Richella
A nocturnal, female spirit leader identified as one of the names used for a figure similar to Diana. Medieval Christian authorities condemned cult beliefs associated with such spirit leaders who might accept offerings or take practitioners on nighttime journeys.
↻ synthesized from 2 sources
When
- First attested
- 0 CE
- Attested period
- 500 – 1600
- Historical notes
- Condemned by medieval Christian authorities as part of nocturnal spirit cult beliefs.
Relationships
- co occurs with
- Satia, Doamna Zînelor, Wanne Thekla, Aradia, seely wights, Frau Hulda, Werra, Dame Hulde, Doñas de fuera, Quene of Elfame, Herodias, Bensozia
- syncretized with
- Diana, Abundia, Perchta, Signora Oriente, Arada, Holda, Herodias, Bertha, Hulda, Hecate, Artio, the Matres of Engyon, the Matronae, Epona, Artemis (Diana)
Mentioned by
Sources
Source passages
“Medieval Christian authorities condemned cult beliefs of nocturnal, female spirit leaders who might accept offerings or take practitioners on a nighttime journey...Names used for this figure included Herodias, Abundia, Bensozia, Richella, Satia”
#6354 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“Later canonical and church documents make her synonymous with Diana, Herodias, Bertha, Richella, and Abundia. Carlo Ginzburg has identified similar beliefs existing throughout Europe for over 1,000 years, whereby men and women were thought to leave their bodies in spirit and follow a goddess variously called Holda, Diana, Herodias, Signora Oriente, Richella, Arada, and Perchta.”
#6378 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001