Iha-Naga
Roughly translated from Japanese, her name means "Princess Live-Long". In Shinto mythology, she is the goddess of stone, enduring for ages. Apparently, she was less than gorgeous, and when her father, the mountain god Ohoyama, offered the god Ninigi a choice between her and his other daughter Konohana, the goddess of cherry blossoms, he wouldn't even give her a second look. If he wasn't so superficial and had chosen Iha-naga, she would've blessed all their descendants with the strength and endurance of stone, but NO, he chose Konohana, so now we are all as fragile and vulnerable as flowers and we don't have eternal life. Let this be a lesson to all guys not to judge girls based on their looks! (source)
Saraswati
Saraswati is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, science, and art (so basically all of your second trimester classes, haha). But really, she is very important and is like the Hindu version of a Renaissance man. She's called the "mother of the Vedas", which are the religious texts, and she is also the female counterpart of Brahma. It was with her knowledge that he created the universe. She helps Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the preserver), and Shiva (the destroyer). She also flies on a peacock or a swan while playing the Veena. She is portrayed as being beautiful, because knowledge should be alluring. Sailen Debnath, a Bengali writer, in his book The Meaning of Hindu Gods, Goddesses, and Myths, says that she is female because women can conceive life, and that is creative. Fun fact: I have a poster of her above my desk to help me do my homework! (source, Wikipedia)
Freyja
Freyja is the Norse goddess of a lot of things. She does the job of, like, five goddesses, being in charge of love, beauty, fertility, gold, war, and death. She rides a chariot pulled by cats, which is like my dream come true, and we also have her to thank for Friday, which was named after her. Many places in Scandinavia, which is basically my favorite region of the world, are also named after her. Not to be confused with my favorite model Freja Beha. Oh and her name just means "lady". Represent. (source)
Tlazolteotl
Tlazolteotl should be respected because she is the Aztec goddess of filth. She rules over sin, vice, sexual defilement, lust, unlawful love, and STDs. However, she's also the goddess of purification of the above, sometimes in the form of a steam bath, so remember her next time you're in the shower. So, she both causes and forgives sin. (source, Wikipedia)
Arohirohi
Arohirohi is so obscure that I can't even find a picture of her, so maybe she should be the patron saint of hipsters. No, I'm just kidding, and that was a terrible joke. Anyhow, she is the Maori goddess of mirages. She created the first woman, Marikoriko, from a mirage, and then asked the echo god Paoro to give her a voice. (Wikipedia)
Maman Brigitte
First, a quick lesson. In the Vodou (a.k.a. Voodoo) culture of Haiti and Louisiana, there is a belief in a distant creator god Bondye, who doesn't interfere in human affairs. Instead, there are spirits referred to as Loa, each in control of a specific aspect of life. Maman Brigitte is the Loa of death. She is the wife of another death Loa whose name means 'Baron Saturday' in French. She is said to use profanity and drink rum infused with red peppers, and protects gravestones only if they're properly marked. She is symbolized by a black rooster like the one above. (Wikipedia)
Artemis
Last but not least, Artemis. When we studied Greek mythology in 6th grade, we had to do a project on our favorite god or goddess, and I was the only one to choose her. Most of the other girls did Aphrodite. But even from that young age, she inspired me. She's like an ancient feminist. She fought against rape culture before it even had a name. She hit Bouphagos with an arrow for considering raping her, she turned Sipriotes who tried to rape her into a girl, and turned the river god Alpheus into her own personal spring when he came on to her attendant. But the greatest is when she turned Acteon, who forced himself on her after watching her bathe, into a stag and let her hunting dogs devour him. Believe it or not, she is not actually the goddess of men who can't handle their sex drives, but hunting. She remained a virgin for her entire life, and, when given six wishes by Zeus, she wished to aid women in the pain of childbirth. She was brave enough to approach Hephaestus and the Cyclops, and just ask for her bow and arrows that she wanted so much, when all the other girls were too scared. And she killed the daughters of Niobe, the goddess who boasted that she was better then Artemis' mother Leto. So she's loyal too. I could go on and on, but I recommend this article.
