Tanfana is a local Germanic Goddess who was worshipped in modern day Germany and the Netherlands. She has been mentioned by Tacitus in his work the annals. Besides Tacitus’ mention and a few local legends, little is known about this Goddess. The meaning of her name still remains a debate, it could have been derived from the Proto-Germanic word Tafnano meaning ‘Goddess of the sacrificial animal’.
Tacitus mentions a slaughter and the destruction of Tanfana’s temple in the annals book 1 chapter 51:
“Cæsar, to spread devastation more widely, divided his eager legions into four columns, and ravaged a space of fifty miles with fire and sword. Neither sex nor age moved his compassion. Everything, sacred or profane, the temple too of Tanfana, as they called it, the special resort of all those tribes, was levelled to the ground. There was not a wound among our soldiers, who cut down a half-asleep, an unarmed, or a straggling foe. The Bructeri, Tubantes, and Usipetes, were roused by this slaughter, and they beset the forest passes through which the army had to return.”
The location of this mentioned Tanfana temple is not 100% certain but theories suggest that this temple was perhaps located on the Tankenberg, the Netherlands. The mayor of Brinkhorst placed this quote of Tacitus on top of the Tankenberg in 1844 as a nod to the Goddess Tanfana. Other theories suggest that this temple must have been located somewhere between the rivers Ruhr and Lippe in modern day Germany.
But who is Tanfana exactly? Tacitus described that this slaughter took place 5 years after the historical defeat at the battle of Teutoburgerwald. It was general Germanicus, cousin of the emperor Tiberius, who attacked the Marsi tribe and committed this slaughter. Germanicus attacked the Marsi while they were preparing a big feast in honour of the Goddess Tanfana.
By looking at the date of the slaughter, on a full moon somewhere around the equinox in the year 14AD, possible around 24/25th September, we can guess that Tanfana might be a Goddess of fertility since September is a harvest month. The Marsi could have held this feast in order to thank Tanfana for the succesfull harvest. During this feast, animals were sacrificed on a big sacred stone, if the temple was indeed located on the Tankenburg, it could have been the sacred stone which is still visible these days on the market of Oldenzaal.
Unfortunately with the arrival of the Christians a few centuries later, Tanfana had to be erased from history. So she was, like many other deities and beings, demonized by the church. Tanfana was depicted as an evil old witch known in the Dutch child rhyme: Anneke, Tanneke, Toverheks. This rhyme is sung by children sitting in a circle, one of the children plays as the witch Tanneke while another plays as a dog who has to catch the witch. Tanfana, according to the church, would eat small children and sacrifice them to the devil himself.
Tanfana is certainly an interesting Goddess who had to suffer the wrath of the Romans after they lost several legions in the famous Teutoburgerwald battle in 9AD. A Goddess of fertility and harvest with similarities to Nerthus sadly demonized by the church.
Here are pictures of:
Modern day depiction of Tanfana by Anneke Wittermans,
Tankenberg with Tacitus’ quote in the Netherlands,
The Tanfana stone now located in Oldenzaal,
Romans approaching Tanfana’s temple art by Polly,
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