Ilmatar

Ilmatar (from Finnish: ilma, air ) (also Luonnotar of Finnish: luonto, nature) was a jungefräulicher female spirit of the skies, who created the world and thus the mother of all Finnish mythology.

Ilmatar longed for a son. But there she was on the world alone, her desire was unable to meet. But one day, when her desire for a son was so great that she collapsed, she was pregnant with Väinämöinen, the child of the wind. When the child was not yet in the world after 700 years, Ilmatar gave up hope of ever seeing it and went to the primordial sea where it became the mother of water.

There they saw a dabbling duck which was looking for a nesting site. Since there was no land, Ilmatar was so kind and lifted her knees, on the settled the bird and put seven eggs; one of which was made ​​of iron. But Ilmatar became impatient during incubation, so that the eggs fell from her knee and broke. From the parts of the eggs of the heavens and the earth created. The yolk formed Päivätar, the sun, from the protein was Kuu, the moon, and small pieces of eggshell were the stars. Was a storm cloud from the black yolk of Eiseneis.

Then, after 730 years of pregnancy, gave birth to their ancient Ilmatar from the beginning son Väinämöinen, the singer who created life on Earth.

Others

Ilmatar is also the name of an asteroid in the main asteroid belt: (385) Ilmatar, also a Finnish feminine first name.

Two Finnish passenger ships also had this name: SS Ilmatar (1929) and MS Ilmatar (1964).

January 1913, the Sibelius tone poem Luonnotar for soprano and orchestra.