Deiba-nguo (the benevolent creator and culture-hero)
Nganasan · deity · Nganasan traditional religion; continuing · Recorded classification
Deiba-nguo (also Dyoyba-nguo, Dyaiba-nguo) is the benevolent creator and culture-hero of the Nganasans, distinct from the female 'mothers of the world'. Conceived as an 'orphan' or poor-fellow god, he is the principal protector and patron of humankind: in the tales and traditions of the Taymyr Samoyeds he shapes the features of the land, wins benefits for people and intercedes against hostile beings. A modified, more trickster-like form of the same hero appears under the name Dyayku in Nganasan oral narrative. He is one of the central figures of recorded Nganasan mythology.
Domains
- creation and culture hero
- protection of humankind
Powers
- to shape the land and protect humankind
Epithets
- Dyoyba-nguoGracheva, G. N. (1983). Traditsionnoe mirovozzrenie okhotnikov Taymyra. Leningrad: Nauka. (secondary)
Sources
- Deiba-nguo (Dyoyba-nguo) is the benevolent Nganasan creator and culture-hero, an 'orphan' figure who is the principal protector and patron of humankind.: Gracheva, G. N. (1983). Traditsionnoe mirovozzrenie okhotnikov Taymyra [The Traditional Worldview of the Hunters of Taymyr]. Leningrad: Nauka. (secondary); Dolgikh, B. O. (1976). Mifologicheskie skazki i istoricheskie predaniya nganasan [Mythological Tales and Historical Traditions of the Nganasans]. Moscow: Nauka. (secondary)