Gramadevata
Village deities in Hinduism / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A gramadevata (Sanskrit: ग्रामदेवता, romanized: Grāmadevatā, lit. 'village deity') is the tutelary deity of a given locality in Hinduism,[1] primarily worshipped in the villages of India.[2][3]
Of diverse origins, gramadevatas are regarded to protect the inhabitants of their villages from bandits, epidemics, and natural disasters when propitiated, failing which they are believed to cause these afflictions.[4][5] A gramadevata is typically female in South India.[6] In this region, a village goddess, acting as a fertility figure, is enshrined, and a guardian of the village is situated at the village boundary.[7]