List of Lithuanian gods and mythological figures

Thelist of Lithuanian godsis based on scarce written sources and latefolklore. Many of themwere outright invented.Lithuania converted to Christianityin 1387, but elements ofLithuanian mythologysurvived into the 19th century. The earliest written sources, authored by foreigners and Christians, only briefly mention the Lithuanian gods. Beginning in the 16th century, the pagan religion received more attention from authors, but often their accounts were confused, contradictory, and heavily influenced by various religious agendas. Collection and recording of folklore began in the 19th century, by which time the pagan mythology had become fragmented and mixed with Christian traditions. The cults of old deities transformed into folklore (individual tales, myths, songs, etc.) without associated rituals. Because of such difficulties obtaining data, there is no accepted list of Lithuanian gods. Different authors present wildly contradictory reconstructions of the Lithuanian pantheon.
This section includes the names of gods, divine or demonic beings, and other personages from Lithuanian myths, legends,folklore, and fairy-tales.
Some names from Lithuanian mythology are also found inKievan Rus'chronicles of the 13th century. These deities were secretly worshiped byKing of LithuaniaMindaugasafter his baptism. Rus' chronicles are considered the best source of information about the ancient Lithuanian pantheon worshiped by nobles and the military.
Martynas Mažvydasin his Latin introduction toCatechismusa Prasty Szadei(1547) urged the people to abandon their pagan ways and mentioned the following gods:
Maciej Stryjkowski(1547–1593) –Polish–Lithuanianhistorian and author ofChronicle of Poland, Lithuania, Samogitia and all Russia. In this work, Stryjkowski provided two lists of gods, oneOld Prussianand another Lithuanian. He listed 16 Lithuanian gods:
Jan Łasicki(Lasicius) was a Polish Protestant activist. He wrote a treatise onidolatryAbout the gods of Samogitians, other Sarmatians, and false Christians(De diis Samagitarum caeterorumque Sarmatarum et falsorum Christianorum, written ca. 1582 and published in 1615). This 18-page treatise contained a lists of 76 Lithuanian gods with brief description of their functions. Łasicki obtained most of his information from Łaszkowski, aPolish lesser noblewho worked as a royal land surveyor. The list contained very minor deities, representing everyday household items. Łasicki was also not intimately familiar with Lithuanian culture or language. Therefore, the academic opinion on the list ranges from a valuable resource to a practical joke designed to poke fun ofChristian saintsthrough an inverted mirror. Deities mentioned by Jan Łasicki were:
Deities mentioned byMatthäus Prätorius(1635–1704) were:
Polish-Lithuanian historianTheodor Narbuttwrote the ten-volume workHistory of the Lithuanian Nation(Dzieje starożytne narodu litewskiego) between 1835 and 1841. The first volume contained a description of Lithuanian mythology. However, modern historians have accused Narbutt of falsifying historical facts and reporting speculations. Thus, some gods mentioned only by Narbutt and unknown from other sources are usually treated as inventions of the author.
This section contains those names of Lithuanian and Prussian gods or other mythical beings that are mentioned in old treatises on history or philosophy, sometimes accompanied by brief descriptions, and which are known from a few independent sources or from their counterparts under different names in later collections of myths and tales.
Names of figures that were more marginal in Lithuanian mythology or less known from existing sources are put here. In fact they denote some spirits or local deities that do not play a main role in the mythology of Lithuanians.