in Ossetian mythology Tomte, or Nisse in Scandinavian folklore Trasgu in Spanish folklore and Portuguese folklore Vesta, a goddess of Traditional Roman religion, both state and domestic African Bes, a god in Ancient Egyptian religion Ekwu, a god in Igbo Odinani Asian Anito in prehispanic Filipino culture. All gashin, the most prominent being Teoju, Seongju, Jowang, or Samshin in Korean folk religion Bà Tổ Cô, they are women who died at a young age, unmarried, so they are worshiped by their relatives as protective goddesses of the family in Vietnamese folk religion Imoinu (Emoinu), a household hearth goddess in Meitei mythology and Sanamahism of Manipur Kamui Fuchi, a goddess in the Ainu folklore in Japan Leimarel Sidabi, a household mother goddess in Meitei mythology and Sanamahism of Manipur Menshen, divine guardians of doors and gates in Chinese folk religion Môn thần, divine guardians of doors and gates in Vietnamese folk religion Ông Bình Vôi, the god who governs everyday things in the family in Vietnamese folk religion Ông Mãnh Tổ, they are men who died at a young age, unmarried, so they are worshiped by their relatives as the guardian deities of the family in Vietnamese folk religion Ông Táo, kitchen god in Vietnamese folk religion Sanamahi, the most predominant god in Meitei mythology and Sanamahism of Manipur Thổ Công, is the god who looks after the house in Vietnamese folk religion Tu Di Gong (earth deity), in Chinese folk religion Yumjao Leima (Yumjao Lairembi), a household mother goddess in Meitei mythology and Sanamahism of Manipur Zao Jun (kitchen god), in Chinese folk religion Zashiki-warashi, in Japanese folklore North American Chantico, a goddess in Aztec mythology Other I Gudli Saibia, a female guardian angel in Romani mythology Patron saints, venerated saints who protect grottos, gardens, churches, and temples in Catholicism See also Chinese ancestral worship Ancestral shrine and Ancestral tablets Dharmapala Kitchen God References Bibliography [SF] Freud, Sigmund. Totem und Tabu: Einige Übereinstimmungen im Seelenleben der Wilden und der Neurotiker. 1913. (English translation Totem and Taboo: Resemblances Between the Mental Lives of Savages and Neurotics, 1918.) Third essay, "Animism, Magic and the Omnipotence of Thought". [JG] Grimm, Jacob. Deutsche Mythologie (Teutonic Mythology). Göttingen, 1835, 3rd ed., 1854, 2 vols. English translation available online at http://www.northvegr.org/lore/grimmst/017_12.php [DWB] Grimm, Jacob, and Wilhelm Grimm. Deutsches Wörterbuch (German Dictionary). Available online in German at http://germazope.uni-trier.de/Projects/DWB. [WEH] Hearn, William Edward. 1878. London: Longman, Green &