Gallo-Roman religion Gallo-Roman religion is a fusion of the traditional religious practices of the Gauls, who were originally Celtic speakers, and the Roman and Hellenistic religions introduced to the region under Roman Imperial rule. It was the result of selective ...

, Damona was a

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes ...

worshipped in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

as the consort of

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

Borvo Borvo or Bormo (Gaulish: *''Borwō'', ''Bormō'') was an ancient Celtic god of healing springs worshipped in Gauls and Gallaecia., s.v. ''Borvo''. He was sometimes identified with the Graeco-Roman god Apollo, although his cult had preserved a high ...

and of

Moritasgus Moritasgus is a Celtic epithet for a healing god found in four inscriptions at Alesia. In two inscriptions, he is identified with the Greco-Roman god Apollo. His consort was the goddess Damona. Etymology The name ''Moritasgus'', shared by ...

Name

The theonym ''Damona'' is a derivative of 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-Celt ...

stem ''*damo-'', meaning 'bull' or 'deer' (cf. Old Irish ''dam'' 'bull, deer'; also *''damato''- > Middle Welsh ''dafad'' 'sheep', Old Cornish ''dauat'' 'ewe'), itself from

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 ...

*''dmh₂o''- ('the tamed one'). The Latin noun ''damma'', which is the source of French ''daim'' ('roe'), is probably a loanword from

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 ...

. The root ''*dmh₂-'' is also presumably reflected in the British tribal name ''

Demetae The Demetae were a Celtic people of Iron Age and Roman period, who inhabited modern Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire in south-west Wales, and gave their name to the county of Dyfed. Classical references They are mentioned in Ptolemy's ''Geograp ...

'', interpreted as meaning 'Tamers'.

Cult

Dédicace Apolo borvo et damona Bourbonne 13497

Damona and

Bormana Bormana was a Celtic goddess, the female equivalent of the god Borvo (Bormanus). Bormana was worshipped alongside Bormanus as his consort. The pair of them were, for example, worshipped at Die (Drôme) in the south of France. The goddess also oc ...

have been described as the patron deities of the hot springs at Bourbonne-les-Bains and Saint-Vulbas, respectively. Some seventeen inscriptions dedicated to Damona have been recovered, including nine from

Bourbonne-les-Bains Bourbonne-les-Bains () is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France in the region Grand Est.

and four from

Bourbon-Lancy Bourbon-Lancy is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. It is a rural town on the river Loire with a walled medieval area on the dominant hill. It has an authentic medieval belfr ...

, both spa towns in eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In one inscription from Saintes, she has the epithet ''Matubergini''.

Inscriptions and dedications

There are several inscriptions relating to Damona, including two inscriptions in Bourbon-Lancy (CIL 13, 02805), discovered in 1792. :C (aius) Iulius Eporedirigis f (ilius) Magnus / pro L (ucio) Iulio Caleno filio / Bormoni and Damonae / vot (um) sol (vit) and (CIL 13, 02806), where Damona is also included in dedications to

, (CIL 13, 02807) and (CIL 13, 02808): :Borvoni and Damonae / T (itus) Severius Mo / destus mnib (us) / h n rib (us)and offi

iis IIS may refer to: Organizations * Indian Information Service, of the Government of India * Institute of Information Scientists, a professional association now merged into the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, UK * Inst ...

The other large site associated with Damona is Bourbonne-les-Bains, there are nine dedications to the goddess of the waters, including (CIL 13, 05911): :Deo Apol / lini Borvoni / et Damonae / C (aius) Daminius / Ferox civis / Lingonus ex / voto and (CIL 13, 05914): :Borvoni / and Damon (ae) / Aemilia / Sex (ti) fil (ia) / M S with (CIL 13, 05921): :Damonae Aug (ustae) / Claudia Mossia and C (aius) Iul (ius) Superstes fil (ius) / l (ocus) d (atus) ex d (ecreto) d (ecurionum) v (otum) s (olverunt) l ( ibentes) m (erito) Damona also appears in dedications to Chassenay, associated with Albius and Alise-Sainte-Reine. An inscription was found bearing Damona's name in Alesia in 1962, where she was worshipped with Apollo Moritasgus (CIL 13, 11233): :Aug (usto) sacr (um) / deo Albio and Damonae Sex (tus) Mart (ius) / Cocillus ex iussu eius v (otum) s (olvit) l (ibens) m (erito) and (CAG-21-01): :Deo Apollini Moritasgo nd/ Damonae P (ublius) Pontius Apolli aris Finally, there is an inscription in Rivières. Jullia Malla Malluronis fîl (ia) numinibus Augustorum et deae Damonae Matuherginni (?) Ob memoriam Sulpiciae Silvanae filiae suae de suo posuit

References

Bibliography

* * Animal goddesses Gaulish goddesses Health goddesses Water goddesses {{Deity-stub