Phra Mae Ya, also called Mae Ya, is a female deity of Tai folk religion worshipped as the tutelary guardian of Sukhothai province in Thailand. She is embodied in a stone idol about fifty-two inches tall, and local tradition identifies her as the spirit of Nang Sueang, mother of King Ramkhamhaeng of the Sukhothai Kingdom. Devotees in Sukhothai turn to Phra Mae Ya for protection and blessing, treating her as both a guardian spirit of the province and a link to its royal founding lineage.
Facts
Attestation
Veneration TodayActively venerated in a living tradition 1 HistoricityNot a historical person: a divine or other-than-human being 1 Function
Domain / FunctionProtection and guardianship 1 Belief
TheologyPolytheistic: many gods 1 Sources
1. The Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend
Anthony S. Mercatante, revised and expanded by James R. Dow, Facts on File
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