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Urnia
A Gaulish goddess: She of the Bank
Urnia is a Gaulish goddess known from a single inscription found at Nîmes, France. She may possibly have been a water goddess, but as none of her attributes have survived this is difficult to state with any certainty. |
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Gaul: She of the Bank, ?She who is Beside the Waters
Urnia is a goddess known from a single inscription found at Nîmes, France, where she is invoked as Urniae (CIL XIII 03077]). Unfortunately none of this goddess' attributes have survived and her name is very problematic to interpret.
The name could conceivably be Latin, being derived from urna (water jar or urn), however derivations from the reconstructed proto-Celtic are also possible. The name may be related to *orno- (murder), with the deicific ending -i- and the feminine ending -a. Thus Urnia could be 'The Murderous Goddess'. Alternatively the name may be derived from *oro- (bank) along with the negative partilce *-nī (not) and the feminine ending -a yielding: 'She who is not of the Bank' indicating that Urnia might be a water goddess. This would fit with Nîmes' reputation as a place of springs but Urnia's role as a possible warrior goddess (or even a sacrificial goddess) may not be entirely discounted.
If you would like to try the foods of the time of the ancient Celts, then why not have a look at the ancient recipes section of this site. For the foods of the time when some of these tales were written down, take a look at the Medieval recipes section of the site and, in particular, the recipes from The Forme of Cury.
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