Tartu was poetically called ''Taaralinn'' ("city of Taara").
Taara was known by the
Tavastian tribe of Finland. At an old cult location now known as Laurin Lähde (Lauri's Fountain) in the county of
Janakkala
Janakkala () is a municipality of Finland. Its administrative centre is in Turenki, which is often erroneously shown on maps as being "Janakkala". Janakkala is located along the Highway 3 ( E12) in the province of Southern Finland and is part of ...
, Tavastians worshipped Taara there as late as the 18th century, eventually being shut down by church authorities.
Tharapita may have been known among the Slavs of the island of
Rügen
Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...
, where Danish crusaders destroyed a pagan idol named ''Turupit'' in 1168.
The story of Taara's flight from Vironia to Saaremaa has been associated with a major
meteor impact that formed the
Kaali crater in Saaremaa. One proponent of theories about the meteor and its consequences was historian
Lennart Meri, the president of Estonia from 1992 to 2001, who wrote several books about the subject.
Variations similar to the name "
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 ...
" are known to many peoples who speak
Uralic languages
The Uralic languages (; sometimes called Uralian languages ) form a language family of 38 languages spoken by approximately 25million people, predominantly in Northern Eurasia. The Uralic languages with the most native speakers are Hungarian (w ...
. The
Khants have a god named ''Torum'', the
Samis have ''Turms'', and the
Samoyeds have ''Tere''. Finnish bishop
Mikael Agricola
Mikael Agricola (; c. 1510 – 9 April 1557) was a Finnish Lutheran clergyman who became the de facto founder of literary Finnish and a prominent proponent of the Protestant Reformation in Sweden, including Finland, which was a Swedish territo ...
mentions in 1551 a war god called ''Turisas'', although this is more likely to refer to
Thurisas; the Finns had also a god of harvest, luck and success called
Tuuri.
According to several medieval chronicles, Estonians did not work on Thursdays (days of Thor) and Thursday nights were called "evenings of ''Tooru''". Some sources say Estonians used to gather in holy woods (''Hiis'') on Thursday evenings, where a
bagpipe
Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...
player sat on a stone and played while people danced and sang until the dawn.
Etymology
The
Livonia
Livonia ( liv, Līvõmō, et, Liivimaa, fi, Liivinmaa, German and Scandinavian languages: ', archaic German: ''Liefland'', nl, Lijfland, Latvian and lt, Livonija, pl, Inflanty, archaic English: ''Livland'', ''Liwlandia''; russian: Ли ...
n place name
Thoreyda, (also Thoreida and
German Treiden) attested in the
Chronicle of Livonia is interpreted as the garden of Taara –
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 ...
‘Taara’ + *aida ‘garden’. If this interpretation is correct, the theonym Taara was also known in Livonian.
The name Tharapita has been interpreted as "Taara, help!" (''Taara, a(v)ita!'' in Estonian) and "Taara's thunderbolt" (''Taara pikne'').
Mentions of Tharapita in Henry's ''Chronicle of Livonia''
Tharapita is mentioned five times in the
Chronicle of Livonia by the
missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...
Henry. The first mention is in connection with mission in
Vironia in the north of Estonia, the rest pertain to the conquest and baptism of the islands of
Muhu
Muhu (also called Muhumaa in Estonian), is an island in the West Estonian archipelago of the Baltic Sea. With an area of it is the third largest island belonging to Estonia, after Saaremaa and Hiiumaa.
Together with neighbouring smaller is ...
and
Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the isla ...
(Osilia) off the western coast of mainland
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
.
Felling the statues of gods in Vironia
Along with the first mention, Henry presents the story of Tharapita flying from a forest on top of a hill in Vironia to the island of Saaremaa. According to the chronicle, missionaries felled the images and statues of gods from the hill. The locals are said to have wondered at the fact that the statues did not bleed, which increased their belief in the priests' sermons.
''Quo audito sacerdotes modicum subridentes et excusso pulvere pedum in eos ad alias villas festinantes in confinio Vironie tres villas baptizaverunt, ubi erat mons et silva pulcherrima, in qua dicebant indigene magnum deum Osiliensium natum, qui Tharapita vocatur, et de illo loco in Osiliam volasse. Et ibat alter sacerdos succidens imagines et similitudines deorum ibi factas, et mirabantur illi, quod sanguis non efflueret, et magis sacerdotum sermonibus credebant.''
The siege of the Muhu hill fort
According to the chronicle, Estonians besieged in the Muhu hill fort exclaimed to Tharapita in joy and cried to the sacred grove (''nemus'') for assistance, as the Christians laying siege prayed to God and exclaimed to Jesus for help.
''Gaudet exercitus christianorum, exclamant, Deum exorant. Clamant et illi, gaudentes in Tarapitha suo. Illi nemus, isti Iesum invocant, in cuius nomine ac laude fortifer ascendunt, ad summitatem valli perveniunt, fortissime et ab illis repelluntur. ''
Baptism of the sons of nobles in Valjala
As the sons of nobles are baptised in the defeated hill fort of
Valjala
Valjala is a small borough (') in Saare County, Estonia, on the island of Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west o ...
(Waldia), Tharapita is banished from the fort:
''Dantur pueri nobilium, quorum primum venerabilis Rigensis episcopus cum gaudio et devotione magna catechizatum sacro baptismatis fonte rigavit; alii presbyteri alios rigaverunt, qui et in urbem cum gaudio ducuntur, ut Christum predicent, ut Tharaphitam, qui deus fuit Osilianorum, eiciant, qui per medium castrum fontem consecrantes et dolium replentes primo seniores et meliores cathechizatos, deinde viros alios et mulieres baptizant et pueros.''
Baptism of Saaremaa after victory
Priests spread out over Saaremaa to preach Christ and banish Tharapita.
''His mysteriis in urbe Waldia celebratis venerunt nuncii, missi de cunctis urbibus et kiligundis Osilie, querentes pacem et baptismi petentes sacramentum. Gaudet exercitus obsidibusque receptis pax datur et Fraternitus amor. Dicitur, et Suecos captivos restituant liberos. Obediunt, restituere promittunt, presbyteros secum ad castra sua ducunt, qui Christum predicent, qui Tharapitha cum ceteris paganorum diis eiciant, qui populum sacro baptismate tingant. Baptizant itaque sacerdotes in omnibus castris Osilie populum universum utriusque sexus cum leticia magna et pre gaudio lacrimantes, eo quod Domino tot milia genuerunt per lavacrum regenerationis prolem spiritualem, Deo dilectam sponsam novam ex gentibus.''
Conclusion of the chronicle
In the concluding passage of the chronicle, Henry expresses his joy over the fact that
Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
has helped the missionaries from
Riga to banish Tharapita and drown the
Pharaoh
Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the ...
(i.e., the
Devil
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of ...
).
''Gloria Dei et domini nostri Iesu Christi et beate Marie Virginis servis suis Rigensibus in Osilia talia humiliter, obsides et tributa recipere, captivos omnes christiani nominis restituere, cum victoria redire! Quod reges hactenus non potuerunt, hec beata virgo per servos suos Rigenses breviter et leniter ad honorem sui nominis adimplevit. Quo completo, quo facto, populo videlicet cuncto baptizato, Tharaphita eiecto, Pharaone submerso, captivis liberatis, redite cum gaudio Rigenses.''
[Heinrici Chronicon Livoniae, XXX 6, p 272]
References
External links
Taarapita – the Great God of the Oeselians. Article by Urmas Sutrop*
''The "Chronicle of Henry of Livonia translated and edited by James A. Brundage, Columbia University, 1961; revised 2003; 288 pages {{ISBN, 0-231-12888-6 (Try this link: http://cup.columbia.edu/search?q=henry+livonia)
*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20091205185458/http://www.historia.lv/alfabets/I/In/Indrika%20hronika/teksts/saturs_indr_hr.htm Indriķa hronika- full text of Henry's chronicle in
Latvian with comments.
Full text of Henry's chronicle in Russian with commentsBibliography of Henry of Latvia
Estonian gods
Estonian mythology