The Goddess Rosmerta

[rosemary]

MM! All
Can anyone give me info on the Goddess Rosmerta? She has revealed herself to me to take her name as my magical name. I have found little blurbs about her on the web. She is the Celtic Goddess of adundance and is associated with fire, warmth, fertility, possibility, wealth.
Can anyone add more? Where can I look?
Much appreciation and BB!
Rosemary

[Mithrea]

I have a Celtic Baby Name Book and Rosmerta is in it with reference to the goddess. I'm not home right now but I will look it up when I get there later. I can tell you that if you have ever read the Harry Potter books, there is a character named Rosmerta in the books and she was most likely named after the goddess because of the associations you mentioned :)

[Mithrea]

The only thing that my book adds is that the name itself means "supplier of food." It is associated with the Gaelic 'ros' which means "seed," and that Rosmerta was a Celtic goddess which was an "earth-mother type."


Hmmmm I don't guess that really helps all that much. :p

[rosemary]

Yes it surely does help. i am an earth mother too!
Thanks and BB!
Rosemary

[Mnemosyne]

I really don't know much about Rosmerta. :( I have found some links on her. I am sure that you have found these links as well, since you said that you have found little blurbs on her on the web.

http://www.gods-heros-myth.com/celtic/rosmerta.html

You can also spell her name Rosemerta, I believe. Perhaps you can find more on her if you spell her name that way.

[rosemary]

Thanks for the link- it also helps!!!
BB! Rosemary

[Nantonos]

It is associated with the Gaelic 'ros' which means "seed," and that Rosmerta was a Celtic goddess which was an "earth-mother type."

That is unlikely, since the name Rosmerta is Gaulish. Gaulish predates Gaelic by maybe 500 years and the two languages were spoken in different geographical areas: Ireland and, later, parts of Scotland for Gaelic and France, Belgium, Switzerland, western parts of Germany and Austria, northern Italy, and Britain for Gaulish. It is in the Gaulish areas that Rosmerta is found.

Also, the analysis should not be ros-merta (or worse, rose-merta) but ro-smert-a. Smert means 'provider' or 'carer' and is also found in other Gaulish names such as Ad-smerio, Smertu-litani, Smerius, Σμερο, Smertae, Smertus, etc. (Delmarre p.277) Ro- is a modifier meaning 'very' 'great' or 'most' as found in Ro-bili ('most-good'), Ro-cabalus ('great horse'), Ρο-βιος ('great life') (Delmarre pp. 261-2). The '-a' ending is the typical Gaulish feminine singular nominative.

So the association as an earth mother, provider of plenty, is correct but not for the etymological reason that you found.

Rosmerta is typically paired with Mercury in Gaul. Her attribute is the cornucopia (horn of plenty).

Delmare, Xavier (2003) Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise. 2nd edition, Paris, Editions Errance.

[Nantonos]

So, having researched and translated (from the french) that etymology, I had a look at what wikepedia had on the subject.

I was horrified at the vague, inaccurate, unreferenced stuf there (here is a historical snapshot: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosmerta&oldid=18423913 (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosmerta&oldid=18423913) ) so I did some more research and editing. Results: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosmerta&oldid=18482869 (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rosmerta&oldid=18482869)

Bit more like an encyclopedia entry now, I hope. I uploaded a photo and donated it to wikipedia too:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Rosmerta-Autun.jpg

[Theres]

Rosmerta is typically paired with Mercury in Gaul.

but isn't that as 'Maia'?

[Nantonos]

but isn't that as 'Maia'?

Not when it says 'Rosmerta' on the inscription, bold as brass, no :T