Dea Dia

Template:Short description Template:Template otherTemplate:Wikidata imageTemplate:Compare image with Wikidata Template:Ancient Roman religion Dea Dia (Latin: "Goddess of Daylight", or "Bright Goddess") was a goddess of fertility and growth in ancient Roman religion. She was sometimes identified with Ceres, and sometimes with her Greek equivalent Demeter.

She was worshiped during Ambarvalia, a festival to Ceres. Every May, her priests, the Fratres Arvales, held a three-day festival in her honor.

The name Dea Dīa () means 'Goddess of Daylight' or 'Bright Goddess'.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The first element stems from the Latin dea ('goddess'), while the second is related to diēs ('day'), probably in reference to the ritual prescription to announce in January the May ceremonies sub divo culmine ('under the celestial vault').Template:Sfn

See also

• Other goddesses also known as Dea ("The Goddess")
• Other goddesses also known as Dia ("The Divine One")

Further reading

• Scheid, John (2019). Ad Deam Diam. Ein heiliger Hain in Roms Suburbium [Ad Deam Diam. A sacred grove in Rome's suburbium]. Stuttgart: Steiner, Template:ISBN (introduction to the cult of Dea Dia and its significance for the understanding of Roman religion, in German).
• Scheid, John; Broise, Henri (2020). Un bois sacré du suburbium romain. Topographie générale du site ad deam diam [A sacred grove in the Roman suburbium. General topography of the ad deam diam site]. Roma Antica, vol. 8. Rome: École Française de Rome, Template:ISBN (Final report on the more recent excavations in the sanctuary of Dea Dia, mostly in French).