Albina (mythology)

Albina or The White Goddess[1] is a goddess (possibly Etruscan) associated with the dawn and the founding of Great Britain.

The Etruscan Goddess Alpanu
For other uses, see Albina.

"The White Goddess"

Robert Graves' essay "The White Goddess" describes Albina as of one of fifty sisters (see Danaïdes) who named Albion.[2] It is thought that the original name for Great Britain, Albion, was inspired by the White Cliffs of Dover, derived from the Latin albus, meaning "white" or "bright".

Albina is mentioned in Charles Godfrey Leland's 1892 collection of folklore "Etruscan Roman Remains in Popular Tradition". According to Leland, Albina was an Etruscan goddess of light and ill-fated lovers. The accounts of Albina were obtained by word of mouth from local and often illiterate peasants, some of whom were considered witches or "Strega".[3] Possibly a combination of other deities such as Alpanu and Aurora, Albina is described as a beautiful flying woman (or fairy) and associated with light. The Albina referenced by Leland is likely only loosely related to the figure described in The White Goddess.

References
  1. Graves, Robert (1948). The White Goddess (16th ed.). p. 68.
  2. de Wavrin, John (1864). A Collection of Chronicles and ancient Histories of Great Britain. p. 29.
  3. Leland, Charles Godfrey (1892). Etruscan Roman Remains in Popular Tradition. p. 5.
  • Leland, Charles Godfrey. Etruscan Roman Remains in Popular Tradition. p. 124.
  • Graves, Robert. The White Goddess: A Historical Grammar of Poetic Myth. pp. 67–8.
  • de Wavrin, John. A Collection of the Chronicles and ancient Histories of Great Britain, now called England. p. 29.
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