List of fertility deities
A fertility deity is a god or goddess in mythology associated with fertility, pregnancy, and birth. In some cases these deities are directly associated with sex, and in others they simply embody related attributes. The following is a list of fertility deities.
African mythology
Armenian mythology
- Anahit, goddess of fertility, birth, beauty and water
- Aramazd, creator-god and source of the Earth's fertility
Aztec mythology
- Chiconahui, domestic fertility goddess
- Cihuacoatl, goddess of motherhood, fertility and midwives
- Coatlicue, goddess of fertility, life, death and rebirth
- Huixtocihuatl, fertility goddess who presided over salt and salt water
- Mayahuel, goddess of maguey plants, associated with fertility
- Patecatl, god of healing and fertility
- Tepoztecatl, god of pulque, of drunkenness and fertility
- Tlaloc, god of rain, fertility and water
- Tlazolteotl, goddess of purification, steam bath, midwives, filth, and a patroness of adulterers
- Toci, is the "Mother of the Gods", often associated with Tlazolteotl
- Tonacatecuhtli, god of fertility
- Tzitzimimeh, a group of star deities associated with fertility
- Xipe Totec, god of agriculture, vegetation, the east, disease, spring, goldsmiths, silversmiths and the seasons
- Xochipilli, god of art, games, beauty, dance, flowers, maize, fertility, and song
- Xochiquetzal, goddess of fertility, beauty, female sexual power, protection of young mothers, pregnancy, childbirth, and women's crafts
Baltic mythology
- Laima, goddess of luck and fate, associated with childbirth, pregnancy marriage, and death
- Saulė, solar goddess of life and fertility, warmth and health
Canaanite mythology
- Baal, name of a number of gods with possible associations with fertility
In Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia
- Sowathara, A female figure as symbol of the fertile earh.
Celtic mythology
- Brigid, Irish goddess associated with fertility
- Cernunnos, horned god associated with fertility
- Damara, fertility goddess worshipped in Britain
- Damona, Gaulish fertility goddess
- Epona, goddess of horses and fertility
- Hooded Spirits, a group of deities theorised to be fertility spirits
- Nantosuelta, goddess of nature, the earth, fire, and fertility
- Onuava, goddess of fertility
- Rosmerta, Gallo-Roman goddess of fertility and abundance
Catholic mythology
- St. Anne, patron saint of pregnancy and mothers
- St. Catherine of Sweden, patron saint of protection against abortion and miscarriage
- St. Gerard Majella, patron saint of childbirth, motherhood, children and mothers (unborn children and expecting mothers in particular)
- St. Margaret the Virgin, patron saint of childbirth and pregnant women
- Phallic saints, a group of saints invoked for fertility
- St. Raymond Nonnatus, patron saint of childbirth, midwives, children, and pregnant women
Egyptian mythology
- Amun, creator-god, associated with fertility
- Bastet, cat goddess sometimes associated with fertility
- Bes, household protector god associated with music, dance, and sexual pleasure
- Hathor, goddess who personified the principles of love, motherhood and joy
- Heget, frog-goddess of fertility
- Heryshaf, god of creation and fertility
- Isis, goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility
- Mesenet, goddess of childbirth
- Min, god of fertility, reproduction, and lettuce
- Osiris, god of the afterlife, the dead, and the underworld agency that granted all life, including sprouting vegetation and the fertile flooding of the Nile River
- Renenutet, goddess of the true name, the harvest and fertile fields
- Sobek, god of the river, warfare and fertility
- Sopdet, goddess of the fertility of the soil
- Tawaret, goddess of fertility and childbirth
- Tefnut, goddess of water and fertility
- Qetesh, goddess of sacred ecstasy and sexual pleasure
Etruscan mythology
- Fufluns, god of plant life, happiness and health and growth in all things
- Thesan, goddess of the dawn, associated with the generation of life
Finnish mythology
- Äkräs, god of fertility
- Rauni, goddess of fertility
Germanic mythology
- Nerthus, goddess associated with fertility
- Anyak-Schlikh, goddess of fertility and passionate love
Greek mythology
- Adonis, a figure associated with death, rebirth and vegetation
- Aphaea, local goddess associated with fertility and the agricultural cycle
- Aphrodite, goddess of love, beauty and sexuality
- Artemis, goddess of the hunt, wild animals, wilderness, childbirth, virginity, fertility, young girls and health and disease in women
- Cybele, Phrygian Earth Mother goddess who embodies the fertile earth
- Demeter, goddess of agriculture and the fertility of the earth
- Dionysus, god of wine and festivity, associated with fertility
- Eros, god of sexual love, fertility and beauty
- Gaia, Earth Mother and goddess of the fertile earth
- Hera, goddess of the air, marriage, women, women's fertility, childbirth, heirs, kings and empires
- Hermes, god of roads, commerce, invention, and theft; herald and messenger of the gods
- Ilithyia, goddess of childbirth and midwifery
- Pan, god of shepherds, flocks, mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music; associated with fertility
- Persephone, daughter of Zeus and Demeter; abducted by Pluto to be queen of Hades, but allowed to return to the surface of earth for part of the year.
- Phanes, primeval deity of procreation and the generation of new life
- Priapus, rustic god of fertility, protection of livestock, fruit plants, gardens and male genitalia
Hawaiian mythology
- Haumea, goddess of fertility and childbirth
- Kamapua'a, demi-god of fertility
- Laka, patron of the hula dance and god of fertility
- Lono, god associated with fertility, agriculture, rainfall, and music
Hindu mythology
- Aditi, goddess of space, consciousness, the past, the future, and fertility
- Banka-Mundi, goddess of the hunt and fertility
- Bhūmi, goddess of the earth and the fertility form of Lakshmi
- Chandra, lunar god associated with fertility
- Lajja Gauri, goddess associated with abundance and fertility
- Manasa, snake goddess associated with fertility and prosperity
- Parvati, goddess associated with fertility, marital felicity, devotion to the spouse, asceticism, and power
- Sinivali, goddess associated with fecundity and easy
Hittite mythology
- Shaushka, goddess of fertility, war and healing
Inca mythology
- Mama Quilla, the goddess of the moon, the menstrual cycle, and a protector of women
- Mama Ocllo, mother goddess, associated with fertility
- Sara Mama, goddess of grain
- Pacha Kamaq, Creator of the World
- Pachamama, fertility goddess who presides over planting and harvesting and causes earthquakes
Indigenous Australian mythology
Inuit mythology
- Akna, goddess of fertility and childbirth
- Pukkeenegak, goddess of children, pregnancy, childbirth and the making of clothes
Japanese mythology
- Kichijōten, goddess of happiness, fertility, and beauty
Maya mythology
- Akna, goddess of motherhood and childbirth
- Ixchel, jaguar goddess of midwifery and medicine
Mesopotamian mythology
- Ama-arhus, goddess of fertility
- Amasagnul, goddess of fertility
- Emesh, Sumerian god of vegetation, associated with the abundance of the earth
- Enten, Sumerian fertility god
- Gatumdag, goddess of fertility
- Inanna (Ishtar), goddess of sexual love, fertility and warfare
- Nanshe, goddess of social justice, prophecy, fertility and fishing
- Nidaba, goddess of writing, learning, and the harvest
- Ninhursag, mother goddess associated with fertility
- Nin-imma, goddess of fertility and deification of the female sex organs
- Sharra Itu, goddess of fertility
- Shu-pa-e, Sumerian astral and fertility god, personifying the planet Jupiter
- Shulmanu, god of the underworld, fertility and war
- Tammuz, god of food, vegetation and fertility
Native American mythology
- Atahensic, Iroquois goddess associated with marriage, childbirth, and feminine endeavors
- Kokopelli, Hopi trickster god associated with fertility, childbirth and agriculture
Norse mythology
- Freyja, goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, gold, seiðr, war, and death
- Freyr, god associated with farming, weather and fertility
- Frigg, goddess associated with prophecy, marriage and childbirth
- Gefjun, goddess of ploughing and possibly fertility
Oceania mythology
Persian mythology
- Anahita goddess of fertility, healing and wisdom
Roman mythology
- Bona Dea, goddess of fertility, healing, virginity, and women
- Candelifera, goddess of childbirth
- Carmenta, goddess of childbirth and prophecy
- Ceres, goddess of cereal and of motherly relationships equated with the Greek goddess Demeter
- Diana, goddess of the hunt, wilderness, the moon and childbirth, equivalent to the Greek Artemis
- Fascinus, embodiment of the divine phallus
- Fecunditas, goddess of fertility
- Feronia, goddess associated with fertility and abundance
- Flora, goddess of flowers and spring
- Inuus, god of sexual intercourse
- Juno, goddess of marriage and childbirth, equivalent to the Greek goddess Hera
- Liber, god of viniculture, wine and male fertility, equivalent to Greek Dionysus; in archaic Lavinium, a phallic deity
- Libera, goddess of female fertility and the earth
- Lucina, goddess of childbirth
- Mars, god initially associated with fertility and vegetation, but later associated with warfare and the Greek god Ares
- Mutunus Tutunus, phallic marriage deity associated with the Greek god Priapus
- Ops, fertility and earth-goddess
- Partula, goddess of childbirth, who determined the duration of each pregnancy
- Picumnus, god of fertility, agriculture, matrimony, infants and children
- Robigus, fertility god who protects crops against disease
- Terra, earth goddess associated with marriage, motherhood, pregnant women, and pregnant animals; equivalent to the Greek Gaia
- Venus, goddess of love, beauty and fertility, equivalent to the Greek goddess Aphrodite
Sami mythology
- Beiwe, goddess of fertility and sanity
- Rana Niejta, goddess of spring and fertility
Slavic mythology
- Dzydzilelya, Polish goddess of love, marriage, sexuality and fertility
- Jarilo, god of fertility, spring, the harvest and war
- Kostroma, goddess of fertility
- Radegast, West Slavic god of hospitality, fertility, and crops, associated with war and the sun
- Siebog, god of love and marriage
- Svetovid, god of war, fertility and abundance
- Zeme, goddess of the earth, associated with fertility
- Živa, goddess of love and fertility
Turkic mythology
- Ajysyt, mother goddess associated with childbirth
- Umay, goddess of fertility and virginity
Vodou
- Ayida-Weddo, loa of fertility, rainbows and snakes
- Guédé, family of spirits that embody the powers of death and fertility
See also