|Practices and beliefs| Furrina (or Furina), was an ancient
Roman goddess whose function had become obscure by the time of
Varro. Her cult dated to the earliest period of Roman religious
history, since she was one the fifteen deities who had their own
flamen, the Furrinalis, one of the flamines minores. There is
some evidence that Furrina was associated with water. According
to Georges Dumézil Furrina was a goddess of springs, her name
being related to the Indoeuropean root *bhr-u-n, Skr. bhurvan,
indicating the moving or bubbling of water, cognate to Gothic
brunna spring, Latin fervēre, from *fruur > furr by metathesis
of the vowel, meaning to bubble or boil. Compare English
"fervent", "effervescent" and Latin defruutum, boiled wine.
Religious sites The goddess had a sacred spring and a shrine in
Rome, located on the southwestern slopes of Mount Janiculum, on
the right bank of the Tiber. The site has survived to the
present day in the form of a grove, included within the gardens
of Villa Sciarra. Excavation