Mother-Goddess of Birth
Mordvin · deity · mythic · Recorded classification
Erzya ⟨Анге Патяй⟩ Ange Patjaj (patjaj 'elder woman/auntie'). The figure is best documented through Melnikov-Pechersky's 19th-c. account and treated cautiously in modern scholarship; flagged here as a contested elaboration.
Domains
- birth and fertility
- motherhood of the gods
Powers
- bestows children and watches over the newborn
- Maintain life and aid women in childbirth
Sources
- Ange Patyai is the Mordvin mother of the gods and goddess of birth and fertility.: Harva (Holmberg), Uno. Die religiösen Vorstellungen der mordwinischen Völker. FF Communications 142. Helsinki, 1952. (secondary); Sarv, Mari. 'Some Aspects of Mordvin Mythology.' Folklore 17, Tartu, 2001. (secondary)