Ašvieniai

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Ašvieniai, commonly called as the little horses, on the rooftop of a house in Nida
Ašvieniai, commonly called as the little horses, on the rooftop of a house in Nida

Ašvieniai in Lithuanian mythology are divine twins identical to Latvian Dieva deli and direct counterparts of Vedic Asvins. The both names derive from the same Proto-Indo-European root for the horse - *ek'w-.[1]

The Ašvieniai are the betrothed of Saulė (Sun). One of them is a black horse – sunrise, and one afterglow. Ašvieniai have some similarities with Ūsinis (in Latvian mythology Usins), the god of horses.

Ašvieniai are usually displayed as horses (Old Lithuanian: ašvienis, masc. singular noun – "a horse"), sometimes as red roosters (symbols of fire). Symbols and figures of Ašvieniai are used in folk architecture, especially on the top of the roof. Placed on the roof, symbols of Ašvieniai protect the house from the bad spirits. Sometimes Ašvieniai are represented as pulling Saulė’s carriage through the sky.

Alternative names: Saulės žirgeliai ("Little Horses of Sun"), Dievo sūneliai ("Little Sons of God").

[edit] References

  1. ^ Indo-European etymology
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