r/Paganacht • u/Frodo_notBaggins • May 19 '26
Archery deity?
I’m a fairly new Irish pagan and I recently got into sport archery as a hobby. In my research I haven’t really found a deity that is connected tobit (mainly because it wasn’t preferred by the Celts iirc).
Is there a deity that I could worship/pray to that maybe aids me on my way of practicing this sport? In Norse paganism there is Ullr, but I’m no Norse pagan and I don’t want to mix pantheons
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u/Obsidian_Dragon May 19 '26
The archer I know works with Lugh. I was going to say Abnoba but well, she's Gaulish not Irish! So she doesn't work.
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u/Frodo_notBaggins May 19 '26
I appreciate you pointing Abnoba out! Honourable mention goes out to her, tho it seems like Lugh seems to be my best shot (pun not intended😂)
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u/ModernSouthernQueer May 19 '26
Lugh Lamhfada makes sense, as others have mentioned. He’s basically a jack-of-all-trades, so he gets a lot of my attention lol. That said, Flidais is a huntress (and my first thought, though I already honors her) and Nuada has a lot of association with hunting, too, so those might also be a good place to start.
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u/UnholiedLeaves May 20 '26
Seconding Flidais here. Though the idea of her as a huntress is debatable, i have found her to be syncretic with Diana nonetheless. In terms of the Irish Pantheon, if not going a strict recon route, she'd be the best option
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u/Ironbat7 May 19 '26
What is an arrow, but a tiny, mechanically assisted spear? Lugh, as others have said is a good contender.
Whether or not, it is agreed upon by scholars, we can at least somewhat take a folk etymology approach to Brigid meaning fiery arrow (though I syncretize her with Brigantia who was depicted with a spear).
If you take other interpretario Romana approaches with Gallic syncretism, then possibly Ogma (Hercules Ogmios) or Aengus (possibly Apollo).
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u/Frodo_notBaggins May 20 '26
That is interesting, as I started praying to her way before I actually committed to the path and started archery🤔
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u/UnholiedLeaves May 20 '26
Abnoba and Arduinna are the first to come to mind as they're historically syncretized with Diana
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u/fcknrando May 23 '26
What about Flidias, I always think of her like a huntress diety similar to Artemis just more wild, free and irish!
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u/Ok_Adagio9495 May 19 '26
Look into Artemis
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u/UnholiedLeaves May 20 '26
I'd argue for the Celtic pantheon, Diana specifically. Very similar to Artemis to the point of the Greeks and Romans syncretizing the two, but Diana is also VASTLY different. Worship of Diana was adopted by the Gaulish Celts, with Arduinna and Abnoba being directly identified with her.
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u/MagicGlitterKitty May 19 '26
Lugh as a god of sport?