Sun-God of the Erzya

Erzya ⟨Чипаз⟩ Čipaz (chi 'sun/day' + -paz '-god'). Moksha counterpart Shi (shi 'sun'); the supreme god is Shkai/Viarde-Shkai there. NOTE the rivalry of two cosmologies: in the Erzya egg-myth (Sarv 2001) Chipaz is the sun and the supreme Nishke is his son, whereas Melnikov-Pechersky's 19th-c. great-goddess scheme makes Ange-Patyai mother of all and Nishke-pas himself the sun/sky/fire god. This registry follows the former, as the existing Ineshkipaz entry already does.

Children

• Supreme Sky-God of the Erzya
• Mastorpaz
• Wind-God of the Erzya

Domains

• sun and daylight
• creation of humankind
• fatherhood of the gods

Powers

• fathers the supreme sky-god and the earth- and wind-gods
• shapes the first human beings from clay

Relations

• child: Supreme Sky-God of the Erzya
• lover: Field-Mother of the Grain

Sources

• Sarv, Mari. 'Some Aspects of Mordvin Mythology.' Folklore: Electronic Journal of Folklore 17. Tartu, 2001.
• Hamari, Arja, & Rigina Ajanki. 'Mordvin (Erzya and Moksha).' The Oxford Guide to the Uralic Languages. OUP, 2022, ch. 23.