Zibelthiurdos is a

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 t ...

god of heaven, lightning and rain, whose name is known mainly from epigraphic monuments. The only known reference to this god so far in ancient literature is in

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...

's speech against Pizon, where he is mentioned under the name ''Jovi Vrii'' (''Iuppiter Urius''). According to Cicero, Jupiter Urius had the most ancient and venerated of the barbarian temples, which was sacked by invading armies and resulted in diseases from which those afflicted never recovered. There is not enough information to draw clear conclusions about his cult, worship, or functions. The preserved images give reason to connect Zibelthiurdos with the ancient Greek God

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

the Thunderer; he is depicted holding a lightning bolt in his raised right hand, and to his right an eagle with wings spread out.

Names and epigraphy

In the epigraphic evidence, the deity's name is attested in 12 documents, alternatively written as ''Zbelthiourdes'', ''Zbelthourdos'', ''Zbelsourdos'' or ''Zbersurdos'', ''Zbeltiurdus'', ''Svelsurdus''. Orientalist

Wilhelm Tomaschek Wilhelm Tomaschek, or Vilém Tomášek (May 26, 1841, Olomouc – September 9, 1901, Vienna) was a Czech-Austrian geographer and orientalist. He is known for his work in the fields of historical topography and historical ethnography.

reported three Thracian inscriptions: * a dedication from

Moesia Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; el, Μοισία, Moisía) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River, which included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Alban ...

made by a Mucaporis to a Διί Ζβελθιούρδῳ; * an inscription in Skopia to a DEO ZBELTHIURDO; * an inscription from

Perinthus Perinthus or Perinthos ( grc, ἡ Πέρινθος) was a great and flourishing town of ancient Thrace, situated on the Propontis. According to John Tzetzes, it bore at an early period the name of Mygdonia (Μυγδονία). It lay 22 miles west ...

to a Διί Ζιβελσούρδῳ. According to epigraphic evidence, the name of Greek god

is found in Thracian inscriptions associated with ''Zbelthiurdos'' and variations: Zbelturd, Zbelsurd, Zbeltiurd, Zpelturd. This combination is believed to attest a syncretism between the Greek deity and a local Thracian god of thunder and lightning.

Etymology

His name speculatively means "Lightning Carrier" or "Thunderer", but it is uncertain whether Zibelthiurdos is his name or an epithet. Tomaschek interpreted that ''Zibel-'' and ''Zbel-'' were the same word, although he believed the former to be the older form (cf. Thracian king Ζιβέλμιος, or ). He also derived ''Zbel-'' from a Proto-Indo-European stem ''*ģʰeib-''. Further descendants would include Lithuanian ''žaibas'' "lightning", verb ''žibėti'' "to shine, to glow", and possibly Croatian ''zúblja'' "torch" and Slovene ''zubelj'' "flame". Bulgarian linguist indicated the word ''Zbel-'' is related to Latvian ''zibele'' 'lightning'.

Cultic locales

Zibelthiurdos shrines have been found near the village of Golemo Selo in the

Kyustendil Region Kyustendil Province ( bg, Област Кюстендил, trl ''Oblast Kyustendil'') is a province in southwestern Bulgaria, extending over an area of (constituting 2.7% of the total territory of the Republic of Bulgaria), and with a populat ...

– an area inhabited by the Thracian Dentellets tribe – as well as near Kapitan Dimitrievo village in the

Pazardzhik Province Pazardzhik Province ( bg, Област Пазарджик ''Oblast Pazardzhik'', former name Pazardzhik okrug) is a province in Southern Bulgaria, named after its administrative and industrial centre - the city of Pazardzhik. The territory is ...

. His image was discovered in a relief from the

Esquiline Hill The Esquiline Hill (; la, Collis Esquilinus; it, Esquilino ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. Its southernmost cusp is the ''Oppius'' ( Oppian Hill). Etymology The origin of the name ''Esquiline'' is still under much debate. One view is ...

, where he is depicted along with Yambadula (or Iambadoule), a figure of an unclear nature.Puhvel, Jaan. " eviewed Work: Die thrakischen Sprachreste by Dimiter Detschew. In: ''Language'' 33, no. 3 (1957): 446. Accessed June 29, 2021. doi:10.2307/411167.

Other uses

The Zbelsurd Glacier of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

is named after the god.

Names and epigraphy

Etymology

Cultic locales

Other uses

See also

References

Further reading