Re: [tied] Re: Baltic Slav rebellion

From: Piotr Gasiorowski
Message: 5587
Date: 2001-01-17

It's definitely a Slavic name, the element *-vitU in Slavic theonyms means 'lord, ruler'. Svanto- < Slavic *sve~t-o- is probably a native Slavic word (it doesn't lend itself to internal reconstruction within Slavic, but has Baltic cognates); its meaning, however, must have been influenced by Iranian religious terminology (Avestan sp@...). The meaning 'holy' became dominant after the introduction of Christianity; the old central meaning was 'powerful, vigorous', so Svantevit can be etymologised as the Mighty Ruler -- evidently an epithet rather than his real name. He seems to have shared many traits and attributes with Rugievit ('lord of RĂ¼gen') of the Garz sanctuary (though the latter had seven faces as opposed to Svantevit's four; the statues and temples of both gods are described in vivid detail by Saxo Grammaticus). Many specialists regard them as local hypostases of Kievan Perun.
 
"Swan-white" is a folk etymology; so is the popular Polish deformation "S'wiato-wid" (allegedly 'world-seeing'), and the mediaeval theory that Svantevit = St. Vitus.
 
Piotr
 
 
 
 
----- Original Message -----
From: Christopher Gwinn
To: cybalist@egroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, January 17, 2001 5:35 AM
Subject: Re: [tied] Re: Baltic Slav rebellion
 
[Steve:]

> The name of the diety of that shrine was Swantewit (Swan-white).  This is
said to be an ancient Teutonic diety worshiped in an area that had been
sacred since pre -Teutonic times.

I always thought that Svantovit came from a Baltic root *svant-, a suffixed
form of PIE *kwen- "holy"

-Chris Gwinn