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Akerbeltz
Akerbeltz or Aker (from Basque_language, Basque ''aker'', 'billy goat' and ''beltz'', 'black') is a spirit in the folk mythology of the Basque people. It is said to live inside the land and is believed to have as many elves as servants. In Christianity, Akerbeltz is considered the live image of the devil, performing sexual abuses against Christians. Contemporary belief holds that Akerbeltz was an ancient deity who protected animals. The billy goat was adored in other European countries as well as the Basque Country. Some beliefs about this mythological creature have endured. During history and in other mythologies Pierre de Lancre, an inquisitor who went looking for women from Labourd and Lower Navarre who were supposed to be witches, wrote a book called ''Tableu de I´Inostance'' in which he documented the testimony of a supposed witch: "Akerbeltz has a man's face, big and terrifying". Another witch said that he had two faces, one in front and the other one in the back. In wor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zugarramurdi
Zugarramurdi is a town and municipality located in the province and autonomous community of Navarre in northern Spain. It passed into history as the setting of alleged occult activity featured in the infamous Basque witch trials held in Logroño in the seventeenth century. The town is home to the Basque witch museum and the ''Witch Caves''. Every year, spectacular fires are lit in the caves near Zugarramurdi for the celebration of the ‘day of the witch’ on the summer solstice. Etymology Zugarramurdi is a toponym with unknown meaning, even though it comes from Basque. The philologist Koldo Mitxelena proposed that the etymology of the name could be “place with abundancy of ruined elms”, coming from zugar (elm) + andur (ruined) + the suffix –di (it indicates abundancy). However, Mitxelena himself admitted not having proof about this theory. In Basque and in Spanish it seems that the name of the village is transcribed in the same way, although the z is pronounced differentl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
