Lada is the name of a Slavic fertility goddess of love, beauty and marriage, often associated with the other goddesses Freya, Isis and Aphrodite. She’s depicted as a young woman with long golden hair with ears of grain braided in it to represent fertility. Lada is also associated with the summer season and her animals are a cock, a deer, an ant and an eagle, and plants associated with her are a cherry, a dandelion, a linden, and a peony. The origin of the name is uncertain though it’s been linked to Serbo-Croatian mlada (bride) or meaning “girl, maiden”. Lada is also used as a nickname for Ladislava, the Czech and Slovak feminine form of Vladislav meaning “power/rule + glory” . However, since Slavic mythology had not been written down in the past, much of the folklore was lost and it’s believed that Lada had never existed in the first place but had been created out of the mistaken belief that the terms used in folk songs (Lada & Lado) were referring to a god/goddess.
Male forms:
- Lado (Czech, Slovak, Croatian, Russian, Serbian, Polish)
So this Lada is connected to the Linden Tree? Do you know why? Forgive the sudden onset spergery, but my very favourite folktale is Baucis and Philemon. I will link it below. Anywho. I live in deer infested woods, have planted Linden and Cherry trees. My closest neighbour is a Rooster and I saw an Eagle a day after we learned we are pregnant. Interesting times.
Thank-you for giving me something to earnestly look into.
B&P: https://spergbox.wordpress.com/2019/02/10/baucis-and-philemon/
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