Meet our local goddess, ARDUINNA! The goddess of the Ardennes Forest, which we will invite for the Samhain Reclaiming witchcamp!

In Gallo-Roman religion, Arduinna (also Arduina, Arduinnae or Arduinne) was the eponymous tutelary goddess of the Ardennes Forest and region, thought to be represented as a huntress riding a boar.

She is associated with the forest, the boar, and the spear.   Some scholars assert that she is also associated with the moon. Many ancient cultures connect the boar with strength and courage. Arduinna’s favorite beast was the boar, which she road whenever she hunted, making her own strength and courage clear to all.  Plus it is important to note that throughout Gaul the wild boar was abundant and a vital food source for the population.  Arduinna’s association with the boar thus shows her importance as a protective and nurturing goddess.

Arduinna as a Woodland Goddess represents our wild nature.  With no tame, domesticated castle or demesne to call her own, she ran free in the forests of the Ardennes.  She is the untamed spirit in us all, never tied down by the commitments of love or motherhood.  But being Celtic, she was not chaste.  As a free spirit, she would have enjoyed amorous liaisons when and where she chose.

Her name has its roots in the Gaulish word “arduo” meaning “height”.