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S L A V I C A

X V I

For more than a century, scholars of Slavic mythology have adopted the assumption
connecting the German iris (Iris germanica) plant and the cult of the god Perun. The
motivation for this connection was mainly found in two (of several dozen) South Slavic
names for this plant, perunika and bogia, as well as certain calendar customs where
it is used. Among other things, this paper considers the main arguments of the advocates
of this thesis. Based on the presented less-known facts about the role of this plant in the
folklore of the South Slavic peoples, the author concludes that there are no grounds for
linking the plant to the cult of Perun, the god of thunder. The motivation for the name
perunika comes from its dominant feather-like (perasti) leaves, the name bogia
(bog, Eng. god) is only one of the narrowly local names (from the vicinity of Dubrovnik).
Keywords: Perun, German iris, god, folklore, South Slavs, plant, chtonic world

S T U D I A

M Y T H O L O G I C A

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P. Bogdan-Bijeli (1918: 318), ( ,
): 29. aprila pada sv. Petar, koga u Dubrovniku slave dominikanci.
Tad cvjetaju bogie i u crkvi svetoga Domenika, po starinskom obiaju, blagosivaju taj
cvijet i po tome narod zove ovoga sveca bogiar. , , ,
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cvetje perinovo (Barl 1936: 207)
108

; . . pern bije; .
( 1991/26: 294).
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( ): U staro doba za peruniku u nas su znali rei koludrica, a
ta rije koludrica je od rijei kaluerica, asna sestra. (...) Niko nije drao da je to
neko cvijee. Sada je zovu perunika. Kad sam dola u Zagreb, saznala sam da se zove
perunika. Poslije smo ih mi mladi uveli u vrtove, a starima je to divlje raslo. To je
bilo divlje cvijee koje nisu koristili. Koliko ja znam, bilo ih je samo u jednoj boji,
lila (Marjani 2011: 119). .
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*perun , (. 1999/V: 181-182).

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: (Agropyrum repens), (Caukalis dauokoides), 109

(Tremastelma palaestinum), , , (Cyperus longus),

(Ajuga chamaepitys), (Salvia officinalis),
(Hermodactylus tuberosus) (. 1959: 633). , (. ),
, , ,
, , (. ) (.
1991/26: 298), ( 2012: 417).
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deus? , ( ) , 2002: 48.
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.
: , , , ,
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, 2002: 48). ,
Rosalia, Rusalia, Rosa (. 2002: 348-372; 2013:
8-187).
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, ( 1996: 273).
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). . : Na persi su
roce tri. Prva je lelija/ Druga je gotraa/ Tretja je romarin (Lobor; Kotarski 1918:
18). XIX , , : , , ,
!, ( 1987: 296).

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( 1971: 525-526).
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113

2002 . .
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1878 . . , 1878.
1999 , . V, . . . ,
1999.
, 2002 ., . //
XLIX, , 2002.
1996 . ,
1996.
2012 . ,
, 2012.
1971 //
, . LIII, 1971.
1998 . , .
II, - 1998.
1901 (1977) . , .
. . , 1901 ( , 1977.
1881 . , . II, - 1881.
. 1985 . . ,
, . 35, 1985.
1999 . -, //
. . . , 1999, . 306307.
1994 . . ,
1994.
1904 . //
, . VIII, 1904 ( ), . 140174.
, 1974 . ., . .
, 1974.
1986 . . (1852) //
XI/1-2, 1986.
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1989 , . . , ,
, . DXCVIII, 1989.
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1952 . . //
, , I/1-2, 1952, . 373380.
1959 .
, , ,
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114

1970 ., . .., .
, 1970, . 2627.
1968, 1991 , . 3 (1968) . 26
(1991), .
2013 . Rusalii. . Rrshajt...
( 17 2012 ),
, 2013.
1911 (1983) . ,
, 1983, . 109117.
1948 (1967) . . //
, . LXXX, 1967.
1986 . .
// . , , 1986,
. 7097.
1994 . //
, . IV, 1994, . 3031.
1889 . .. , ,
- 1889 .
Barl 1939 Barl J. Prinosi slovenskim nazivima bilja // Zbornik za narodni ivot i obiaje Junih Slavena, knj. XXX/2, Zagreb 1936, str. 181228, knj. XXXI/1, Zagreb
1937, str. 169292.
Bogdan-Bijeli 1918 Bogdan-Bijelic P. Koledar (Konavli u Dalmaciji) // Zbornik za
narodni ivot i obiaje Junih Slavena, knj. XXIII, Zagreb 1918, str. 317320.
Kotarski 1918 Kotarski J. Lobor. Narodni ivot i obiaji // Zbornik za narodni ivot i
obiaje Junih Slavena, knj. XXIII, Zagreb 1918, str. 1163.
Marjani 2011 Marjani S. Mitoloka i mitotvorna pria o poveznici perunika Perun
// Perunovo koplje, Ljubljana 2011. Studia mythologica Slavica supplementa.
Supplementum 4, str. 109129.

115

German Iris The Flower from the Heavenly or Chthonian World?

Ljubinko Radenkovi
For more than a century, scholars of Slavic mythology have adopted the assumption connecting the German iris (Iris germanica) plant and the cult of the god Perun.
The motivation for this connection was mainly found in two (of several dozen) South
Slavic names for this plant perunika and bogia, as well as certain calendar customs
where it is used. Among other things, this paper considers the main arguments of the
advocates of this thesis. Based on the presented less-known facts about the role of this
plant in the folklore of the South Slavic peoples, the author concludes that there are
no grounds for linking the plant to the cult of Perun, the god of thunder. The motivation for the name perunika comes from its dominant feather-like (perasti) leaves, the
name bogia (bog, Eng. god) is only one of the narrowly local names (from the vicinity
of Dubrovnik).
A series of ethnographic facts support the thesis that the German iris is linked to
the transcendent world according to mythical representations of the South Slavs: the
deceased were adorned with this plant prior to their burial, it was planted in cemeteries, it held an important place in the annual commemoration ceremonies (widespread
in the Balkans is the custom of collective visits to cemeteries and paying tribute to the
deceased, called Rosalia, Rusalia, Rosa, celebrated after Easter, which is also when the
German iris blooms); according to legend, it was created from the body of a drowned
girl who was washed up onto the shore.
Certain Bulgarian folk poems indicate a link between the German iris and the
chthonian world: 1) while fetching the bride into another world, the wedding party
crossed a dried up sea covered by blooming German irises; 2) the dragon-line brute
kills all the sons raised by a single mother, and marries her only daughter, called Perunika, who is later freed by her new-born brother, killing the brute.

116