The Personal Name Vid

The proper name Vid occurs throughout the South Slavic world & is extremely common both as a personal name & placename. Focus is placed on the use of this name among venerators, particularly in Slovenia & Croatia, of Saint Vitus, patron saint of eyesight, whose cult flourished in the third century. It is shown that the veneration of this saint is syncretism of the worship of the pre-Christian Slavic god Svantevit. Features of this veneration, both in summer solstice observations & procedures (eg, the lighting of ritual fires) are described, as are the numerous placenames in southeastern Europe with the element Vid, eg, Vidoeski, Vidinski, Vitanski. 1 Map. Adapted from the source document