Sky deity

Jupiter, the sky father of Roman religion and mythology

A sky deity is a deity associated with the sky, and are a common feature of polytheistic religions, and as hypothesized by Wilhelm Schmidt potentially early forms of monotheism. The sky often has great religious significance.

The daytime sky deities are typically distinct from the nighttime ones. Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature reflects this by separating the category of "Sky-god" (A210) from that of "Star-god" (A250). In mythology, nighttime gods are usually known as night deities and gods of stars simply as star gods. Both of these categories are included here since they relate to the sky. Luminary deities are included as well since the sun and moon are located in the sky. Some religions may also have a deity or personification of the day, distinct from the god of the day lit sky, to complement the deity or personification of the night.

Daytime gods and nighttime gods are frequently deities of an "upper world" or "celestial world" opposed to the earth and a "netherworld" (gods of the underworld are sometimes called "chthonic" deities). Within Greek mythology, Uranus was the primordial sky god, who was ultimately succeeded by Zeus, who ruled the celestial realm atop Mount Olympus. In contrast to the celestial Olympians was the chthonic deity Hades, who ruled the underworld, and Poseidon, who ruled the sea.

Any masculine sky god is often also king of the gods, taking the position of patriarch within a pantheon. Such king gods are collectively categorized as "sky father" deities, with a polarity between sky and earth often being expressed by pairing a "sky father" god with an "earth mother" goddess (pairings of a sky mother with an earth father are less frequent). A main sky goddess is often the queen of the gods and may be an air/sky goddess in her own right, though she usually has other functions as well with "sky" not being her main. In antiquity, several sky goddesses in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Near East were called Queen of Heaven.

Gods may rule the sky as a pair (for example, ancient Semitic supreme god El and the fertility goddess Asherah whom he was most likely paired with). The following is a list of sky deities in various polytheistic traditions arranged mostly by language family, which is typically a better indicator of relatedness than geography.

African

Central African

East African

North African

  • Amun, Ancient Egyptian god of creation and the wind
  • Anhur, Ancient Egyptian originally a foreign war god
  • Denka, Dinka god of sky, rain and fertility
  • Hathor, Ancient Egyptian originally a sky goddess
  • Horus, Ancient Egyptian god of the sun, sky, kings, and war
  • Khonsu, Ancient Egyptian moon god
  • Mehet-Weret, Ancient Egyptian goddess of the sky
  • Nut, Ancient Egyptian goddess of the sky
  • Ra, Ancient Egyptian god of the sun that ruled the sky, earth and underworld
  • Shu, Ancient Egyptian god of the air
  • Thoth, Ancient Egyptian original moon god

Southern African

West African

Asian

Central Asian

Turkic and Mongolic

Hindu

Eastern Asian

Chinese

  • Yu Huang Dadi-Jade Emperor (center)
  • Ziwei Dadi-polestar emperor (north)
  • Changsheng Dadi-longevity emperor (south)
  • Qinghua Dadi-azure-illustrious emperor (east)
  • Taiji Tianhuang Dadi-ultimate heaven emperor (west)
  • Chang'e, moon goddess who lives with the moon rabbit
  • Shang Di, the celestial emperor
  • Tian or Heaven
  • Xihe (deity), sun goddess
  • Zhinü, weaver of the clouds
  • Xian, Taoist spirits associated with the sky and tian

Japanese

  • Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and the universe, ancestor of the emperors of Japan, and the most important deity in Shintoism.
  • Amenominakanushi, heavenly ancestral god.
  • Izanagi, creator of Japan and sky father.
  • Izanami, creator goddess of Japan with her husband; starts off as a sky goddess, but after she dies becomes a death/underworld/chthonic goddess.
  • Marici, Buddhist goddess of the heavens.
  • Tsukuyomi, god of the moon and brother of Amaterasu.

Korean

Thai

Vietnamese

Western Asian

  • Asherah, sky goddess and consort of El; after the rise of Yahweh, she may have become Yahweh's consort before she was demonized and the Israelite religion became monotheistic
  • Baalshamin, "Lord of the Heavens" (cf. Armenian Barsamin)
  • El (god), original sky god and sky father of the Semitic speakers (replaced by Yahweh among Israelites)
  • Yahweh, according to some scholars like Mircea Eliade

Iranian

The Americas

Haitian

Incan

  • Chaska Coyllur, goddess of beauty, flowers and young maidens. Personification of planet Venus.
  • Chuqui Chinchay, incarnation of various stars and meteorological phenomena.
  • Coyllur, goddess of all the stars.
  • Illapa, god of the sky, atmospheric phenomena and war.
  • Inti, god of the Sun.
  • Kon, god of the wind and rain.
  • Kuychi, god of rainbows.
  • Pachakamaq, creator and sustainer god of all the universe.
  • Mama Killa, goddess of the Moon.
  • Viracocha, heavenly father and god creator of all that exists.

Inuit

Iroquoian

Lakota

  • Anpao wichapi, the Morning Star spirit, bringer of knowledge and new beginnings
  • Han, the spirit of night, representative of ignorance
  • Wanbli Gleska, the Spotted Eagle spirit, usually regarded as Wakan Thanka
  • Hanwi, the moon spirit of knowledge, feminine power, sometimes considered to be the wife of Wi
  • Mahpiya Oyate, the Cloud People, also known as the Wichapi Oyate (Star People)
  • Wohpe, the spirit of meteors or falling stars (often confused with Fallen Star), also the spirit of beauty, love, wishes, dreams, and prophecy
  • Wakinyan, thunder spirit usually taking the form of a bird
  • Wi, the sun spirit responsible for bringing light and wisdom to the Lakota oyate
  • Wichapi oyate, the Star People, each having respective powers however they usually represent knowledge to some degree
  • Wichapi Hinhpaya, the Fallen Star, the son of Wichapi owáŋžila and Tapun Sa Win
  • Wichapi owáŋžila, the Resting Star or Polaris, the widower of Tapun Sa Win (Red Cheeked Woman)

Lencans

  • Itanipuca, sky father and god of celestial bodies
  • Icelca, god of time and seasons

Mayan

Puebloans

Taíno mythology

  • Yaya, supreme god in Taíno mythology

Uto-Aztecan

Australian

Burmese

Etruscan

European

Albanian

Baltic

Celtic

  • Latobius, sky and mountain god equated with the Greek gods Zeus and Ares
  • Nuada, god of the sky, wind, and war
  • Sulis, goddess of the hot springs at Bath; probably originally the pan-Celtic sun goddess
  • Ambisagrus, Cisalpine god of rain, sky and hail equated to the Roman god Jupiter
  • Tuireann, Irish god of thunder and the sky, Gaulish name Taranis.

English

  • Nuit, goddess of "Infinite Space and Infinite Stars" in Thelema

Germanic

  • Dagr, personification of day
  • Eostre, spring and fertility goddess; originally the Germanic dawn goddess
  • Mēnô, the moon
  • Nótt, personification of night
  • Sōwilō, the sun
  • Teiwaz, early Germanic sky god, also the god of law, justice, and the thing (assembly)
  • Thor, God of Sky, Strength and thunder, champion of the deities. Equated with Jupiter

Greek

  • Aether, primeval god of the upper air
  • Apollo, god of light, archery, prophecy, medicine, plagues...
  • Artemis, goddess of the moon, hunt, virginity, childbirth...
  • Astraeus, dusk god
  • Eos, dawn goddess
  • Helios, personification/titan of the sun
  • Hemera, primordial goddess of day
  • Hera, goddess of the air, marriage, women, women's fertility, childbirth, heirs, kings, and empires
  • Iris, goddess of the rainbow and messenger of Hera
  • Nephele, cloud nymph in Hera's likeness
  • Nyx, primordial goddess of night
  • Selene, personification/titan of the moon
  • Uranus, primeval god of the sky
  • Zeus, king of the gods, ruler of Mount Olympus, god of the sky, thunder, weather, law, order, and civilization

Messapian

  • Zis, god of the sky

Proto-Indo-European

Roman

  • Aurora, dawn goddess
  • Caelus, personification of the sky, equivalent to the Greek Uranus
  • Juno, goddess of the sky, queen of the gods, and Jupiter's wife, equivalent to the Greek Hera
  • Jupiter, king of heaven and god of the sky and weather, equivalent to the Greek Zeus
  • Luna, moon goddess
  • Nox, Roman version of Nyx, night goddess and mother of Discordia
  • Sol, sun god
  • Summanus, god of nocturnal thunder/lightning

Slavic

  • Dazhbog (or Svarog), god of the Sun
  • Khors, god of the Moon
  • Stribog, god of the winds, sky, and air
  • Perun, god of the thunderstorms, lightning and sky.
  • Triglav, a triple god whose three heads represent sky, earth, and underworld
  • Zorya, goddess of dawn

Thracian and Phrygian

Filipino

Hurrian

Meitei/Sanamahism

Malagasy

Māori

Other Pacific Islanders

Sumerian

Uralic

Finnic

  • Ilmari, godlike smith-hero and creator of the sky
  • Ilmatar, virgin spirit of the air
  • Ukko, supreme god of sky, weather, thunder, crops (harvest) and other natural things
  • Perkele, associated with Ukko by some researchers. A name for Devil in Finnish.
  • Taara, Oeselian chief god of thunder and the sky

Mari

  • Kugu Jumo, chief god of the sky, creator of the world, associated with a duck
  • Tõlze, god of the moon
  • Piambar, daughter of the sky
  • Shudyr-Shamich, god of the stars
  • Uzhara, god of the dawn

Mordvin

  • Värde-Škaj, Mokshan supreme god of the sky
  • Niškepaz, Erzyan supreme god of the sky
  • Kovava, Mokshan goddess of the moon

Permic

  • Inmar, Udmurt god of the heavens
  • Jenmar, Komi sky and chief god, creator of the world, associated with the moose

Sami

  • Horagalles, Sami god of the sky, thunder and lightning, the rainbow, weather, oceans, lakes, human life, health and well-being
  • Mano, god of the moon

Samoyedic

  • Num, god of the sky

Ugric

See also

References

  1. ↑ Eliade, Mircea (1996-01-01). "The Sky and Sky Gods". Patterns in Comparative Religion. U of Nebraska Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-8032-6733-6.
  2. ↑ Kearns, Emily (2011-12-15), "Chthonic Deities", The Homer Encyclopedia, Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing Ltd, doi:10.1002/9781444350302.wbhe0296, ISBN 978-1-4051-7768-9, But the word "chthonic" is usually taken to refer principally to what is under the earth.
  3. ↑ Buckler, John (2015-12-22), "Helicon", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.013.2979, ISBN 978-0-19-938113-5
  4. ↑ El was identified with the obscure deity Yahweh in early Hebrew religion, ultimately giving rise to Hebrew monotheism by the 7th century BCE; according to the Hebrew Bible it was 7th-century Judean king Josiah who removed the statue of Asherah from the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem. See also The Hebrew Goddess.
  5. ↑ Eliade, Mircea (1996-01-01). Patterns in Comparative Religion. U of Nebraska Press. pp. 93–96. ISBN 978-0-8032-6733-6.
  6. ↑ Vanoverbergh, M. (1941). The Isneg Farmer. Catholic Anthropologist Conference. Vol. III, No. 4.
  7. ↑ "Philippine Mythology Gods and Goddesses: An Ultimate Guide - FilipiKnow". 2023-07-07. Retrieved 2025-08-27.
  8. ↑ The Kalevala: Epic of the Finnish People. Compiled by Elias Lönnrot. Translated by Eino Friberg (4th ed.). Otava Publishing Company. 1998. ISBN 951-1-10137-4.
  9. ↑ Salo, Unto (1990). Agricola's Ukko in the light of archeology. A chronological and interpretative study of ancient Finnish religion: Old Norse and Finnish religions and cultic place-names. Turku. ISBN 951-649-695-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  10. ↑ "Miten suomalaiset kiroilivat ennen kristinuskoa?". Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  11. ↑ Siikala, Anna-Leena (2012). Itämerensuomalaisten mytologia. SKS.
  12. ↑ Krohn, Kaarle (1906). Lappische Beiträge zur germanischen Mythologie. Finnisch-Ugrische Forschungen 6.