From: Alexander Stolbov
Message: 8565
Date: 2001-08-17
----- Original Message -----
From: <MrCaws@...>
To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, August 17, 2001 2:29 AM
Subject: [tied] Re: Odin as a Trojan Prince
...
> Yes, but the Romans stole even more from the Etruscans. Compare Roman
> Juno to Etruscam Uni.
...
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Can not Roman Venus be produced from Etruscan Uni as well ?
As far as I know, unlike the majority of Greek deities Aphrodite has neither
Aegean (Pelasgian?) nor IE, but the Semitic source - a variant of Astarta.
Thus, if we accept the Aegean (West Anatolian) origin of Etruscans, they
could not have an Astarta-related deity in their pantheon (if to exclude the
coincidence of the parallel borrowing). When Romans got a wish to have their
pantheon mirroring the Greek's one they had to "invent" a goddess
corresponding to Aphrodite. Some functions of the Uni image could fit it
well. So Etruscan Uni would be represented in the Roman mythology twice - as
Juno (~ Hera) and Venus (~ Aphrodite). IMHO.
Alexander