Cerklicing

by Aldis Pūtelis

The Latvian god of fields and corn. He is mentioned by a little known Jesuit by the name of Joannis Stribingius in his mission journey to Eastern Latvia in 1606. Describing the territory as having returned to paganism due to the lack of attention from the Christian church during the Livonian War, he lists the deities worshiped by these pagans under the leadership of "Pop" (curiously enough, a name used in Russian to designate an orthodox priest).

The list comprises a god of the sky/heavens (Latin qui habet curam coeli), then those of the earth, fertility, and different particular animals. The only names mentioned are Dewing Cereklicing, Dewing Uschinge, and deo Moschel. There are several other spelling forms of the particular name, apparently coming from misreading the original manuscript, namely Cerekling, Cercklicing, Greklicing, Cerekticing.

There is another document mentioning a deity to whom the first bit of all food and the first drop of any drink was offered. The name of this deity is given as Ceroklis/Cerroklis.

Three centuries later Ernests Brastins will choose a similar name for the title of catechism of a national religion of his own making, namely cerokslis. Interestingly, this deity belongs to a class of so-called house spirits and it is invoked in the mundane course of life, and is thus better known than the proper gods like those of the sky and the earth.

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