Primordial Grandmother of the Gods
Ewe · deity · primordial · Recorded classification
Deus otiosus standing behind the creator pair; 'Nana' is an honorific for an aged grandparent/ancestor. Typed deity (primordial).
Domains
- primordial origin
- ancestral wisdom
Powers
- gives birth to the twin creator pair
Relations
- equated with: Nana BulukuThe same West African deity under its Gbe/Yoruba reflex (Nana Buluku).West African vodun/òrìṣà cognates: the same deity across the Gbe (Ewe, Fon) and Yoruba traditions (M. Herskovits, Dahomey, 1938; G. Parrinder, West African Religion, 1961; P. Verger, Notes sur le culte des Orisa et Vodun, 1957) (secondary)
- equated with: Nana BurukuThe same West African deity under its Gbe/Yoruba reflex (Nana Buluku).West African vodun/òrìṣà cognates: the same deity across the Gbe (Ewe, Fon) and Yoruba traditions (M. Herskovits, Dahomey, 1938; G. Parrinder, West African Religion, 1961; P. Verger, Notes sur le culte des Orisa et Vodun, 1957) (secondary)
Sources
- In Ewe-Fon cosmology Nana Buluku is the androgynous primordial being who gave birth to the creator twins Mawu and Lisa and then withdrew from the world.: Herskovits, Melville J. Dahomey: An Ancient West African Kingdom. 1938, vol. 2, pp. 101-102. (secondary); "Mawu-Lisa." Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd ed., 2005. (tertiary)