Dyeus

*Dyēus (also *Dyēus ph₂ter) is the reconstructed chief deity of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon. He was the god of the daylight sky, and his position may have mirrored the position of the patriarch or monarch in society.

Later gods who are etymologically connected with Dyeus include:

Dyēus group:

• Greek Zeus
• Roman Iuppiter
• Vedic Dyauṣ Pitār
• possibly Dionysos, and Thracian Sabazios (from Saba Zeus?)

Rooted in the related but distinct Indo-European word *deiwos is the Latin word for deity, deus. The Latin word is also continued in English divine, deity, and the original Germanic word remains visible in Tuesday (originally "Day of Tīwaz") and Old Norse tívar (gods), which may be continued in the toponym Tiveden (Wood of the Gods, or of Týr).

Deiwos group:

• Germanic Tiwaz (later known as Týr)
• Latin Deus
• Indo-Iranian Deva/Daeva
• Baltic Dievas
• Celtic mythology e.g. Welsh Duw (cf. dydd/diwrnod)
• Possible Slavic mythology divu (demons - meaning acquired from Iranian)

Estonian Tharapita bears similarity to Dyaus Pita in name, although it has been interpreted as being related to the god Thor.

Dyeus was addressed as Dyeu Ph₂ter, literally "Sky Father" or "shining father", as reflected in Latin Iūpiter, Diēspiter, possibly Dispater and deus pater, Greek Zeu pater, Sanskrit Dyàuṣpítaḥ or DyausPitrah. In his aspect as a father god, his consort was Pltwih₂ Mh₂ter, "Earth Mother".

As the pantheons of the individual mythologies related to the Proto-Indo-European religion evolved, attributes of Dyeus were sometimes redistributed to other, newer deities. In Greek and Roman mythology, Dyeus remained the chief god, while in Vedic mythology, the etymological continuant of Dyeus became a very abstract god, and his original attributes, and his dominance over other gods, were transferred to gods whose names can (Agni) or cannot (Indra) be traced to Proto-Indo-European.

As an ordinary noun

Dyēus's name also likely means "the daytime sky":

• In Sanskrit as div- (nominative singular dyāus with vrddhi), its singular means "the sky" and its plural means "days".
• Pronounced *di-ēus (2 syllables) it became Latin diēs = "day".
• Finnish and Estonian taivas and taevas, respectively, meaning "heaven" or "sky," are likely rooted in either neighboring Baltic Dievas or Germanic Tiwaz.

See also

• Proto-Indo-European religion
• Tengri

References

• Julius Pokorny, Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (1959).