Mama Oclo
Mythic, worshipped by the Incas, Central and Southern Andes, South America, 1197–1532
A central figure in most versions of the Inca origin myth, Mama Oclo (Ocllo, Oqllu, Uqllu, Ogllo) was married to her brother Manco Capac and gave birth to the first great ruler of the Inca empire, Sinchi Roca, the first figure in Inca mythology whose existence is supported by archaeological evidence. Believed to have founded the city of Cuzco, Mama Oclo and her siblings were considered intermediaries between the creator god and humans, charged with a mission of civilizing the earth and organizing its people into a community. In some versions of the myth, this god is the creator Viracocha, and in others he is the sun god Inti. Although her existence has not been proven, Mama Oclo was nonetheless worshipped as a wise maternal figure and fertility goddess who taught the Inca women to weave cloth and build houses.
