|
Mogontia
A Gaulish Goddess: The Great Goddess
Mogentia is a Gaulish goddess known from a single inscription found at Metz, France and she seems to be the direct female cognate of Mogontius and by camparison she may be a hunter goddess. |
|
Gaul, Bryth: The Great Goddess
Mogontia is a goddess known from a single inscription found at Metz, Moselle, France (CIL XIII 04313). She would seem to be the direct female cognate of the god Mogontius.
Unfortunately, we only have the name Mogontia to base any speculation as to the goddess' nature and attributes and in this respect the interpretation of her name is siingularly uninformative. Perhaps, like her masculine counterpart she may have been a hunter goddess and her name may once have been used as a title that applied to several female deities. But until more inscriptions dedicated to her are uncovered this can be no more than educated speculation. However, her name can be interpreted on the basis of the reconstructed proto-Celtic lexicon as being derived from *mak-o- (increase), or *magyo- (great): both words posessing the sense of increase and majesty and lead us to the standard interpretation (long with the deicitic particle *-ī- of the name as 'The Great Goddess'.
Couldn't find what you were looking for? Search the web:
One Million People CampaignIf you can spare $1 then help support this site and change someone's life forever? Learn how and why on the One Million People campaign page. Or donate $10 and get my Guide to Spices or The Recipes of Africa eBooks as a gift for your donation! |
