# Slavic Goddesses #### This one Probably the least known Slavic Goddess is Vela, mentioned in Christian Russian sources from the 14th century, and widely present in South Slavic folklore as a fairy holding the waters captive. She is also mentioned among the Baltic people as "Velu Mate" ("Mother of the Dead"). See translation below: "Hey Mother of the Dead (Velu mate), i beg you, give me the key to the grave so that i may open the grave before my old mother." "Hey Mother of the Grave (Kapa mate), i beg you, give me the key to the grave so that i may open the grave of my old mother." "Hey Mother Earth (Zemes mate), i beg you, give me the key to the grave so that i may open the grave before my old mother." So you see she is the mother of the dead, but also the Mother Earth. She is basically the female (and possibly original) form of the God Veles / Velnias. The names are derived from the proto Indo-European root uel (death; tear; wound; steal) which is where the Lithuanian word “veles” and the Latvian “veli” are derived from meaning spirits of the dead, likewise the Slavic word "vila" - fairy, but also “Valhalla” - hall of the dead.