Available sources do not provide a cosmogonic origin story for Asiaq. Within Greenlandic/Inuit ritual context Asiaq functions as an agentive weather authority whom communities and especially Angakoq (ritual specialists) petition when seasonal conditions threaten subsistence — for example, when spring is late and rain or ice melt is needed. Rather than appearing in a narrative of creation, Asiaq is reported in the material as an operative figure within a lived ritual ecology: a named supernatural actor whose decisions about weather are negotiated through invocation by human specialists.
The consulted sources do not provide a consistent physical description or iconography for Asiaq. There is no attested account in the supplied material detailing anthropomorphic features, dress, or symbolic attributes. Modern institutional uses of the name (for example, the Greenlandic organization Asiaq Greenland Survey) reflect the continued cultural association of the name with weather and surveying rather than providing information about traditional visual representation.
Sources describe Asiaq as exercising authority over wind, snow and rain and specifically as the figure who “decides the quantity and the time for snow to fall.” Angakoq were reported to invoke or 'content' Asiaq to secure good weather, to bring rain, or to melt ice when spring was late, indicating that Asiaq is conceived as responsive to ritual petition and capable of altering seasonal weather outcomes important to community survival. Gendered description varies in the sources: most commonly Asiaq is called a goddess and in at least some accounts is described more rarely as a god.
Ashteroth Karnaim
Ashteroth Karnaim is an ancient place-name in the biblical and Near Eastern record—a city or paired cities in the region of Bashan (Transjordan) associated with the goddess Astarte (Ashtoreth) and described in some sources as the ‘abode of the Rephaim.’ It is attested in Bronze‑ and Iron‑Age texts and later Hellenistic traditions, and is identified with several proposed archaeological sites (e.g., Tell Ashtara, al‑Shaykh Saad) though the exact location remains debated.
Ashur (Aššur)
Ashur is the civic-national deity of the ancient city and polity Aššur/Assyria. He functions as the divine sovereign and patron of the city-state: kings present themselves as his governors (iššiak), his temple and cult objects (notably weapons) played central roles in oaths, ordeals, and imperial administration.
Ashvins
The Aśvin (Ashvins) are Vedic twin divine horsemen invoked in the Rigveda as youthful rescuers and restorers who travel in a swift chariot; they are closely associated with dawn/twilight, healing, and medicine and are repeatedly called upon to save, restore, or bring home those in peril.
Asháninka
The Asháninka are an Arawakan-speaking Indigenous people of the central Amazon rainforests of Peru and parts of Acre in Brazil, organized in dispersed small residential groups with deep ancestral ties to riverine and interfluvial forest territories and a subsistence economy based on swidden agriculture, hunting, fishing and gathering.
Asia (Asiê / Ἀσία)
Asia (Asiê / Ἀσία) is an Oceanid — a daughter of the primordial Titans Oceanus and Tethys — attested in Greek mythic name-lists and modern summaries as an eponymous nymph associated with Lydia/Anatolia (West Asia). Sources identify her as an Oceanid and regional eponym; one modern compilation also presents a later tradition naming her as the wife of the Titan Prometheus.
Asian dragon (long / loong)
The Chinese or Asian dragon (Chinese: long or loong) is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, folklore, and culture, widely represented as an auspicious, potent being most commonly associated with control over water and weather. It appears across myth, art, and modern public performance rather than as a single folkloric apparition with standardized ritual responses.
Asiatic black bear
The Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), also called the Asian black bear, moon bear, or white-chested bear, is a medium-sized, largely arboreal bear species native to much of Asia. Sources present it as a biological species of conservation concern, listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and threatened by habitat loss and poaching for body parts used in traditional medicine.
Asif ibn Barkhiya
A figure in Islamic scriptural and exegetical tradition presented as Solomon's (Sulayman) scribe or court official who, by means of privileged esoteric knowledge (specifically of part of the "Greatest Name of Allah"), effects a single Qur'anic miracle — bringing the Queen of Sheba's throne before Solomon in an instant. He is portrayed as a human mediator whose efficacious action is attributed to divine knowledge rather than innate supernatural ontological status.
Asiman
A nocturnal, shape‑changing predatory luminous spirit known from West African accounts; presented in sources as the Dahomey counterpart to the Ashanti obayifo, capable of inhabiting humans by day and manifesting as phosphorescent lights or a flying ball of light by night.
Asira
Asira is described in the available source material as a local god worshipped in pre-Islamic northern Arabia, specifically revered at the oasis-town of Taima (Tayma). The deity is noted as having been strongly influenced by Egyptian culture and is only minimally attested in the historical record (mentioned only by name by the Babylonian king Nabonidus).
Asius
Asius (Ancient Greek: Asios) is a personal name borne by several mortal leaders allied with Troy in Greek epic and mythographic tradition. The figures called Asius appear in leader-lists, genealogies, and battle narratives of the Trojan War cycle rather than as a distinct supernatural entity.
Asiya bint Muzāḥim (Asiya)
Asiya is the Qur'anic figure presented as the wife of the Pharaoh in the era of Moses who secretly embraced monotheism, adopted and preserved the infant Moses, and is venerated in Islamic tradition as an exemplary righteous woman promised a house in Paradise for her faith and steadfastness.
Community Record
- [1]Asiaq. Wikipedia, article 'Asiaq'.wiki
- [2]Asiaq (Wikidata). Wikidata entry Q2866625 for Asiaq.other
- [3]Asiaq - Greenland Survey (employer page). AcademicPositions employer page referencing Asiaq Greenland Survey (modern institutional use of the name).other
- [4]Asiaq mentions in Protect-SLR consortium. Protect-SLR consortium page referencing Asiaq (demonstrates modern institutional use).other
- [5]CryoAdventures blog: Three months in Nuuk. CryoAdventures blog post referencing Asiaq in a modern Greenlandic context.other
- [6]GEM news: Asiaq announces a permanent position. GEM network news item referencing Asiaq Greenland Survey.other