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In 
In Mandaeism,
Sethian Gnosticism
The Sethians (Greek: Σηθιανοί) were one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd and 3rd century AD, along with Valentinianism and Basilideanism. According to John D. Turner, it originated in the 2nd century AD as a fusion of ...
, Yao or Iao () is an archon
''Archon'' (, plural: , ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem , meaning "to be first, to rule", derived from the same ...
. In ''On the Origin of the World
On the Origin of the World is a Gnostic work dealing with creation and the end time. It was found among the texts in the Nag Hammadi library, in Codex II and Codex XIII, immediately following the '' Reality of the Rulers''. There are many pa ...
'', he is one of the three sons of Yaldabaoth
Yaldabaoth, otherwise known as Jaldabaoth or Ialdabaoth (; ; ; ''Ialtabaôth''), is a malevolent God and demiurge (creator of the material world) according to various Gnostic sects, represented sometimes as a theriomorphic, lion-headed ser ...
, with the other two being Astaphaios
In Sethian Gnosticism, Astaphaios is an archon. In ''On the Origin of the World'', he is one of the three sons of Yaldabaoth, with the other two being Yao and Eloai. In the ''Apocryphon of John'', he is the third of the seven archons
''Archo ...
and Eloai. In the ''Apocryphon of John
The ''Apocryphon of John'', also called the ''Secret Book of John'' or the ''Secret Revelation of John'', is a 2nd-century Sethianism, Sethian gnosticism, Gnostic Christian pseudepigrapha, pseudepigraphical text attributed to John the Apost ...
'', he is the fourth of the seven archons
''Archon'' (, plural: , ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem , meaning "to be first, to rule", derived from the same ...
.
In Mandaeism, Yurba
In Mandaeism, Yurba or Yorabba () is an uthra (angelic or celestial being). Mark Lidzbarski, Lidzbarski (1905, 1920) spells his name as spelled Jōrabba. Yurba, who is also called the fighter, is identified with Shamish, the sun. In Mandaean text ...
, the name of an uthra, is derived from Yao, with ''Rba'' ('Great') added at the end.
See also
*Tetragrammaton
The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...
* Ἰαω
* Yurba
In Mandaeism, Yurba or Yorabba () is an uthra (angelic or celestial being). Mark Lidzbarski, Lidzbarski (1905, 1920) spells his name as spelled Jōrabba. Yurba, who is also called the fighter, is identified with Shamish, the sun. In Mandaean text ...
References
Gnostic deities {{Gnosticism-stub