Indo-European mythologies in the context of "Divine twins"

Play Trivia Questions online!

or

Skip to study material about Indo-European mythologies in the context of "Divine twins"

Ad spacer

⭐ Core Definition: Indo-European mythologies

Proto-Indo-European mythology is the body of myths and deities associated with the Proto-Indo-Europeans, speakers of the hypothesized Proto-Indo-European language. Although the mythological motifs are not directly attested – since Proto-Indo-European speakers lived in preliterate societies – scholars of comparative mythology have reconstructed details from inherited similarities in mythological concepts found in Indo-European languages, based on the assumption that parts of the Proto-Indo-Europeans' original belief systems survived in the daughter traditions.

The Proto-Indo-European pantheon includes a number of securely reconstructed deities, since they are both cognates—linguistic siblings from a common origin—and associated with similar attributes and body of myths: such as *Dyḗws Ph₂tḗr, the daylight-sky god; his consort *Dʰéǵʰōm, the earth mother; his daughter *H₂éwsōs, the dawn goddess; his sons the Divine Twins; and *Seh₂ul and *Meh₁not, a solar deity and moon deity, respectively. Some deities, like the weather god *Perkʷunos or the herding-god *Péh₂usōn, are only attested in a limited number of traditions—Western (i.e. European) and Graeco-Aryan, respectively—and could therefore represent late additions that did not spread throughout the various Indo-European dialects.

↓ Menu

>>>PUT SHARE BUTTONS HERE<<<
In this Dossier

Indo-European mythologies in the context of Dogs in religion

Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) have held significant and diverse roles in the religions and mythologies of numerous cultures throughout human history. In the context of the history of religion, the roles of dogs range from symbolic representations of virtues like loyalty and protection to teachings about purity and ritual practices. In Animals and World Religion, animal ethicist Lisa Kemmerer explores the relationship between animals and global religious traditions. The work examines how different religions perceive and engage with animals, emphasizing their roles in religious narratives and rituals and highlighting the connection between humans and animals in spiritual contexts.

In mythology, dogs often served in companion and protective roles, such as guarding the gates of the underworld in Indo-European mythologies. Historian Julien d'Huy identifies a common set of three narratives about dogs that appear in various religious traditions. The first narrative emphasizes a connection to the afterlife, reflecting the gatekeeping role often seen in Indo-European mythologies. The second narrative focuses on the bond between humans and dogs, while the third pertains to the association of dogs with the star Sirius. Evidence presented by d'Huy suggests an association between the mythological records from various cultures and the genetic and fossil records related to dog domestication.

↑ Return to Menu