Kitchen gods are
mythical
Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...
beings that represent abstract concepts such as
luck
Luck is the phenomenon and belief that defines the experience of improbable events, especially improbably positive or negative ones. The Naturalism (philosophy), naturalistic interpretation is that positive and negative events may happen at a ...
or just propel the minor changes of everyday life. Little things that cannot be explained, such as losing small objects like socks in the laundry, are often attributed to these creatures because the explanation eludes the believer.
See also
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Di Penates
In ancient Roman religion, the Di Penates () or Penates ( ) were among the ''dii familiares'', or household deities, invoked most often in domestic rituals. When the family had a meal, they threw a bit into the fire on the hearth for the Penates. ...
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Hestia
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Hestia (; ) is the virgin goddess of the hearth and the home. In myth, she is the firstborn child of the Titans Cronus and Rhea, and one of the Twelve Olympians.
In Greek mythology, newborn Hestia, alo ...
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Household deity
A household deity is a deity or spirit that protects the home, looking after the entire household or certain key members. It has been a common belief in paganism as well as in folklore across many parts of the world.
Household deities fit int ...
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Jowangsin
Jowangshin (in Hangul, ''조왕신'', in hanja, 竈王神) is the goddess of fire and the hearth in Korean shamanism. As the goddess of the hearth, the rituals dedicated to her were generally kept alive by housewives. She is no longer the subject o ...
is a Korean kitchen god.
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Kōjin
Kōjin, also known as , is the Japanese ''kami'' (''god'') of fire, the hearth and the kitchen. He is sometimes called Kamado-gami ( 竃神), literally ''the god of the stove''. He represents violent forces that are turned toward the betterment ...
is a Japanese kitchen god.
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List of deities
A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
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Ông Táo
Ông Táo (翁灶) also known as Táo Quân (灶君, Mandarin Táo), Táo Vương (灶王), Thần Bếp (神灶), Vua Bếp (𢂜灶) or the Kitchen god is regarded in Vietnamese culture as the advocate of the Vietnamese family with the gods and ...
is a Vietnamese kitchen god.
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Zàojūn is a Chinese kitchen god.
References
European mythology
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