Baba Yaga
As one of the most famous witches, Baba Yaga makes an appearance in hundreds if not thousands of folktales in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus predating the eighteenth century. The first clear reference to Baba Yaga ("Iaga baba") occurs in 1755 with Mikhail V. Lomonosov's "Rossiiskaia grammatika" ('Russian grammar'). Lomonosov's grammar mentions Baba Yaga twice among other figures largely from Slavic tradition. The second of the two mentions occurs within a list of Slavic gods and beings next to their presumed equivalence in Roman mythology (the Slavic god Perun, for example, appears equated with the Roman god Jupiter). Baba Yaga, however, appears in a third section without an equivalence, attesting to perception of her uniqueness even in this first known attestation. However, it is noticeable that, like Hecate, Baba Yaga presides over a wide, diverse array of domains and functions.