Dzerassæ () is a figure in

Ossetian mythology Ossetian mythology or Alan mythology () is the collective term for the beliefs and practices of the Ossetian people of the Caucasus region, which contains several gods and supernatural beings. The religion itself is believed to be of Scythian ori ...

best known as the daughter of the

water deity A water deity is a deity in mythology associated with water or various bodies of water. Water deities are common in mythology and were usually more important among civilizations in which the sea or ocean, or a great river was more important. Anoth ...

Donbettyr and the mother of several

Nart saga The Nart sagas (; ; ) are a series of tales originating from the North Caucasus. They form much of the basic mythology of the ethnic groups in the area, including Abazin, Abkhaz, Circassian, Ossetian, Karachay- Balkar, and to some extent C ...

heroes. She was the wife of Akhsartag. With him, she was the mother of the twin heroes

Uryzmaeg Uryzmaeg is the hero of the Nart saga of the peoples of the Caucasus, son of Akhshar and Akhsartag, Akhsartag and Dzerassae. In the Nart saga Birth of Uryzmaeg and Haemyts Akhshar and Akhsartag, Akhsartag descended to the bottom of the sea ...

and

Haemyts Haemyts or Khamits (Ossetian language, Ossetian: ''Хæмыц,'' Adyghe language, Adyghe: ''Хъымыщ,'' Kabardian language, Kabardian: ''Хъымыщ,'' Chechen language, Chechen: ''Хамчи,'' Ingush language, Ingush: ''Хамча,'' Abkhaz ...

. She was also the mother of , with . After her death, the archangel

Uastyrdzhi Uastyrdzhi (, ) is the name of Saint George in Ossetian folklore. Uastyrdzhi is the patron of the male sex and travellers as well as being a guarantor of oaths, like his Iranian counterpart Mithra (among others such as Verethragna and Fereyd ...

revived her and they became lovers in her tomb. Her daughter, the Nart

Satanaya Satanaya ( ; ; Ubykh ; ''Satana'') is a mythological figure who appears in many cycles of the Nart sagas of the North Caucasus. Satanaya is the mother of the Narts, a fertility figure who is also an authority over her children. Satanaya is o ...

, was born thereafter. She was usually depicted with golden hair, and was able to change her shape into a deer or a fish. Anthropologist

Kevin Tuite Kevin Tuite ( Irish: ''Caoimhín de Tiúit''; born April 3, 1954) is a full Professor of Anthropology at the Université de Montréal. He is a citizen of both Canada and Ireland.

has noted that this makes her similar to the Svan goddess

Dali Dali or DALI may refer to: Art and popular culture * Dali, a location in ''Final Fantasy IX'' * ''Dali'' (Dalida album) (1984) * ''Dali'' (Ali Project album) (1994) * Espace Dalí, Salvador Dalí's permanent exhibition in France Religion ...

, who was also golden-haired and could change into animals. The Dzerassa Planitia on

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

is named for Dzerassae.

References

Further reading