Turkic mythology Turkic mythology refers to myths and legends told by the Turkic people. It features Tengrist and Shamanist strata of belief along with many other social and cultural constructs related to the nomadic and warrior way of life of Turkic and Mongo ...

, Su Iyesi (

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

: ''Су Иясе'' or ''Su İyäse''; Chuvash: ''Шыв Ийӗ'';

Sakha Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),, is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of roughly 1 million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far E ...

: ''Уу Иччи''; literally "water master") is a water spirit. It corresponds to the

nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...

in Turkic cultures. It is a disembodied, incorporeal, intangible entity, but she can turn into a female creature and daughter of Yer Tanrı. Sometimes the master of water is depicted in the form of a bull.

Features

When angered, it breaks dams, washes away water mills, and drowns people and animals. It drags people down to her underwater dwelling to serve her as slaves. It is in Tatar fairy tales the same creature as the Su Anası ("water mother"). In Turkic tales, it lives in ponds or rivers. There is no mention of a particular dwelling, and the 'half-sunken log' is unapparent. It rides on a log to travel. Su Iyesi is sometimes associated with perilous events such as floods, storms, shipwrecks and drownings. In other Turkic folk traditions, she can be benevolent or beneficent and also cause rain. It is believed that some powerful Su Iye, such as Su Dedesi can cause sickness. A disease called ''Water Disease'', allegedly caused by him, appears as watery bubbles in the body of human. To get rid threw salt into river or fountains.

Su Ana

Su Ana ("water mother") is often mentioned as the female form of Su Iyesi. She is said to appear as a naked young woman with a fairy-like face and yellow and long hair, usually covered in black fish scales. She has a fish's tail and eyes that burn like fire. She usually rides along her river on a half-sunken log, making loud splashes. Local drownings are said to be the work of the Su Anası. She is the wife of Su Ata. She likes shores and likes to get out of the water.

In Turkic languages

* Tuvan: ''Суг Ава'' * Uzbek: ''Suv Ona'' or ''Suw Ona'' *

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

: ''Су Әни'' or ''Су Ана'' or ''Su Ana'' *

Azerbaijani Azerbaijani may refer to: * Something of, or related to Azerbaijan * Azerbaijanis * Azerbaijani language See also * Azerbaijan (disambiguation) * Azeri (disambiguation) * Azerbaijani cuisine * Culture of Azerbaijan The culture of Azerbaijan ...

: ''Su Ana'' *

Kazakh Kazakh, Qazaq or Kazakhstani may refer to: * Someone or something related to Kazakhstan *Kazakhs, an ethnic group *Kazakh language *The Kazakh Khanate * Kazakh cuisine * Qazakh Rayon, Azerbaijan *Qazax, Azerbaijan *Kazakh Uyezd, administrative dis ...

: ''Су Ана'' * Chuvash: ''Шыв Анне'' or ''Шу Абай'' * Bashkir: ''Һыу Апай'' *

: ''Уу Ий̃э'' * Turkmen: ''Suw Ene'' or ''Suv Eje'' * Uyghur: ''سۇ ئانا'' * Turkish: ''Su Ana'' *

Kyrgyz Kyrgyz, Kirghiz or Kyrgyzstani may refer to: * Someone or something related to Kyrgyzstan *Kyrgyz people * Kyrgyz national games *Kyrgyz language *Kyrgyz culture *Kyrgyz cuisine *Yenisei Kirghiz *The Fuyü Gïrgïs language in Northeastern China ...

: ''Суу Эне'' *

Altai Altai or Altay may refer to: Places *Altai Mountains, in Central and East Asia, a region shared by China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Russia In China * Altay Prefecture (阿勒泰地区), Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China * Altay City (阿� ...

: ''Суу Эне'' *

Khakas The Khakas (also spelled Khakass; Khakas: , ''khakas'', , ''tadar'', , ''khakastar'', , ''tadarlar'') are a Turkic indigenous people of Siberia, who live in the republic of Khakassia, Russia. They speak the Khakas language. The Khakhassian p ...

: ''Суғ Ине'' or ''Суғ Иӌе'' *

Karachay-Balkar Karachay-Balkar (, ), or Mountain Turkic (, ), is a Turkic language spoken by the Karachays and Balkars in Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay–Cherkessia, European Russia, as well as by an immigrant population in Afyonkarahisar Province, Turkey ...

: ''Суу Ана'' * Gagauz: ''Su Ana'' Its name in Hungarian culture is ''Víz Anya'' and in

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 millio ...

n belief is ''Ус Ээж'' ( Buryat: ''Уһан Эхэ''; Oirat: ''Усн Эк''). These entities have many similarities, and each name has the same meaning, "aqua mother".

Su Ata

Su Ata ("water father") is the male form of Su Iyesi. He appears as an old man with a frog-like face, greenish beard, with his body covered in algae and muck. He has webbed paws instead of hands. He usually rides along his river. Consequently, he is often dubbed Vudaş ( Chuvash: ''Вутăш, Vutăş'') by the

Chuvash people The Chuvash people ( , ; cv, чӑваш ; russian: чуваши ) are a Turkic ethnic group, a branch of Oghurs, native to an area stretching from the Volga-Ural region to Siberia. Most of them live in Chuvashia and the surrounding areas, a ...

. He is a river and lake spirit. When someone has drowned, people often say "Su Ata took him." He also reportedly hates people who pollute the waters. The advice on how to please him goes that one should throw a whole bread into the water to make him happy. Also, when a bride must go far away, she has to be introduced to Su Ata. He usually appears in winter.Rasilya KARİMOVA ''Tatar Mitolojisinde İyeler The Familier Spirits in Tatar Mythology'' Kocaeli Üniversitesi 2016 E-ISSN: 2149-5459 p.887

In Turkic languages

* Tuvan: ''Суг Ата'' * Uzbek: ''Suv Ota'' or ''Suw Ota'' *

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

: ''Су Әти / Ата'' or ''Su Ata'' *

: ''Su Ata'' *

: ''Су Ата'' * Chuvash: ''Шыв Атте'' or ''Шу Ашшӗ'' * Bashkir: ''Һыу Атай'' * Yakut: ''Уу Аҕа'' * Turkmen: ''Suw Ata'' or ''Suv Ata'' * Uyghur: ''سۇ ئاتا'' * Turkish: ''Su Ata'' *

Ottoman Turkish Ottoman Turkish ( ota, لِسانِ عُثمانى, Lisân-ı Osmânî, ; tr, Osmanlı Türkçesi) was the standardized register of the Turkish language used by the citizens of the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed exten ...

: ''سۇ آتا'' *

: ''Суу Ата'' *

: ''Суу Ада'' *

: ''Суғ Аба'' or ''Суғ Ада'' *

: ''Суу Ата'' * Gagauz: ''Su Ata'' Its name in Hungarian culture is ''Víz Atya'' or ''Víz Apa'' and in

n belief is ''Ус Эцэг'' ( Buryat: ''Уһан Эсэгэ''; Oirat: ''Усн эцк''). These entities have many similarities, and each has the same meaning, "water father".

Similar creatures

* Irmak iyesi or Öğüz (Öz) iyesi is river spirit. It is one kind of Su Iyesi. * Çay iyesi or Dere iyesi is spirit of creeks and rivulets. In Azerbaijani folklore, it is known as ''çay nənəsi'' ("creek grandmother"). * Göl iyesi is a lake spirit.

References

Bibliography

* Türk Söylence Sözlüğü (Turkish Mythology Dictionary), Deniz Karakurt, (OTRS: CC BY-SA 3.0)
Eski Türk Kitabelerindeki Yer-Sub Meselesi, M.A.Sayidov, Translated to Turkish: S. Gömeç

External links

{{Turkic Deities Turkish folklore İye Water spirits