Editing Tarvos Trigaranus

{{Short description|Gaulish bull god}}
{{Infobox deity
| type         = Celtic
| name         = Tarvos Trigaranus
| deity_of     = <!-- or god_of / Alusi_of -->
| member_of    = 
| image        = Le Pilier des Nautes 03.JPG
| alt          = <!-- for alternate text of the title image per [[WP:ALT]] -->
| caption      = The relief of Tarvos Trigaranus on the [[Pillar of the Boatmen]].
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| battles      = 
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| animals      = 
| symbol       = Bull with three cranes
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'''Tarvos Trigaranus''' or '''Taruos Trigaranos'''<ref>The [[Latin]] alphabet did not distinguish between U and V.</ref> is a divine figure who appears on a [[relief]] panel of the [[Pillar of the Boatmen]] as a bull with three [[Crane (bird)|cranes]] perched on his back. He stands under a tree, and on an adjacent panel, the god [[Esus]] is chopping down a tree, possibly a willow, with an axe.<ref>Green 1992 pp. 93-94.</ref>

In the [[Gaulish language]], ''taruos'' means "bull,"<ref>Delmarre 2003 pp.291-292.</ref> found in [[Old Irish language|Old Irish]] as ''tarb'' (/tarβ/), in Modern Irish/Gaelic as ''tarbh'' and in [[Welsh language|Welsh]] as ''tarw'' (compare "bull" in other [[Indo-European languages]] such as Latin ''taurus'' from Greek "ταύρος" or [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]] ''taŭras''). ''Garanus'' is the crane (''garan'' in Welsh, [[Cornish language|Old Cornish]] and [[Breton language|Breton]]; see also ''[[geranos]]'', the ritual "crane dance" of [[ancient Greece]]).<ref>The English word "crane" derives from the [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] ''*krana(n)''; Delmarre 2003 p. 175).</ref> ''Treis'', or ''tri-'' in compound words, is the number three (cf. Irish ''trí'', Welsh ''tri'').<ref>Compare [[Tricorii]] ("the three troops"), and ''Trinox'' ("three nights") in the Gaulish [[Celtic calendar|calendar of Coligny]]; Delmarre 2003 pp.301-302.</ref>

A pillar from [[Trier]] shows a man with an axe cutting down a tree in which sit three birds and a bull's head. The juxtaposition of images has been compared to the Tarvos Trigaranus and Esus panels on the Boatmen monument.<ref>MacCulloch 1996 pp.157-158.</ref> It is possible that statues of a bull with three [[horn (anatomy)|horn]]s, such as the one from [[Autun]] ([[Burgundy]], France, anciently ''Augustodunum'') are related to this deity.<ref>Green 1992 pp. 93-94.</ref>

The Saturnian moon [[Tarvos (moon)|Tarvos]] is named after Tarvos Trigaranus, following a convention of naming members of [[Gallic group|its moon group]] after Gallic mythological figures.<ref name="Gazetteer">
{{cite web | title=Planet and Satellite Names and Discoverers | work = Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature | publisher = USGS Astrogeology | date = July 21, 2006 | url = https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Page/Planets | access-date = 2006-08-06
}}
</ref>

==See also==
* [[Celtic mythology]]
* [[Triple deities]]
* [[Twrch Trwyth]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* Delmare, Xavier (2003) ''Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise'' (2nd ed.) Paris: Editions Errance. {{ISBN|2-87772-237-6}}
* Green, Miranda J. (1992) ''Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend''. London: Thames & Hudson. {{ISBN|0-500-27975-6}}
* MacCulloch, John A. (1996) ''Celtic Mythology''. Chicago: Academy Chicago Publications. {{ISBN|0-486-43656-X}}

==External links==
{{Commonscat|Tarvos}}
*[http://www.monde.de/tarvos.html The three-horned bull]
*[http://www.chronarchy.com/mjournal/patrons/aboutesus.html Discussion of Tarvos Trigaranus and Esus, with photos]
*[http://www.tarvos.nl/site/index.php/over-tarvos/pillar-of-the-boatmen/esus-en-tarvos-trigaranus Dutch language site telling the story about the battle between Esus and Tarvos Trigaranus]

[[Category:Gaulish gods]]
[[Category:Animal gods]]


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