Perëndi
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Perëndi ( sq-definite, Perëndia) is an
Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
noun for
God In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
,
deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...
,
sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
and
heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
. It is used
capitalized Capitalization (American English) or capitalisation (British English) is writing a word with its first letter as a capital letter (uppercase letter) and the remaining letters in lower case, in writing systems with a case distinction. The term a ...
to refer to the
Supreme Being 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 ...
, and uncapitalized for "deity", "sky" and "heaven".


Name


Description

In
Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
, ''Perëndí'' (
definite In linguistics, definiteness is a semantic feature of noun phrases, distinguishing between referents or senses that are identifiable in a given context (definite noun phrases) and those which are not (indefinite noun phrases). The prototypical d ...
: ''Perëndía'') is the
name of God There are various names of God, many of which enumerate the various qualities of a Supreme Being. The English word ''god'' (and its equivalent in other languages) is used by multiple religions as a noun to refer to different deities, or speci ...
, the
sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
and
heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
, and is used
capitalized Capitalization (American English) or capitalisation (British English) is writing a word with its first letter as a capital letter (uppercase letter) and the remaining letters in lower case, in writing systems with a case distinction. The term a ...
to refer to the
Supreme Being 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 plural indefinite form is ''perëndí'' while the plural definite form is ''perëndítë'', used uncapitalized to refer to the
deities A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...
. Some
dialectal The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a ...
alternative forms include: ''Perendí'', ''Perenní'', ''Perondí'', ''Perundí'', ''Perudí'', ''Perndí'' and ''Parandí''. The word ''perëndi(a)'' is attested in Old Albanian literature, firstly mentioned by Luca Matranga in the late 16th century and Bishop
Pjetër Budi Pjetër Budi (1566 – December 1622), was a prominent Albanian writer and a Catholic bishop. He is known for his first work ''"Doktrina e Kërshtenë"'' (The Christian Doctrine), an Albanian translation of the catechism of Robert Bellarmine, w ...
in the early 17th century, included into the text of the Albanian translation of the ''
Pater Noster The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...
''. However it never appears in the works of the earliest Albanian author,
Gjon Buzuku Gjon Buzuku (15 March 1499 – 9 October 1577) was an Albanian Catholic priest who wrote the first known printed book in Albanian. Gjon Buzuku according to the elders wrote the Missal in the village of Brisk Posht in the Shestan - Krajë region, c ...
, who translate ''
Deus ''Deus'' (, ) is the Latin word for "god" or "deity". Latin ''deus'' and ''dīvus'' ("divine") are in turn descended from Proto-Indo-European *'' deiwos'', "celestial" or "shining", from the same root as '' *Dyēus'', the reconstructed chief g ...
'' always using the noun ''Zot'' with the compound ''Zotynë'' or ''Ynëzot'' (''Zot-ynë'', ''ynë-Zot'' "our Lord/God"), even translating the Latin ''Dominus Deus'' with the word ''Zotynë'' only. The noun ''Zotynë'' / ''Ynëzot'', along with its inflections in the different grammatical cases , was commonly used in the Old Albanian language of the literature in northern Albania as well as in the Albanian colonies in Greece and Italy. Another old noun to refer to the Deity was ''Hyj'', a nonderivative equivalent of ''
Deus ''Deus'' (, ) is the Latin word for "god" or "deity". Latin ''deus'' and ''dīvus'' ("divine") are in turn descended from Proto-Indo-European *'' deiwos'', "celestial" or "shining", from the same root as '' *Dyēus'', the reconstructed chief g ...
'' that has been characterized as "a half-pagan word" and "a rare stylistic variant" used "poetically" instead of the noun ''Perëndi(a)''. However the noun ''Hyj'' appears in Old Albanian literature only in the works of Bishop
Pjetër Bogdani Pjetër Bogdani (1627 – 6 December 1689), known in Italian as ''Pietro Bogdano'', was the most original writer of early literature in Albania. He was author of the Cuneus Prophetarum (''The Band of the Prophets''), 1685, the first prose work o ...
. The early meaning of the word ''perëndi(a)'' was usually different from the present one, as it does not generally occur in Old Albanian literature used as a name of the Deity. Although Budi reports ''atinë Perëndi'' ("father God"), he translates the Latin phrase ''Regnum tuum'' as ''perëndia jote'' in Albanian. Bishop
Frang Bardhi Frang Bardhi (Latin: ''Franciscus Blancus'', it, Francesco Bianchi, 1606–1643) was an Albanian Catholic bishop and writer. Bardhi is best known as an author of the early eras of Albanian literature. He served as Bishop of Sapë (1635–1644). ...
translates ''
Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...
'' as ''Perëndi''. Bishop Pjetër Bogdani translates from Italian to Albanian ''l' imperatore di Turchia'' ("the emperor of Turkey") as ''Perëndia i Turqisë'' and ''quattro Monarchie'' ("four kingdoms/monarchies") as ''katër Perëndija''. The common usage of ''perëndi(a)'' for "Deity" is almost certainly a later phenomenon. It is a pan-Albanian word. In
Myzeqe The Myzeqe (; sq-definite, Myzeqeja; rup, Muzachia) is a plain in the Western Lowlands of Albania. The Myzeqe is the largest and widest plain, measured by area, in the Lowlands. Location The Myzeqe plain is a large alluvial plain traversed by t ...
in central Albania a village is named '' Perondí'', and in
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
it is used in the family name ''Perèndija''. The Albanians of Ukraine use ''Parandí'' for "God" and ''parandítë'' for "gods". The word ''perëndi'' means "heaven, sky" in some Albanian dialects, with both direct and figurative meanings. A typical example is an Albanian popular phrase ''gruri gjer mbë perëndi'' ("a pile of grain up to the skies"). As a name of God ''Perëndi(a)'' has been recognised by all Albanians already since the 19th century. However it has been mainly used as a feminine noun. It contains the stressed ''-i'', which is the typical suffix of
abstract noun A noun () is a word that generally functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, or ideas.Example nouns for: * Living creatures (including people, alive, d ...
s in the Albanian language. Other examples are ''dijeni(a)'' ("knowledge"), ''trimëri(a)'' ("bravery"), ''madhëri(a)'' ("majesty"). Since they belong to the declension type which is characteristic to feminine nouns in Albanian, they are normally of
feminine gender In linguistics, grammatical gender system is a specific form of noun class system, where nouns are assigned with gender categories that are often not related to their real-world qualities. In languages with grammatical gender, most or all nouns ...
. It is difficult to infer whether Albanian speakers and writers relate the noun ''Perëndi(a)'' with the concept of a
personal God A personal god, or personal goddess, is a deity who can be related to as a person, instead of as an impersonal force, such as the Absolute, "the All", or the "Ground of Being". In the scriptures of the Abrahamic religions, God is described as b ...
or a half-abstract and impersonal "
deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...
", but in general usage in the Albanian language outside the Bible translations the noun ''Perëndi'' tends to be less personal than the noun ''Zot''.


Etymology

The origin of the Albanian noun ''Perëndi'' is obscure. Several etymologies have been proposed by scholars: *From an Albanian word creation of folk nature derived, by using the suffix ''-í'' of the Albanian abstract nouns, from la, imperantem, the
accusative The accusative case (abbreviated ) of a noun is the grammatical case used to mark the direct object of a transitive verb. In the English language, the only words that occur in the accusative case are pronouns: 'me,' 'him,' 'her,' 'us,' and ‘the ...
masculine/feminine singular of imperāns, meaning "commanding", "ruling", "demanding". *From an Albanian compound of the roots ''per-en-'' ("to strike') and ''-dí'' ("sky, god").; ; ; . The Proto-Indo-European theonymic roots ''*dei-'' ("to shine") and ''*perkwu-s'' ("sky/rain/oak associations") may be grouped together under the classifications of "celestial luminosity". Some scholars consider Perëndi to have been a
sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
and
thunder god Polytheistic peoples from many cultures have postulated a thunder god, the personification or source of the forces of thunder and lightning; a lightning god does not have a typical depiction, and will vary based on the culture. In Indo-European c ...
in the Albanian pagan mythology, and to have been a deity presumably worshiped by the
Illyrians The Illyrians ( grc, Ἰλλυριοί, ''Illyrioi''; la, Illyrii) were a group of Indo-European languages, Indo-European-speaking peoples who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo ...
in antiquity. As such, in some of his attributes Perëndi could be related to the Albanian weather and storm gods
Shurdh Shurdh ( sq-definite, Shurdhi) is a weather and storm god in Albanian pagan mythology, who causes hailstorms and throws thunder and lightning. Shurdh was worshiped in northern Albania until recent times. He is thought to have been an ancient Illyr ...
and
Verbt Verbt ( sq-definite, Verbti) is a fire, water and wind god in Albanian pagan mythology. He controls fire, water as the opposite element to fire, and the northern wind which fans the flames of fire. Also known as ''Shën Verbti'' or ''Rmoria'', he ...
, and to the mythological
demigod A demigod or demigoddess is a part-human and part-divine offspring of a deity and a human, or a human or non-human creature that is accorded divine status after death, or someone who has attained the "divine spark" ( spiritual enlightenment). A ...
drangue The drangùe ( sq-definite, drangùa, drangòni) is a semi-human winged divine figure in Albanian mythology and folklore, associated with weather and storms. Babies destined to become drangue are born with their heads covered in caul and with two ...
. An Albanian attested sky and lightning god is Zojz, from
PIE A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients. Sweet pies may be filled with fruit (as in an apple pie), nuts ( pecan pie), brown sugar ( sugar pie), swe ...
Dyeus (Daylight-Sky-God). *From the Albanian verb ''perëndoj'' ("to set of the sun"), ultimately derived from
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 ...
''parentari'', the
passive Passive may refer to: * Passive voice, a grammatical voice common in many languages, see also Pseudopassive * Passive language, a language from which an interpreter works * Passivity (behavior), the condition of submitting to the influence of on ...
correlate of ''parentare'' ("a sacrifice to the dead, to satisfy"). This etymology could relate the word ''perëndi'' with the ancient Albanian
Sun cult A solar deity or sun deity is a deity who represents the Sun, or an aspect of it. Such deities are usually associated with power and strength. Solar deities and Sun worship can be found throughout most of recorded history in various forms. The ...
.


Usage in folk beliefs


Lightning and thunder-stones

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 o ...
the
lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...
was regarded as the "
fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition ...
of the
sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
" (''zjarri i qiellit'') and was considered the "
weapon A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...
of the deity" (''arma/pushka e perëndisë''), indeed an Albanian word to refer to the lightning is '' rrufeja'', related to the
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 ...
''
rhomphaia The rhomphaia ( grc, ῥομφαία) was a close-combat bladed weapon used by the Thracians as early as 350-400 BC. Rhomphaias were weapons with a straight or slightly curved single-edged blade attached to a pole, which in most cases was consider ...
'', an ancient
pole weapon A polearm or pole weapon is a close combat weapon in which the main fighting part of the weapon is fitted to the end of a long shaft, typically of wood, thereby extending the user's effective range and striking power. Polearms are predominantly ...
.
Albanians The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Se ...
believed in the supreme powers of thunder-stones (''kokrra e rrufesë'' or ''guri i rejës''), which were believed to be formed during lightning strikes and to be fallen from the
sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...
. Thunder-stones were preserved in family life as important
cult object In the practice of religion, a cult image is a human-made object that is venerated or worshipped for the deity, spirit or daemon that it embodies or represents. In several traditions, including the ancient religions of Egypt, Greece and Rome ...
s. It was believed that bringing them inside the house could bring
good fortune Luck is the phenomenon and belief that defines the experience of improbable events, especially improbably positive or negative ones. The naturalistic interpretation is that positive and negative events may happen at any time, both due to rand ...
, prosperity and progress in people, in livestock and in agriculture, or that rifle bullets would not hit the owners of the thunder-stones. A common practice was to hung a thunder-stone pendant on the body of the cattle or on the pregnant woman for good luck and to contrast the
evil eye The Evil Eye ( grc, ὀφθαλμὸς βάσκανος; grc-koi, ὀφθαλμὸς πονηρός; el, (κακό) μάτι; he, עַיִן הָרָע, ; Romanian: ''Deochi''; it, malocchio; es, mal de ojo; pt, mau-olhado, olho gordo; ar ...
. In
Albanian culture Albanian culture or the culture of Albanians ( ) is a term that embodies the artistic, culinary, literary, musical, political and social elements that are representative of Albanians. Albanian culture has been considerably shaped by the geograph ...
, the heaviest type of oath swearing ( Alb. '' beja më e rëndë'') is taken by a thunder-stone "which comes from the sky" (''beja me gur/kokërr reje/rrufeje që vjen nga perëndia''). It was a very serious oath and people were afraid of it even though they were telling the truth. The act of absolving himself of any allegation of theft was performed in the following way: the thunder-stone was taken in the left hand and was touched by the right hand saying:


Rainmaking

The word ''perëndi'' is especially invoked by
Albanians The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Se ...
in
incantation An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...
s and songs praying for rain.
Rituals A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, ...
were performed in times of summer drought to make it rain, usually in June and July, but sometimes also in the spring months when there was severe drought. In different Albanian regions, for rainmaking purpose, people threw water upwards to make it subsequently fall to the ground in the form of rain. This was an imitative type of magic practice with ritual songs. In
Nowruz Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...
or in the Albanian Spring Day (''
Dita e Verës Dita e Verës or Verëza (English: "The Summer Day") is an Albanian spring festival and pagan holiday celebrated in Albania on March 14 of the Gregorian calendar (March 1 of the Julian calendar). In the old Albanian calendar, Verëza correspo ...
''), in particular, in some villages of the region of Kurvelesh in southern
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 ...
people addressed the following prayer to the deity for plants and cattle: In rainmaking ritual songs from southwestern Albania, people used to pray to the
Sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
, invoking the names ''Dielli'', ''Shën Dëlliu'', ''Ilia'' or ''Perëndia''. After repeating three times the invocation song, they used to say: ''Do kemi shi se u nxi Shëndëlliu'' ("We will have rain because the Holy Sun went dark").


Fate deities

Among the Albanians of Ukraine there is a belief about the determination of a child's
fate Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...
by the ''parandí(të)'' "gods/deities". The belief is referred in the local Albanian dialect as ''Parandítë të gjithtë búnë rasredelít'' meaning "Everything is Assigned by the Gods/Deities".


See also

*
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 o ...
*
Illyrian religion Illyrian religion refers to the religious beliefs and practices of the Illyrian peoples, a group of tribes who spoke the Illyrian languages and inhabited part of the western Balkan Peninsula from at least the 8th century BC until the 7th century ...
*
En (deity) ''*En'' or ''*Enji'' () is the reconstructed name of the fire god in the Albanian pagan mythology, which continues to be used in the modern Albanian language to refer to Thursday (''e enjte''). Another name of a fire god worshiped in Northern Alb ...
*
Zojz (deity) Zojz ( sq-definite, Zojzi) is a sky and lightning god in Albanian pagan mythology. An epithet considered to be associated with him is 'father', thought to be contained in an Albanian name for the Supreme Being: ''Zot'', analyzed as Sky Father. In ...
*
Prende Prende (also ''Prenne'', ''Premte'' or ''Petka'') is the dawn goddess, goddess of love, beauty, fertility, and protector of women, in the Albanian pagan mythology. She is thought to have been worshiped by the Illyrians in antiquity. In Albanian f ...
*
Drangue The drangùe ( sq-definite, drangùa, drangòni) is a semi-human winged divine figure in Albanian mythology and folklore, associated with weather and storms. Babies destined to become drangue are born with their heads covered in caul and with two ...


References


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *. * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Perëndi Albanian mythology Albanian folklore Thunder gods Illyrian gods Paleo-Balkan mythology