A snake goddess is 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 ...
associated with a
snake
Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more ...
theme.
Examples include:
*
Meretseger ("She Who Loves Silence"), Egyptian snake goddess
*
Minoan snake goddess figurines, a type of figurine in Minoan archaeology
*
Renenutet
Renenūtet (also transliterated Ernūtet, Renen-wetet, Renenet) was a goddess of nourishment and the harvest in the ancient Egyptian religion. The importance of the harvest caused people to make many offerings to Renenutet during harvest time.
In ...
, Egyptian snake goddess
*
Wadjet
Wadjet (; egy, wꜢḏyt "Green One"), known to the Greek world as Uto (; grc-koi, Οὐτώ) or Buto (; ) among other renderings including Wedjat, Uadjet, and Udjo, was originally the ancient local goddess of the city of Dep. It became part ...
("Green One"), Egyptian snake goddess
*
Nagapooshani ("She who wears snakes as her jewellery"), Sri Lankan snake goddess, is often recognized by her cobra (
Shesha
Shesha ( Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga ( Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod (Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the ...
)
See also
*
Snake worship
Snake worship is devotion to serpent deities. The tradition is present in several ancient cultures, particularly in religion and mythology, where snakes were seen as the holders of knowledge, strength, and renewal.
Near East Ancient Mesopota ...
External links
*
{{SIA