Editing Oak (section)

=== Religion ===

[[File:Grīdnieku dižozols.JPG|thumb|Grīdnieku ancient oak in Rumbas parish, [[Latvia]], girth {{convert|8.27|m|ft}} 2015]]

The prehistoric [[Proto-Indo-Europeans|Indo-European]] tribes worshipped the oak and connected it with a [[thunder god]], and this tradition descended to many classical cultures. In [[Greek mythology]], the oak is the tree sacred to [[Zeus]], king of the gods. In Zeus's [[oracle]] in [[Dodona]], [[Epirus]], the sacred oak was the centerpiece of the precinct, and the priests would [[divination|divine]] the pronouncements of the god by interpreting the rustling of the oak's leaves.<ref>Frazer, James George (1922). [http://www.bartleby.com/196/26.html ''The Golden Bough''. Chapter XV: The Worship of the Oak.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120521225940/http://www.bartleby.com/196/26.html |date=21 May 2012 }}</ref> Mortals who destroyed such trees were said to be punished by the gods since the ancient Greeks believed beings called [[hamadryad]]s inhabited them.<ref name="Bell1790">{{cite book |author=[[John Bell (publisher)|Bell, John]] |title=Bell's New Pantheon; Or, Historical Dictionary of the Gods, Demi-gods, Heroes, and Fabulous Personages of Antiquity: Also, of the Images and Idols Adored in the Pagan World; Together with Their Temples, Priests, Altars, Oracles, Fasts, Festivals, Games ... |url=https://archive.org/details/bellsnewpantheo00bellgoog |year=1790 |publisher=J. Bell |pages=[https://archive.org/details/bellsnewpantheo00bellgoog/page/n376 366]–7}}</ref> In [[Norse mythology|Norse]] and [[Baltic mythology]], the oak was sacred to the thunder gods [[Thor]] and [[Perkūnas]] respectively.<ref>{{cite book |title=Suomen terveyskasvit: luonnon parantavat yrtit ja niiden salaisuudet |page=256 |author=Marja-Leena Huovinen & Kaarina Kanerva |year=1982 |location=Helsinki |publisher=Valitut Palat |isbn=951-9078-87-8 | language=fi}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Ąžuolas paprastasis |url=https://gamtininkas.lt/augalai/azuolas-paprastasis-lot-quercus-robur-l/ |date=21 February 2011 |website=Zolininkas.lt |language=lt-LT |access-date=10 January 2018}}</ref> In [[Celtic polytheism]], the name [[druid]], Celtic priest, is connected to Proto-Indo-European ''*deru'', meaning oak or tree.<ref name=Credo>{{cite book |last=Ferber |first=Michael |chapter=Oak |title=A Dictionary of Literary Symbols |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2017 |edition=3rd |isbn=978-1-1071-7211-1}}</ref> Veneration of the oak survives in [[Serbian Orthodox Church]] tradition. [[Christmas]] celebrations include the [[Badnjak (Serbian)|''badnjak'']], a branch taken from a young and straight oak ceremonially felled early on Christmas Eve morning, similar to a [[yule log]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Fight to save 'sacred' oak from road |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-33326394 |publisher=BBC |date=30 June 2015}}</ref>