What is the collective name for the Slavic goddesses of fate and childbirth?

The story behind the answer

The collective name for the Slavic goddesses or female spirits of fate and childbirth is Rozhanitsy.

Rozhanitsy were associated with pregnancy, birth, motherhood, and the destiny assigned to a newborn. In many traditions they appeared as a group of three, although sources sometimes describe a single Rozhanitsa or larger groups. They were believed to visit a child shortly after birth and determine the course of that person’s life.

Their role resembles that of the Greek Moirai, Roman Parcae, and Norse Norns, but Rozhanitsy belong to Slavic religious and folkloric traditions. Some stories express fate through a thread: one figure spins it, another measures it, and a third cuts it. Families prepared meals or offerings of bread, salt, cheese, honey, wine, or porridge to secure the spirits’ favor.

Regional names differ. Southern Slavic traditions may use forms such as rojenice or suđenice, while Czech and Slovak folklore has the Sudičky. Srecha is a personification of good fortune in some traditions, and Mokosh is a distinct goddess, so neither is the best collective answer here.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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