Are Cernunnos and Odin the same god?: Part III

It seems likely that long ago, early wandering Germanic clans migrated westwards into Europe in smaller numbers. They brought with them, in one form or another, Odinic or Tyric traditions. As they came into contact with Alpine peoples-and as the different spiritual traditions began to merge in various places--the Odin/Tyr archetype slowly merged with the "horned god" of the Alpines (not known under one particular name). As these two ancient cultures developed into what we now refer to as the Gauls, and perhaps other regional-tribal-cultural constructs, the horned god became known as "Cernunnos" among the Gauls.

Therefore--as Odin and the horned god were clearly of a different origin--a new regional horned god, with Odinist-like qualities, seems to have emerged. This spiritual-cultural dynamic may have occurred with other gods, goddesses, myths, ceremonies, and observances as well. This process probably took place over a very long period of time. Ultimately, as least within the Gaulish territories, the Alpine spiritual tradition seemed to be the dominant one. It's important to note that the Germanic peoples who arrived in Europe at a later time, maintained their own pantheon of gods, goddesses, and mythology. It probably should also be noted that fringe/alternate magical traditions continued to exist among Germanic peoples.

So there it is. I would like to see more research conducted in this area. Not just the clash of native spirituality, but also in other areas of culture and custom. This was always such a mystery; where did the magical traditions (i.e. European witchcraft) fit into this maze of Odinic, Cernic, Druidic, and other branches of native-regional heathenry. Only by uncovering the veil of overlapping sub-races in ancient times can we really see how this remarkable diversity of spiritual traditions came to be. I believe that the early progenitors of "Wicca" took advantage of this historically ambiguous environment and created an incongruent, universalist, socio-political dynamic. Zsuzsanna Budapest is a traitor to her people. The innumerable women, who served as spiritual leaders within their communities throughout the ages, would have viewed her as an internal enemy.

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Solar eclipse is steller opening act for big show in the sky

Sunday's partial solar eclipse is only the start


David Perlman - San Francisco Chronicle - May 18, 2012


The sun, the moon and the planet Venus will be staging shows during the next two weeks with three astronomical events in the springtime sky.

The first will be a rare type of partial solar eclipse on Sunday, followed in the days afterward by a partial lunar eclipse and the rare sight of Venus crossing the face of the sun in what astronomers call a transit.

The eclipse will begin at 5:16 p.m. Sunday when the new moon moves slowly across the sun's face and blocks most of it, providing a spectacular event for Bay Area viewers with proper eye protection. The National Weather Service forecasts a sunny, breezy late afternoon.

The eclipse will peak in the Bay Area at 6:33 p.m., when 84 percent of the sun will be obscured by the moon's passage, said astronomer Andrew Fraknoi of Foothill College and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.

Ring of fire

Farther north, the event will be seen as a rare "annular" eclipse, occurring when the moon's passage carries it almost completely in front of the sun. For a few seconds, a brilliant ring of sunlight - a "ring of fire," as astronomers call it - will appear around the darkened lunar disk.

The annular eclipse - from the Latin word annulus, for "ring" - should be clearly visible in cities like Chico, Redding and Eureka as well as the region across California roughly between Yuba City and Yreka, according to calculations by Fred Espenak, a solar eclipse specialist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

All eclipses, including this one, are dangerous if viewed with the naked eye, or even with the darkest available sunglasses, and Fraknoi warns that doing so can cause blindness.

Safe viewing

Many science institutions and amateur astronomers
 in Northern California
will be setting up special viewing sites, equipped with safe solar telescopes as well as instruments designed to watch the eclipse indirectly.

For Bay Area residents,
the best time to watch
the eclipse will be
between 6:15 and 6:45 p.m., Fraknoi said.

But, he said, "you'll have to find an open location where you can see things that are lower on the northwest horizon, making sure that hills or buildings don't get in the way."

The eclipse will end over the Bay Area at 7:40 p.m.

The second celestial show will be June 4, during the full moon, when Earth will cast its shadow on the moon's face, blocking out more than 35 percent of the moonlight. But, to see it, eclipse watchers will have to stay up late or wake up early: The eclipse will begin in the Bay Area at 2:59 a.m. and end at 5:06 a.m.

Finally, during the afternoon of June 5, sky watchers will see Venus crossing a corner of the sun in a rare transit. As with the eclipse, viewers are advised to be equipped with safe solar viewing telescopes, or black welder's glasses or indirect viewing instruments. Local time for the event will be from 3:06 p.m. to 3:24 p.m., according to Espenak's calculations.

Watching the eclipse

Here is a partial list of Bay Area sites where the public can view Sunday's solar eclipse using safe solar telescopes and other instruments. Peak viewing times will be between 6:15 and 6:45 p.m.

San Francisco

-- The California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, from 5 to 7:40 p.m, on the Music Concourse entrance.

-- Marina Green at the end of Marina Boulevard and Yacht Road, from 5 to 8 p.m., hosted by members of the San Francisco Amateur Astronomers.

-- Sunset Reservoir Park, on the path above 28th Avenue and Ortega Street, from 5:15 to 7:30 p.m., sponsored by members of the San Francisco Sidewalk Astronomers.

Berkeley

The Lawrence Hall of Science, 1 Centennial Drive, on the main plaza, from 5 to 8 p.m. A special eclipse program will be held simultaneously in the hall's planetarium.

Oakland

The Chabot Space and Science Center's observatory deck, 10000 Skyline Blvd., 5 to 8 p.m.

San Carlos

The San Carlos library, 610 Elm St., from 4 to 7 p.m.

Los Altos

The Foothill College Observatory, 12345 El Monte Road, in and outside the dome, from 5:30 to about 7:30 p.m., hosted by members of the Peninsula Astronomical Society.

Albany

The Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Ave., between 4 and 7 p.m. Telescopes will be at the rear.

Pleasant Hill

The Diablo College Observatory from about 5 p.m. until the sun goes behind the trees.

Clayton

Juniper Campground parking area, from 5 to 7:30 p.m., hosted by the Mt. Diablo Astronomical Society.

San Jose

The intersection of Twilight and Rupert drives, from 5 to 7:40 p.m., sponsored by the San Jose Astronomical Association.

Mount Hamilton

The Lick Observatory, beginning at 5 p.m.

.........................

David Perlman is a San Francisco Chronicle science editor. dperlman@sfchronicle.com

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Rethinking the Spirituality of Pre-Christian Europe

Upon reading the most recent blog entry from the Asatru Folk Assembly "Asatru Update," I found myself in fundamental disagreement with one part of it. I hope this is taken as something of a constructive criticism, but I think it's important enough to make mention of, as it has to do with the larger paradigm.

A number of leaders in the Asatru (Odinist) community have made statements such as "Asatru was the ancestral faith of our Northern European ancestors for 40,000 years." So, is that statement valid? Well, yes and no. During the last ice age, approximately 25,000 years ago, Northern Europe (and the rest of the northern lands on Earth) were covered in massive sheets of ice. It's not likely many people, if any, even lived there. The people who we now call "Germanic," probably lived in approximately the region of what we now call Iran. This region probably resembled modern British Columbia more than what we think of Iran as looking like today.

Although some form of Germanic polytheism probably does date back 40,000 years or so, it just didn't reside in Europe for that long. Occupying Europe first was a proto-European race, which we might loosely call "the Alpines." It's very probable that many symbols and traditions within Odinism have their roots in the spiritual traditions of the Alpines. For example, "casting a circle," the wheel of the year, the solar wheel, and the lunar cycles (the Moon represents the Maternal). Doesn't the "triple horns" of Odinism look a whole lot like the "triple moon" of European witchcraft? Ironically, the symbol of the Asatru Folk Assembly is the triple horns.

The article, of which I am questioning one aspect of, is entitled 'Asatru is About Drinking From Our Own Well.' I think it's a good article with many valid and reasonable points. However, it clearly suggests that "Wicca" is not "drinking from our own well." Well, lets examine that. Today's German ethnic root stock, to use just one example, probably has as much "Alpine stock" (meant sub-racially, not regionally) as they do Germanic stock. Even in Scandinavia, the Alpines long pre-dated the advance of the Germanics. All I'm saying is that the spiritual traditions of the Alpine sub-race IS our well! All Europeans. They lived here first. Before the Germanic people migrated westward from ancient north-central Eurasia; and before the Mediterraneans migrated westward from the ancient Middle East.

Now when "Wicca" is mentioned in the article, the conclusion is partly correct. Wicca is universal and eclectic. However, the root behind it, was every bit as European as is Asatru. I understand, they want to keep it simple for people. Still, Odinists seem to have a great respect for Druidism, which is a different spiritual path. There's a lot of overlap. Slavic paganism has many similarities with Odinism. The spiritual traditions of pre-Christian Europe overlapped. "Norse witchcraft" is likely a leftover from the earlier Alpine subrace. It's also possible that it developed from contact with people from Gaul, where many Alpine tribes still existed separately from Gaulish tribes right up to the conquest by the Romans.

The evidence suggests that the Alpine subrace lived all over Europe, and beyond, after the last icecap melted. Then, Mediterraneans migrated in waves across Southern Europe and North Africa, up into France, and into the British Isles. Next, Germanic people migrated across Northern Europe in two distinct waves. First, they migrated clear across central and northern Europe, intermingled with the Alpines, which probably produced the Celtic peoples. This may explain the wide range of descriptions of the Celts by Roman and Greek historians. Second, another wave of Germanic peoples migrated across Northern Europe, into the now dry region of Scandinavia, and were checked at Gaul. They overran the Alpines and Celts within their new territories, at least to the degree of which the "Germanic identity and language" became the dominant one.

From all of this sprang a wonderful diversity of spiritual traditions. The Druids likely were an offshoot of the Germanic people, while magical traditions in Scandinavia and Germany were probably from the earlier Alpines or Celts, or perhaps from more westward contact with those two subraces. Stegheria is, at least in part, likely a remnant from pre-Mediterranean central and south Italy. The ancient Etruscans, Umbrians, and others, had their own polytheistic traditions, but they probably merged with the earlier magical and earth traditions as well. Roman and Greek polytheism sprang at a later time, from similar pantheons of gods and goddesses it appears. Slavic paganism, also, seems to stem from a variety of sources (Germanic, Celtic, Alpine).

It seems clear that the variety of cultures in Europe goes hand-in-hand with the variety of pre-Christian spiritual traditions. So to digress, it's very possible that the "triple horns" symbol of the AFA, ultimately can be traced back to the "triple moon" (triple goddess) from the root traditon of Wicca. From clear back into the very ancient world when Germanic tribes from north-central Eurasia migrated into northernmost and north-central Europe and co-opted some of the powerful spiritual elements of the original Alpine subrace. Long ago, we met the others who were like us... and they became us.

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Guido von List: Part 16

Band of the Holy Vehme

According to von List, with the rapidly approaching threat of Charlemagne's rein of terror, the skalds realized that something radical must be done in order to preserve their spiritual traditions in some form. Excerpt from page 77:

In spite of the fact that the skalds were persecuted and scorned, they collected themselves together and secretly took the German faith and the German law (Wotanism) in a concealed manner into the "hidden tribunal" (heimliche Acht) of the "fem" (five) fingers of the sword's hilt--and thus arose the band of the "Holy Vehme."

Basically what was happening was that the skalds--the now underground "heimliche Acht"--were conducting meetings in order to develop a system of which they could conceal Wotanism in every part of society. I believe they developed a system which would "grow on it's own," so that as society changed, this system would adapt and develop along with it. This system would be applied to every part of society. Everything from architecture to baking. Although it would be romantic to say that they ALL met at one time, in one place, and decided on one system; more than likely they had many regional meetings over a period of time. The "exoteric" is what something appears on the outside (for the general public); the "esoteric" is what is on the inside (for the initiated only).

Still on page 77: Out of the "Skaldic Order" the "Minnesinger Order" later emerged, as did the "German Builders' Guild" and the "German Heraldic Guild." From all this, in broad branchings, sprang the judicial sciences, poetic arts, linguistic sciences, graphic arts, etc. Because the skalds, as poets and singers, were also the maintainers and formulators of language--and because it was neccessary for them to preserve in strict secrecy the Wuotanism that they took with them underground into the "heimliche Acht" (in order not to be persecuted as heretics), they had to use the three-fold interpretation of words to have their messages delivered--even by messengers--without these or other noninitiates being able to understand the correct interpretation. Through steady skillful practice they reached such refinement in this double-edged type of poetry (called heimliche Acht or kala), that one and the same text could conceal two completely different messages, whose obvious sense (understood by everyone) would actually be secondary, while the concealed sense (kala) would contain the only real, secret message for the men of knowledge.

Exactly how this system worked, in detail, is more than I wanted to add to this series. You would need to get a copy of 'Secret of the Runes'. For example, the "three-fold interpretation of words." Suffice to say, even the process itself was based on Wotanist spirituality. These were great men; who made the best of a bad situation. Not just by their actions, but by the genius by which they accomplished it.

On "Part 14," the translation of List's work was mentioned. I would like to place the footnote on the bottom of page 77, in order to sort've "put it out there" that maybe it's time to translate some of these books! This is List's footnote, with an editors note, and it's regarding the above text:

Concerning this see my essay "Vom Wuotanismus zum Christentum," in the weekly Der Deutsche (Berlin), 1, no. 13 (1904). Compare also my essay "Von der deutschen Wuotanspriesterschaft," in Das zwanzigste Jahrhundert 4, nos. 2-5 (1893). [Ed. note: List also discusses this transition at length in his book Der Übergang vom Wuotanismus zum Christentum.]

I was also thinking, smaller essays could be put together in book form. I just purchased 'The Religion of the Aryo-Germanic Folk - Esoteric and Exoteric' (List; 1909 or 1910). This was translated in 2005, and it's only 56 pages long. It was the last copy on Amazon.com; and sold by Rûna-Raven Press.

'Die Religion der Ario-Germanen in ihrer Esoterik und Exoterik' ('The Religion of the Aryo-Germanic People in its Esoteric and Exoteric Aspects')

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Guido von List: Part 15

Goddess Iduna

One curious item, which I had skipped earlier while writing this series, was the mention of the Norse Goddess Iðunn.

Excerpt from page 6 of 'The Secret of the Runes' (from Flowers' bio section):

List became involved with two important literary associations during these years. In May 1891, the Iduna, bearing the descriptive subtitle "Free German Society for Literature," was founded by a circle of writers around Fritz Lemmermayer. Lemmermayer acted as a sort of "middle man" between an older generation of authors (which included Fercher von Steinwand, Joseph Tandler, Auguste Hyrtl, Ludwig von Mertens, and Josephine von Knorr) and a group of younger writers and thinkers (which included Rudolf Steiner, Marie Eugenie delle Grazie, and Karl Maria Heidt). The name Iduna, which was provided by List himself, is that of a North Germanic goddess of eternal youth and renewal.

Idun, Iduna, or Idunna, are variations of Iðunn. Actually, this literary society was short lived; only lasting about two years due to philosophical differences. Despite that, it was thought to have been part of the beginnings of the Neo-Germanic movement. In 'The Secret of the Runes', the Wotanist spiritual concept of "Life, Death, and Rebirth" is frequently mentioned. It's not surprising that List selected Iduna for a name, since she symbolized that concept.

Lower Austria

List was born and raised in Vienna, so I found myself occasionally lost when the geographical term "Lower Austria" was brought up time and time again in regards to him. Actually, Lower Austria is located in the northeast corner of Austria, east of "Upper Austria." Actually, the northernmost part of Lower Austria is farther north than the northernmost part of Upper Austria. However, this is where he was from, and it seems pretty clear to me that he was very close to it in every way.

Wotanism to Christianity

List held a romantic vision of what Germanic-Wotanist life was like during pre-Roman/Christian times. He described in detail how society was organized. It's detailed enough that one would need to buy the book to really appreciate it. Suffice to say, he believed-and I think clearly proved--that the "skaldic class," or the Wotanist spiritual leaders, developed a complex system "to veil Wotanist culture within Christianity" when conversion was considered unavoidable. This included a very complex system of double-meanings of words, symbols, architecture, and aspects of everyday life. I can't do it justice here.

"The destruction of Irminsul by Charlemagne"

As to whether or not they performed this out of spite, or merely to protect their spirituality and culture, I don't know. I tend to lean towards the latter, although the period of religious conversion was bloody. The Gaelic people made the conversion fairly easily, and they performed basically the same type of religious cultural blending. The Wotanists didn't "blend" as much as they "disguised." West Africans, living under slavery in Latin America, were able to hide their tribal spiritual traditions within Catholic religious rites; and they were able to propagate these traditions generation after generation.

As we covered in earlier segments, there is no conflict between Wotanism and science, as there is in other religions. Excerpt from pages 76 and 77: Because the skalds, as the scientists, maintained language, art, and science, they were also primarily concerned with scientifically directing the transition from Wuotanism to Christianity, and to prepare the way for a peaceful blending of the two religions.

Now, according to List, this was the plan prior to Charlemagne's bloody rein. A Frankish King and Catholic supremacist, he was extremely aggressive in his approach to "Christianization." More than merely inform villagers that they must convert, he would destroy and burn down irminsuls, holy sites, and other religious structures, torture and hang people, etc. Even the earlier Romans had used a soft approach when it came to forced religious conversion of subjugated peoples.

The skalds apparently were not explicitly secretive in their "blending" preparations before Charlemagne. However, now they had to do something quickly. I will cover that in the next segment.


WOW

Just this morning, I was listening to an online audio interview with a man whom I respected who happens to be a born-again-Christian. Now, he is a minister/researcher, and his faith is totally above-board and fully understood to the general public, myself included. I don't feel comfortable revealing his name right now. However, I overheard him smugly make statements; such as "Yule " being a "Satanic holy day" and the like.

Even if you're a Christian, or Athiest, or whatever; it's worth pondering that some of our Camun ancestors, only a few centuries ago, were slain in their own land via "this type of thinking." I'm not saying that every Christian minister believes as he does. Chuck Missler, for example, is very open-minded and knowledgeable about a whole host of subjects. In other words... not everything non-Christian is "the Devil."

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Supermoon and moon phases: Part 2

Supermoon Returns in May 2012 | Video

From YouTube channel VideoFromSpace

The full Moon will be up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than others during the year. The reason for this phenomenon is that the Moon becomes full on its closest approach to Earth on May 5, 2012, also known as the perigee full Moon.

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I was outside for an extended period last evening, the night after supermoon, and it was probably the same view. Perhaps it was only 12% bigger than usual. It occurred to me that since this happening is 13 1/2 months apart; psychologically, people don't make note of it in nearly the same way as they might with Yule. I think that I will make a note on the right column here, with next year's Supermoon date, which happens to be June 23, 2013. I mean, it would be nice to have a good month to plan for it; which again, is something that someone would not due to the staggered date of occurrence. Also, perhaps the same for the next lunar eclipse, and other solar happenings.

"The supermoon of 2012 is over, but the joys of moongazing are not. Even though Saturday night's lunar showing was the biggest and brightest of the year, the views are nearly as good anytime around the full moon — tonight, for example." --Alan Boyle, 'Your views of the supermoon'

New moon (Wikipedia)

The original meaning of the phrase new moon was the first visible crescent of the Moon, after conjunction with the Sun. This takes place over the western horizon in a brief period between sunset and moonset, and therefore the precise time and even the date of the appearance of the new moon by this definition will be influenced by the geographical location of the observer. The astronomical new moon, sometimes known as the dark moon to avoid confusion, occurs by definition at the moment of conjunction in ecliptic longitude with the Sun, when the Moon is invisible from the Earth. This moment is unique and does not depend on location, and in certain circumstances it coincides with a solar eclipse.

Lunar month (Wikipedia)

In lunar calendars, a lunar month is the time between two identical syzygies (new moons or full moons). The use of the lunar month varies by which culture has utilized the method, the main difference being when the "new" month begins.

Solar eclipse (Wikipedia)

As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. In a total eclipse, the disk of the Sun is fully obscured by the Moon. In partial and annular eclipses only part of the Sun is obscured.

If the Moon were to be in a circular orbit close enough to the Earth and in the same orbital plane, there would be total solar eclipses every single month. However, the Moon's orbit is angled at more than 5 degrees to the earth's orbit around the sun (see ecliptic) so its shadow at new moon often misses the Earth. The very reason why the Earth's orbit is called the ecliptic plane is because the Moon's orbit must cross this in order for an eclipse (both solar as well as lunar) to occur. Also, the Moon's actual orbit is elliptical, often taking it too far away from the Earth so that its apparent size is not large enough to block the Sun totally. So the orbital planes cross each year at a line of nodes resulting in at least two, and up to five, solar eclipses occurring each year; no more than two of which can be total eclipses. Total solar eclipses are nevertheless rare at any particular location because totality exists only along a narrow path on the Earth's surface traced by the Moon's shadow or umbra.

An eclipse is a natural phenomenon. Nevertheless, in ancient times, and in some cultures today, solar eclipses have been attributed to supernatural causes or regarded as bad omens. A total solar eclipse can be frightening to people who are unaware of their astronomical explanation, as the Sun seems to disappear during the day and the sky darkens in a matter of minutes.

As it is dangerous to look directly at the Sun, observers should use special eye protection or indirect viewing techniques. People referred to as eclipse chasers or umbraphiles will travel to remote locations to observe or witness predicted central solar eclipses.

Lunar eclipse (Wikipedia)

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the Sun's rays from striking the Moon. This can occur only when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle. Hence, a lunar eclipse can only occur the night of a full moon. The type and length of an eclipse depend upon the Moon's location relative to its orbital nodes. The most recent total lunar eclipse occurred on December 10, 2011. The previous total lunar eclipse occurred on June 15, 2011; The recent eclipse was visible from all of Asia and Australia, seen as rising over Europe and setting over Northwest North America. The last to previous total lunar eclipse occurred on December 21, 2010, at 08:17 UTC.

Unlike a solar eclipse, which can only be viewed from a certain relatively small area of the world, a lunar eclipse may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of the Earth. A lunar eclipse lasts for a few hours, whereas a total solar eclipse lasts for only a few minutes at any given place, due to the smaller size of the moon's shadow. Also unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses are safe to view without any eye protection or special precautions, as they are no brighter (indeed dimmer) than the full moon itself.

'Supermoon' Alert: Biggest Full Moon of 2012 Occurs This Week (by Space.com Staff; April 30, 2012)

Spectacular 'Supermoon' Wows Skywatchers Around the World (by Tariq Malik, SPACE.com Managing Editor; May 6, 2012)

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Supermoon and moon phases: Part 1

I would have liked to have gotten this entry in several weeks ago, since "Supermoon" was last night. However, I wanted to at least make a reference entry. Supermoon may roughly be only once a year, but full moon phases are roughly once a month; so there are frequent opportunities for observation or celebration. A "Supermoon" is to lunar phases, what Yule is to the eight seasonal Sabbats.

There are astronomical, stargazer, and lunar calendars each year if you check on Yahoo shopping or Amazon.com. The annual dates of the wheel of the year don't change, like the lunar dates. Supermoon is a great opportunity for a celebration or a stargazing night walk, but it won't happen again for 412 days.

From yesterdays San Francisco Chronicle:

Supermoon: The biggest and brightest full moon of the year arrives Saturday night. The event is a "supermoon," the closest full moon of the year. The moon will be about 221,802 miles from Earth, or about 15,300 miles closer than average. That proximity will make the moon appear about 14 percent bigger than it would if the moon were at its farthest distance, said Geoff Chester of the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington.

Supermoon (Wikipedia)

A supermoon, is the coincidence of a full moon (or a new moon) with the closest approach the Moon makes to the Earth on its elliptical orbit, or perigee, leading to the technical name for a supermoon of the perigee-syzygy of the Earth-Moon-Sun system. The association of the Moon with both oceanic and crustal tides has led to claims that the supermoon phenomenon may be associated with increased risk of events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. However, the evidence of such a link is widely held to be unconvincing.

Full moon (Wikipedia)

Full moon is a lunar phase that occurs when the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun. More precisely, a full moon occurs when the geocentric apparent (ecliptic) longitudes of the Sun and Moon differ by 180 degrees; the Moon is then in opposition with the Sun.

Lunar eclipses can only occur at full moon, where the moon's orbit allows it to pass through the Earth's shadow. Lunar eclipses do not occur every month because the moon usually passes above or below the Earth's shadow (which is mostly restricted to the ecliptic plane). Lunar eclipses can occur only when the full moon occurs near the two nodes of the orbit, either the ascending or descending node. This causes eclipses to only occur about every 6 months, and often 2 weeks before or after a solar eclipse at new moon at the opposite node.

As seen from Earth, the hemisphere of the Moon that is facing the Earth (the near side) is almost fully illuminated by the Sun and appears round. Only during a full moon is the opposite hemisphere of the Moon, which is not visible from Earth (the far side), completely unilluminated.

The time interval between similar lunar phases—the synodic month—averages about 29.53 days. Therefore, in those lunar calendars in which each month begins on the new moon, the full moon falls on either the 14th or 15th of the lunar month. Because lunar months have a whole number of days, lunar months may be either 29 or 30 days long.

Moon phase (Wikipedia)

A lunar phase or phase of the moon is the appearance of the illuminated (sunlit) portion of the Moon as seen by an observer, usually on Earth. The lunar phases change cyclically as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing relative positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun. The half of the lunar surface facing the Sun is always sunlit, but the portion of this illuminated hemisphere that is visible to an observer on Earth can vary from about 100% (full moon) to 0% (new moon). The lunar terminator is the boundary between the illuminated and unilluminated hemispheres. Aside from some craters near the lunar poles such as Shoemaker, all parts of the Moon see around 14.77 days of sunlight followed by 14.77 days of "night" (there is no permanently "dark side" of the Moon).

Lunar phase (Wikipedia)

A lunar phase or phase of the moon is the appearance of the illuminated (sunlit) portion of the Moon as seen by an observer, usually on Earth. The lunar phases change cyclically as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing relative positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun. The half of the lunar surface facing the Sun is always sunlit, but the portion of this illuminated hemisphere that is visible to an observer on Earth can vary from about 100% (full moon) to 0% (new moon). The lunar terminator is the boundary between the illuminated and unilluminated hemispheres. Aside from some craters near the lunar poles such as Shoemaker, all parts of the Moon see around 14.77 days of sunlight followed by 14.77 days of "night" (there is no permanently "dark side" of the Moon).

'Supermoon' Alert: Biggest Full Moon of 2012 Occurs This Week (Space.com; Tariq Malik; 5-6-12)

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Alternate names for "Lombardia"

By alternate, I mean in different languages. The following is from the "List of European regions with alternative names" Wikipedia page. I added a few, which I was familiar with, from the left-hand side language links from the Wikipedia Lombardy page. I couldn't add them all because it would be unreasonably time-consuming.

There are alternate names for other major regions, cities, or land forms, and we can add that sometime. For example, Brescia, Bergamo, and Val Camonica. "Brescianische" is German for "Brescian"; however, "Brescianer" means "Brescian" in a different context. "Bergamaschische" means "Bergamask" in German.

"Camunische" is German for "Camunian," while "Camunienne" is French for "Camunian. "Vallis Camunnorum" is Latin for "Valle Camonica." "Kamunowie" is Polish for "Camunni" in the ancient sense.
 
Lets stick with Lombardia today. It's interesting that in Latin, below, they formed a name based on the term "Langobard." Also below, Gaelic Irish always provides for some really interesting words.

Langbarðaland (Icelandic)
 
Langobardia (Latin)
 
Llombardia (Catalan)
 
An Lombaird (Irish)
 
Lombardei (German)
 
Lombardia (Estonian, Finnish, Hungarian, Italian, 
Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Eastern 
Lombard, Ladin, Magyar, Sardinian, Norwegian, 
Indonesian)
 
Lombardía (Spanish, Piedmontese)
 
Lombardie (French, Czech; Friulian)
 
Lombardiet (Danish, Swedish)
 
Lombardija (Croatian, Maltese, Serbian, Slovene, Latvian)
 
Lombardije (Dutch)
 
Lombardiya (Turkish)
 
Lombardye (Afrikaans)
 
Lombardy (English, Scottish, Tagalog)
 
Lumbardìa (Western Lombard, Corsican)
 
Lumbardéia (Emilian)
 
Lombardïa (Ligurian)
 
Lummardìa (Neapolitan, Sicilian)
 
Łonbardia (Venetian)

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