Nightview of the column with the monument to Berehynia Goddess, one of protectors of Kiev.

The word Berehynia or Bereginia (Russian and Ukrainian: Берегиня) originates in the Slavic mythology but in the modern usage it has two meanings. The confusion in the name's etymology owes to the fact that a Slavic word bereg (берег) may mean either a river bank or to protect. Image File history File links The column with the monument on top to Beregynia, a goddess of modern invention as Protector of Kiev. ... Image File history File links The column with the monument on top to Beregynia, a goddess of modern invention as Protector of Kiev. ... Slavic mythology and Slavic religion evolved over more than 3,000 years. ... Not to be confused with Entomology, the study of insects. ...  Countries where a West Slavic language is the national language  Countries where an East Slavic language is the national language  Countries where a South Slavic language is the national language The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages), a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup... The bed of this stream is made up of rocks, some very rounded (having had a longer life in the stream) and some not. ...

Originally, obscure shadowy ghost-like fairies similar to Rusalkas, Berehynias lived along the rivers, lakes and ponds and were considered ill-tempered and dangerous. A water-bank where they thought to be found were to be avoided by young men and women, especially in the dark. by Sophie Anderson For other uses, see Fairy (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Berehynia in the original meaning is by far less remembered now, than in the new meaning of matriarchic goddess-protectors. This rebirth of the Berehynia started only in the late 1980s by several Ukrainian writers who sought to personify their vision of an ideal Ukrainian woman. Matriarchy is a form of society in which power is with the women and especially with the mothers of a community. ... The 1980s refers to the years of 1980 to 1989. ... Ukrainian literature is literature written in the Ukrainian language. ...

A column with a monument to Berehynia on top, as a protector of Kiev (pictured), has recently been constructed at Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in the center of the city, despite the fact that Kiev has a historic protector Archangel Michael pictured at the Coat of Arms of Kiev and whose older monument is located just across at the same square. Location Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted. ... Maidan Nezalezhnosti (literally: Independence Square ) is a main square in Kyiv, capital city of Ukraine. ... Guido Renis archangel Michael (in the Capuchin church of Sta. ... Coat of Arms of Kiev The Coat of Arms of Kiev (Kyiv) features Archangel Michael, wielding a flaming sword and a shield in an azure field. ...

External references

• Oksana Kis' "Who is protected by Berehynia, or Matriarchy as a men's invention", Zerkalo Nedeli (the Mirror Weekly), April 26 - May 6, 2005. (Russian), (Ukrainian)