OK, but is she associated with Arir in the same way Naveria is associated with Naveria? If she is, that is enough for me to see her as being connected with bears. Ariran girls are called bears. Little girls had a special place in the RW Greek bear cults AFAIK, the Brauronian (sp?) rites and all that. _I am making this up_,though I can see why others might cry "Rubbish!" If Arir is a late name applied by outsiders, I would consider that a compelling argument against Arira being the name of an Ariran goddess.
> Despite Orogeria's extensive connections with Arir, the placename appears
> to have been applied by outsiders*.
No offence, but I don't quite follow. What is Orogeria's connection with the name "Arir"as opposed to the place. If Arir is a late name applied by outsiders, I would consider that a compelling argument against.
Peter suggests that ErtelEnari, not Arira, plays the role of the virgin luring a mighty bear
That's what I thought to, but as Steve Marsh pointed out on the digest (gd5_152 afaik) Arakang is Ariran and ErtelEnari is Pelandan. The myth I'm trying to flesh out dates from the Bleak Time, (and assuming Prosimius's gloss that the two cults didn't meet until Khorzanelm's time is correct) she can't have been the original protagonist. Though her assumption of the role might explain "the meeting of the bruin deities".
As far as I'm concerned the story is more important than the name of the protagonist. (This is background to some stuff I'm doing about how the Lunars married in the Urdaddings a Brolian/Anadiki bear clan.)
BTW thank you very much for sharing your erudition with us Peter, it is
always appreciated.
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Andrew
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