テュルク

母神

火の神

山の神

欧文抄録:P.30

The Goddess Umay, also spelled Imay, May or Ama, is very popular among the Turkic peoples in Central Eurasia. Umay had been believed as the goddess of fertility, happiness, fire and mountains. This goddess was considered as the wife of the highest god Tengri among the Central Eurasian Turkic peoples. In ancient days Tengri was the major belief in Turkic peoples. Umay was the second highest godship after Tengri in those days, or she was believed as the highest deity. She had been worshipped not only by Turkic peoples but also Mongolian and Tungusic peoples. According to this ancient belief, newborn infants and children used to be guarded under the protection of Umay. It had been considered that the origin of the word Umay is Persian. But it is natural that the word Umay is not from the name of a legendary bird Humay/Huma, but from the name of the body of women, placenta. Etymologically speaking, the word Umay comes from Umay, placenta in Turkic languages. After Turkization of Central Asia, the name and belief of Umay amalgamated with the Humay/Huma. Therefore we can see the conception fused of Umay and Humay/Huma in the oral tradition such as myth, heroic epic, folk tale and verse chanted by shamans in a séance.