Amalur or Ama Lurra (

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

for "Mother Earth"), is the mother of Ekhi, the sun, and Ilazki, the moon, in

Basque mythology The mythology of the ancient Basques largely did not survive the arrival of Christianity in the Basque Country between the 4th and 12th century AD. Most of what is known about elements of this original belief system is based on the analysis o ...

. She is the home not only of living beings, but also of mythological creatures, divinities and souls. Amalur (Mother Earth) sustains the life of plants and animals. She holds amazing treasures in her bosom. The 1968

documentary '' Ama lur'' was a celebration of the Basque countryside.

Myths and legends

As the primary

deity A deity or god is a supernatural being considered to be sacred and worthy of worship due to having authority over some aspect of the universe and/or life. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines ''deity'' as a God (male deity), god or god ...

of the Basque mythos, Amalur holds the life force that powers the world. Her power allows life to exist, so faith in her is very important among Basques, predating the

Indo-European migrations The Indo-European migrations are hypothesized migrations of Proto-Indo-Europeans, peoples who spoke Proto-Indo-European language, Proto-Indo-European (PIE) and the derived Indo-European languages, which took place from around 4000 to 1000 BCE, ...

into

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

. Amalur also created other deities. She created Ekhi, the sun, and Ilargi, the moon. She also created the stemless carline thistle, a species of sunflower important to the Basques, as it was believed that putting it on one's door would scare malicious spirits away. According to mythology, the center of Amalur is wealthy with many treasures. These treasures could be accessed through various caves, and that although humans look for them, they cannot find them.

References

Basque goddesses Earth goddesses {{Europe-myth-stub