InAlbanian,Perëndí (definite:Perëndía) is thename of God, thesky andheaven, and is usedcapitalized to refer to the Supreme Being. The plural indefinite form isperëndí while the plural definite form isperëndítë, used uncapitalized to refer to thedeities. Somedialectal alternative forms include:Perendí,Perenní,Perondí,Perundí,Perudí,Perndí andParandí.
The wordperëndi(a) is attested in Old Albanian literature, firstly mentioned byLuca Matranga in the late 16th century and BishopPjetër Budi in the early 17th century, included into the text of the Albanian translation of thePater Noster. However, it never appears in the works of the earliest Albanian author,Gjon Buzuku, who translateDeus always using the nounZot with the compoundZotynë orYnëzot (Zot-ynë,ynë-Zot "our Lord/God"), even translating the LatinDominus Deus with the wordZotynë only.[1][2] The nounZotynë /Ynëzot, along with its inflections in the different grammatical cases, was commonly used in the Old Albanian language of the literature in northern Albania as well as in the Albanian colonies in Greece and Italy.[1] Another old noun to refer to the Deity wasHyj, a nonderivative equivalent ofDeus that has been characterized as "a half-pagan word" and "a rare stylistic variant" used "poetically" instead of the nounPerëndi(a). However the nounHyj appears in Old Albanian literature only in the works of BishopPjetër Bogdani.[3]
The early meaning of the wordperëndi(a) was usually different from the present one, as it does not generally occur in Old Albanian literature used as a name of the Deity. Although Budi reportsatinë Perëndi ("father God"), he translates the Latin phraseRegnum tuum asperëndia jote in Albanian. BishopFrang Bardhi translatesCaesar asPerëndi. Bishop Pjetër Bogdani translates from Italian to Albanianl' imperatore di Turchia ("the emperor of Turkey") asPerëndia i Turqisë andquattro Monarchie ("four kingdoms/monarchies") askatër Perëndija.[3][1] The common usage ofperëndi(a) for "Deity" is almost certainly a later phenomenon.[3][1]
It is a pan-Albanian word. InMyzeqe in central Albania a village is namedPerondí, and inBosnia and Herzegovina it is used in the family namePerèndija.[1] TheAlbanians of Ukraine useParandí for "God" andparandítë for "gods".[4] The wordperëndi means "heaven, sky" in some Albanian dialects, with both direct and figurative meanings. A typical example is an Albanian popular phrasegruri gjer mbë perëndi ("a pile of grain up to the skies").[3] As a name of GodPerëndi(a) has been recognised by all Albanians already since the 19th century. However it has been mainly used as a feminine noun.[3] It contains the stressed-i, which is the typical suffix ofabstract nouns in the Albanian language. Other examples aredijeni(a) ("knowledge"),trimëri(a) ("bravery"),madhëri(a) ("majesty"). Since they belong to the declension type which is characteristic to feminine nouns in Albanian, they are normally offeminine gender. It is difficult to infer whether Albanian speakers and writers relate the nounPerëndi(a) with the concept of apersonal God or a half-abstract and impersonal "deity", but in general usage in the Albanian language outside the Bible translations the nounPerëndi tends to be less personal than the nounZot.[3][note 1]
The origin of the Albanian nounPerëndi is obscure. Several etymologies have been proposed by scholars:
From an Albanian word creation of folk nature derived, by using the suffix-í of the Albanian abstract nouns, fromLatin:imperantem, theaccusativemasculine/feminine singular ofimperāns, meaning "commanding", "ruling", "demanding".[5]
From an Albanian compound of the rootsper-en- ("to strike') and-dí ("sky, god").[6][note 2] The Proto-Indo-European theonymic roots*dei- ("to shine") and*perkwu-s ("sky/rain/oak associations") may be grouped together under the classifications of "celestial luminosity".[19] Some scholars consider Perëndi to have been asky andthunder god in theAlbanian pagan mythology,[20] and to have been a deity presumably worshiped by theIllyrians in antiquity.[21] As such, in some of his attributes Perëndi could be related to the Albanian weather and storm godsShurdh andVerbt,[21] and to the mythologicaldemigoddrangue. An Albanian attested sky and lightning god isZojz, fromPIEDyeus (Daylight-Sky-God).[14]
From the Albanian verbperëndoj ("to set of the sun"), ultimately derived fromLatinparentari, thepassive correlate ofparentare ("a sacrifice to the dead, to satisfy").[22] This etymology could relate the wordperëndi with the ancientAlbanian Sun cult.[23]
InAlbanian folk beliefs thelightning was regarded as the "fire of thesky" (zjarri i qiellit) and was considered the "weapon of the deity" (arma/pushka e perëndisë), indeed an Albanian word to refer to the lightning isrrufeja, related to theThracianrhomphaia, an ancientpolearm.[24]Albanians believed in the supreme powers ofthunder-stones (kokrra e rrufesë orguri i rejës), which were believed to be formed duringlightning strikes and to be fallen from thesky. Thunder-stones were preserved in family life as importantcult objects. It was believed that bringing them inside the house could bringgood fortune, prosperity and progress in people, in livestock and in agriculture, or that rifle bullets would not hit the owners of the thunder-stones.[24] A common practice was to hung a thunder-stone pendant on the body of the cattle or on the pregnant woman for good luck and to contrast theevil eye.[25]
InAlbanian culture, the heaviest type ofoath swearing (Alb.beja më e rëndë) is taken by a thunder-stone "which comes from the sky" (beja me gur/kokërr reje/rrufeje që vjen nga perëndia). It was a very serious oath and people were afraid of it even though they were telling the truth.[25] The act of absolving himself of any allegation of theft was performed in the following way: the thunder-stone was taken in the left hand and was touched by the right hand saying:[26]
Për këtë kokërr rejet, nuk ta kam vjedhë as unë, as kush i shpisë sime e nuk e di se kush ta ka vjedhë! Në të rrejsha, reja më gjoftë!
I swear by this thunder-stone that I have not stolen it, nor anyone of my house and I don't know who stole it! If I lied to you, may cloud strike me!
The wordperëndi is especiallyinvoked byAlbanians inincantations andsongs praying for rain.[27]Rituals were performed in times of summer drought to make it rain, usually in June and July, but sometimes also in the spring months when there was severe drought. In different Albanian regions, for rainmaking purpose, people threw water upwards to make it subsequently fall to the ground in the form of rain. This was an imitative type ofmagic practice with ritual songs.[28]
InNowruz or in the AlbanianSpring Day (Dita e Verës), in particular, in some villages of the region ofKurvelesh in southernAlbania people addressed the following prayer to the deity for plants and cattle:[29]
Operëndi, nepna shi në vërri! Të bëhet misri dhe shelegu me bri!
Oh 'sky', give us rain on winter pastures! So that corn and lambs grow horns!
In rainmaking ritual songs from southwestern Albania, people used to pray to theSun, invoking the namesDielli,Shën Dëlliu,Ilia orPerëndia. After repeating three times the invocation song, they used to say:Do kemi shi se u nxi Shëndëlliu ("We will have rain because the Holy Sun went dark").[30]
Among theAlbanians of Ukraine there is a belief about the determination of a child'sfate by theparandí(të) "gods/deities".[4][note 3] The belief is referred in the local Albanian dialect asParandítë të gjithtë búnë rasredelít meaning "Everything is Assigned by the Gods/Deities".[4]
^For instance, the Albanian classic writerNaim Frashëri – who was aBektashi Muslim sharingpantheistic beliefs and widely using the nounPerëndi(a) in his works – referred to God as thepersonalCreator of the universe withZot i madh e i vërtetë "great and true Lord/God".[3]
The first element belongs to the family ofProto-Indo-European mythological names endowed with regular reflexes of the same root*per-, "to strike", and a suffix-en/n- which has reflexes also in otherIndo-European divine names like*peruhₓnos "the one with the thunder stone", orPerun/Perunŭ, theSlavicthunder god, cf.*Perkwunos, the Proto-Indo-Europeanweather-god.[7][8][9] The non-enlarged root*per- is found also in theHittitePeruna- ("deity" and "holy cliff"), in thePamirPerun (a war-god), cognate withPashtoPērunē (the name for thePleiades, cf.Avestanpaoiriiaēinī-), and perhaps inAncient Greek κεραυνός ("thunderbolt") an epithet ofZeus and the name of a separate deity, which might have been a synonymic substitution for the prohibited form *περαυνός. While velar enlargements are found inLithuanianPerkūnas (which could be the prohibited form ofPerūnas), inOld NorseFjörgynn, inRigvedicParjanya (god of storm and rain) and probably inThracianPerkos/Perkon (Περκων/Περκος), a horseman hero.[7][9][10] Terms from the root*pér-ur- and related to stone are also attested inHitt.pēru ("rock, cliff, boulder"),Aves.pauruuatā ("mountains"), andSktpárvata ("rocky, cliff, mountain").[9][11][12] In theAlbanian language, a word to refer to the lightning—considered infolk beliefs as the "fire of the sky"—isshkreptimë, a formation ofshkrep meaning "to flash, tone, to strike (till sparks fly off)".[13] An association between strike, stones and fire, can be related to the observation that one can kindle fire by striking stones against each other. The act ofproducing fire through a strike—reflected also in the belief that fire is residual within theoak trees after the thunder-god strikes them—indicates the potential of lightning in themyth of creation.[9]
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