Etymology: Latin “Bright Goddess,” “the Celestial Goddess” or “Goddess of Daylight”

Pronunciation: d̪e-a ˈd̪i-a

In ancient Rome, Dea Dia is the goddess of fertility and growth. By herself, she is a relatively minor goddess and as such, she is frequently equated with Ceres or her Grecian counterpart Demeter.

Attributes

Element: Earth

Month: May, December

Sphere of Influence: Growth, Crops, Fields, Planting

Ancient Origins

Dea Dia’s worship is very ancient, she was a goddess of the plowed field, concerned with the fertility and growth of crops, particularly grain and the earth.

It’s thought that Dea Dia’s worship extends back to ancient Sabine. The first part of her name, Dea simply means goddess and the second part means “light” or “bright” in reference to the sky. There is thought that Dia may be related to the goddess Diana as there is certainly an etymological root there with “dia.”

Since there’s a lot of getting into the Indo-European root words and languages. There are lines of thought that Dia Dea is an honorific and the actual goddess’ name was so sacred as to be forbidden to be spoken out loud as seen with another goddess known as Bona Dea. Additionally, one of Jupiter’s archaic names as a Sky-God is “Dies Pater” so there is another idea that Dea Dia may be the consort of an early form of Jupiter’s.

Ambarvalia

This is a three-day festival that would be held every May from the 27^th to the 29^th in honor of Ceres and where Dea Dia would be an epitaph to Ceres. Dea Dia’s priests, the Fratres Arvales presided over this festival. During this time, the priests would bless the fields and make offerings to the Underworld.

May of course, is the time of year when the days are getting longer and ideal for planting and growing crops. There was a minor festival held in December.

Lucus Deae Diae – This is the name of the sacred grove dedicated to Dea Dia where her festival was held. It’s about five miles south of Rome. Archeological evidence shows that this grove and temple have been used since the third century B.C.E.

Syno-Dieties

Acca Larentia – Roman

A mythical woman later turned fertility goddess. It is thought that her twelve sons became the priests associated with the first Arval priests.

Ceres – Roman

Ceres is the Roman goddess of agriculture, grain crops, fertility, and motherhood and is equated with Dea Dia or attached as an epitaph.

Mana Genita – Roman

An obscure goddess mentioned by Pliny, Plutarch, and Horace. The mother of the Manes or spirits known as Lares would also be associated with the Ambarvalia festival and the Underworld.

Demeter – Greek

A fertility and earth goddess, Dea Dia is often equated with Demeter or attached as an epitaph.

Fortuna – Roman

The Roman goddess of luck and fate, she held a connection to the Lucus Deae Diae grove and thus to Dea Dia. Fortuna sharing a temple here comes about with Augustus’ reforms and has caused several scholars to debate the precise connection between Fortuna and Dea Dia.

Larunda – Roman

A nymph and Underworld goddess, she is the mother of the Lares associated with the Ambarvalia festival. Incidentally, the only myths come from Ovid’s Fasti and are seen as a latecomer to the overall Roman myths and beliefs.

Ops – Roman

Another fertility goddess and goddess of the fields, Dea Dia would also be equated with Ops.