|
|
Post by Adam on Aug 10, 2009 12:31:25 GMT -1
Does anyone know anything about a Goddess by the name Verbeia? There is a Roman altar in Ilkley, West Yorks dedicated to her(?) name VERBEIAE SACRVM CLODIVS FRONTO PRAEF COH II LINGON "To holy Verbeia, Clodius Fronto, prefect of the Second Cohort of Lingones (dedicated this)." and celtnet ( www.celtnet.org.uk/gods_v/verbeia.html ) draws some tentative conclusions linking the deity to the local River Wharfe and offering translations such as Living Water or Rain-striker while www.roman-britain.org/places/verbeia.htm is far more tentative. |
|
|
|
Post by megli on Aug 10, 2009 16:22:05 GMT -1
Yes, she's the Wharfe (British Verbeia--> to Common Neo-Brittonic Werv, which an incoming Dane would probably borrow as wharf or something similar, aspirating the w- and unvoicing the final consonant. It wd have come our as Gwerf or Gwyrf if it been in Wales.
In that incription, the 'holy' doesn't go with 'Verbeia', it's the object: 'To Verbeia, Clodius Fronto, prefect of the Second Cohort of Lingones (dedicated this) shrine/altar."
The meaning of the Celtic root *uerba- is unclear, soz. It might be related to the root **ueir- 'crooked, bendy' but that's a guess.
|
|
|
|
Post by Adam on Aug 10, 2009 18:13:14 GMT -1
Thank you sir, you are a gentleman and a scholar!!
oh..
;D
|
|
|
|
Post by redraven on Aug 10, 2009 18:26:43 GMT -1
The book, The isles of the many Gods, claims she was depicted with a misshapen head and serpents in her hands, but where they got that from, I have no idea!
RR
|
|
|
|
Post by Tegernacus on Aug 10, 2009 18:34:42 GMT -1
|
|
|
|
Post by Adam on Aug 10, 2009 18:41:37 GMT -1
The book, The isles of the many Gods, claims she was depicted with a misshapen head and serpents in her hands, but where they got that from, I have no idea! RR There is an image that is supposed to be Verbeia from a nearby carving, but the link is not proven... the head looked no more mishapen to me than many other old carved images and she does have two crooked things in her hands though I don't know by what authority anyone would claim them to be serpents. Ann Ross says her draperies suggest drifting weeds though that strikes me as over imaginative. Edit: that's it, above :-) |
|
