List of fertility deities
A fertility deity is a god or goddess associated with fertility, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, and crops. In some cases these deities are directly associated with these experiences; in others they are more abstract symbols. Fertility rites may accompany their worship. The following is a list of fertility deities.
African
- Ala, Igbo goddess of fertility
- Asase Ya, Ashanti earth goddess of fertility
- Deng, Dinka sky god of rain and fertility
- Nomkhubulwane, Zulu goddess of fertility, rainbows, agriculture and bees
- Orie, Ohafia goddess of fertility
- Oshun also spelled Ọṣun, is an orisha, a spirit, a deity, or a goddess that reflects one of the manifestations of God in the Ifá and Yoruba religions. She is one of the most popular and venerated orishas. Oshun is the deity of the river and fresh water, luxury and pleasure, sexuality and fertility, and beauty and love. She is connected to destiny and divination.
Ancient Egyptian
- Amun, creator-god, associated with fertility
- Bastet, cat goddess sometimes associated with fertility
- Hathor, goddess of music, beauty, love, sexuality and fertility
- Heqet, frog-goddess of fertility
- Heryshaf, god of creation and fertility
- Isis, goddess of motherhood, magic and fertility
- Knum, Creator of the human body, source of the Nile, associated with fertility/ creation of life
- Mesenet, goddess of childbirth
- Min, god of fertility and reproduction
- Osiris, god of the afterlife, the dead, and the underworld agency that granted all life, including sprouting vegetation and the fertile flooding of the Nile River
- Renenutet, goddess of the true name, the harvest and fertile fields
- Sobek, god of the river, warfare and fertility
- Sopdet, goddess of the fertility of the soil
- Tawaret, goddess of fertility and childbirth
- Tefnut, goddess of water and fertility
Yoruba
- Eshu
- Oya
Native American
- Atahensic, Iroquois goddess associated with marriage, childbirth, and feminine endeavors
- Kokopelli, Hopi trickster god associated with fertility, childbirth and agriculture
- Hanhepi Wi, Lakota goddess associated with the moon, motherhood, family and femininity
Aztec
- Chimalma, goddess of fertility, life, death, and rebirth.
- Tonacatecuhtli, god of sustenance.
- Tonacacihuatl, goddess of sustenance.
- Tonantzin
- Coatlicue, goddess of fertility, life, death, and rebirth.
- Xochipilli, god of love, art, games, beauty, dance, flowers, maize, fertility, and song.
- Xochiquetzal, goddess of fertility, beauty, female sexual power, protection of young mothers, pregnancy, childbirth, and women's crafts.
- Quetzalcoatl, god of fertility, wind, water, and chocolate.
Inca
- Mama Ocllo, mother goddess, associated with fertility
- Sara Mama, goddess of grain
- Pachamama, fertility goddess who presides over planting and harvesting and causes earthquakes
Inuit
- Akna, goddess of fertility and childbirth
- Pukkeenegak, goddess of children, pregnancy, childbirth and the making of clothes
Mayan
- Akna, goddess of motherhood and childbirth
- Goddess I, goddess of eroticism, female fertility, and marriage
- Ixchel, jaguar goddess of midwifery and medicine
- Maya maize god, gods of maize
- Maximón, a Mayan god and modern folk saint associated with crops, death, and fertility and Sight
Muiscan
- Chaquén, god of sports and fertility in the religion of the Muisca
Taíno
- Atabey, mother goddess of fresh waters and fertility.
- Yúcahu, masculine spirit of fertility along with his mother Atabey who was his feminine counterpart.
Vodou
- Ayida-Weddo, loa of fertility, rainbows and snakes
- Gede, family of spirits that embody the powers of death and fertility
Asian
Arabian
- Attar
Armenian
- Anahit, goddess of fertility, healing, wisdom, and water
- Aramazd, generous king and creator god of fertility, rain, and abundance
Canaanite
- Hadad, storm god responsible for crops growing, also known as Adad and Ba'al
- Nikkal, goddess of fruits
- Tanit, consort of Baʿal Hammon at Carthage
Chinese
- Chū Shèng Niángniáng, Goddess of Fertility
- Jiutian Xuannü, a fertility goddess as well as a deity of war and long life
- Yúnxiāo Niángniáng, goddess of childbirth
- Qióngxiāo Niángniáng, goddess of childbirth
- Bìxiāo Niángniáng, goddess of childbirth
- Chén Jìnggū, goddess of childbirth
Filipino
- Lakapati: the hermaphrodite Tagalog deity and protector of sown fields, sufficient field waters, and abundant fish catch; a major fertility deity; deity of vagrants and waifs; a patron of cultivated lands and husbandry
- Ikapati: the Sambal goddess of cultivated land and fertility
- Lakan-bakod: the Tagalog god of the fruits of the earth who dwells in certain plants; the god of crops; the god of rice whose hollow statues have gilded eyes, teeth, and genitals; food and wine are introduced to his mouth to secure a good crop; the protector of fences
- Kukarog: the Bicolano giant who was swept by waters into the sea, where his genital can be seen as a rock jutting from the ocean
- Ibabasag: the Bukidnon goddess of pregnant women
Vietnamese
- Bà mụ, consisting of twelve goddesses responsible for creating each part of the child
Hittite/Hurrian
- Hutellurra, Irsirra, and Tawara, goddesses of midwifery and nursing children
- Shaushka, goddess of fertility, war, and healing
Indian
- Banka-Mundi, goddess of the hunt and fertility
- Bhavani, goddess of fertility
- Bhumi, goddess of the earth and associated with fertility
- Lajja Gauri, goddess associated with abundance and fertility
- Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity, wealth, fortune, and fertility
- Manasa, snake goddess associated with fertility and prosperity
- Matrikas, a group of 7-16 goddesses who are associated with fertility and motherly power.
- Parvati, goddess of the Himalayan Mountains, fertility, beauty, food and power
- Prithvi Vedic-goddess of the earth and associated with fertility
- Rankini, goddess of protection, strength and fertility
- Sinivali, goddess associated with fecundity and easy birth
- Yogamaya, goddess of fertility and maya
- Saraswati, Vedic-goddess of knowledge, music, arts, wealth, abundance and fertility
- Mariamman, goddess of rain, fertility and cure for small pox
Iranian
- Anahita: or Anahit, the divinity of "the Waters" and hence associated with fertility, healing, and wisdom
- Spenta Armaiti: or Sandaramet, female divinity associated with earth and Mother Nature
- Ashi: a divinity of fertility and fortune
Phoenician
- Asherah, Mother Goddess of nature, groves & trees
Japanese
- Dosojin, Minor gods of boundaries, fertility, health and protection.
- Kichijōten, goddess of happiness, fertility, and beauty
- Kuebiko, god of agriculture and knowledge
- Inari Ōkami, deity of fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, and industry; this deity is of ambiguous gender and may be portrayed as male, female, or ambiguous
- Shinda, fertility god of the Ainu people
Mesopotamian
- Asherah, Ancient semitic goddess of motherhood and fertility
- Ashratum, the wife of Amurru. Ašratum, a cognate of Athirat
- Dumuzid/Tammuz, Mesopotamian dying-&-rising god, Dumuzid-sipad, husband of Inanna
- Gatumdag, Sumerian fertility goddess and tutelary mother goddess of Lagash
- Nanshe, Sumerian goddess of social justice, prophecy, fertility, and fishing
- Sharra Itu, Identified with Asratum, later Ašrat-aḫītu or
- Inanna/Ishtar, Mesopotamian goddess of love, beauty, sex, desire, fertility, war, justice, and political power. Her symbols were lions, doves & the 8-pointed star, wife of Dumuzid
Turco-Mongol
- Umay, goddess of fertility and reproduction, believed to have saved two children from a massacre. She is believed to have offered protection and guidance to the children, who managed to raise the Turkic communities. In the form of a deer, she is accepted by the Turks to be the protective power of the race, and therefore she is called in many texts as "Mother Umay".
European
Albanian
- Prende, goddess of love, beauty and fertility
Baltic
- Laima, goddess of luck and fate, associated with childbirth, pregnancy, marriage, and death
- Zemes māte, goddess of the earth, associated with fertility
Celtic
- Brigid, Irish goddess associated with fertility, spring, healing, smithing, and poetry
- Cernunnos, horned god associated with the fertility of animals and nature
- Damara, fertility goddess worshiped in Britain
- Damona, Gaulish fertility goddess
- Epona, goddess of horses, mules, donkeys, and the fertility of these animals
- Hooded Spirits, a group of deities theorised to be fertility spirits
- Nantosuelta, goddess of nature, the earth, fire, and fertility
- Onuava, goddess of fertility
- Rosmerta, Gallo-Roman goddess of fertility and abundance
Etruscan
- Fufluns, god of plant life, happiness, health, and growth in all things, equivalent to the Greek Dionysus
- Thesan, goddess of the dawn, associated with the generation of life
- Turan, goddess of love, fertility and vitality
Finno-Ugric
- Äkräs, Finnish god of fertility
- Rauni or Raun, Finnish-Estonian goddess of fertility
- Peko or Pellon-Pekko, Karelian-Seto god of fertility
- Metsik, West Estonian spirit of fertility
- Norovava, Mordovian goddess of fertility
- Šun-Šočõnava, Mari goddess of fertility and birth
- Mu-Kyldyśin, Udmurt god of fertility and earth
- Zarni-Ań, Komi goddess of fertility, represented by a golden woman
- Babba or Aranyanya, Hungarian goddess fertility, represented by a golden woman
- Kalteš-Ekwa, Ob-Ugric goddess of fertility, represented by a golden woman
Germanic
- Ēostre, spring and fertility goddess; in earlier times probably a dawn goddess as her name is cognate to Eos
- Freyr, god associated with peace, marriages, rain, sunshine, and fertility, both of the land and people
- Freyja, a goddess associated with fertility and sister of the above god
- Frigg, goddess associated with prophecy, marriage, and childbirth; in one myth, she also demonstrates a more direct connection with fertility, as a king and queen pray to her for a child
- Gefjun, Danish goddess of ploughing and possibly fertility
- Nerthus, earth goddess associated with fertility
- Njörðr, since his name is cognate with the above goddess, it's possible he was originally an earth/fertility deity before transforming into a sea god thanked for a bountiful catch
- Thor, associated with the bringing of rain