Ambarvalia

The Ambarvalia (from Latin amb- : "around, around", arvum : "field / field"; note the connection with urvare - plowing, explained by Sulcus primigenius ) was a rite of the Roman religion that took place in spring. It served to honor and atonement the fields. At this festival a bull, a sow and a sheep were driven across the fields and later offered as animal sacrifices. Since the area belonging to Rome was getting bigger and bigger, the celebrations were fixed at certain places and celebrated here as feriae conceptiva . A common assumption that has not yet been refuted is that the Ambarvalia are identical to the celebrations celebrated by the Fratres arvales , the Arval brothers in honor of Dea Dia .

A rite for the city of Rome that was comparable in some respects was the amburbium .

literature

• Werner Eisenhut : Ambarvalia . In: Der Kleine Pauly , Vol. 1, 1964, Col. 293.
• Georg Wissowa : Ambarvalia . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume I, 2, Stuttgart 1894, column 1796.