Among the Proto-Indo-European Yamna or Yamnaya tribes the Sun Goddess reigned, and before her came the Dawn. The Yamna, also called the Horse or Steppe people, were among the earliest to colonize vast swathes of land. Their ancestors settled the Steppe about 6400 - 3500 BCE.
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With them they brought the culture of the Sun Goddess, the Earth Mother, Sky God, Divine Twins, Goddess of the Dawn and creation mythology. The people dwelt south of the Danube between the northern Caspian and Black Seas. It was the Yamna who first domesticated horses on the Ponti-Caspian steppe.
Before the Bronze Age of c. 3300 BCE, the people worked with stone and natural metals such as copper, one of the metals of antiquity. Metal mining for gold, silver and copper began in Egypt 3700 to 3000 BCE.
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Metals such as copper and gold were associated with the Sun and came to represent this solar deity in mythologies throughout the world. The ruddy glow of copper pays homage to the dawn.
In the Proto-Indo-European cosmology H₂éwsōs or Hausos is the Goddess of the Dawn and sister to the Divine Twins. She's considered the predecessor of the Dawn Goddess Aurora of the Romans, and the Greek Sun God Helios, both of whom bear versions of her name. In some mythology Dawn combines with the Sun Goddess.
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The Dawn Goddess is up before the Sun to drive away the night and tinge the dark horizon with her soul-warming light. In the far north lands of endless night, the appearance of the Dawn is a symbol of hope and cause for celebration as her visits grow longer.
Even today hope is associated with the Dawn. Vampires and evil spirits lose their powers at dawn. The cock crows when he sees the glow of her face.
The new day is a blessing of beginnings, replaying the birth-life-death-rebirth cycles at measurable intervals. In the days of prehistory, understanding of her steady but slowly fluctuating appearance measures time and rules the activity of farmers and nomads alike.
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Calendars based on the movement of the Sun or Moon or both were known since 9,000 BCE. The first official calendar was Sumerian, c. 2,100 BC in which a year is divided into 12 lunar months of 29 or 30 days. Each month began with the sighting of a new moon. Around 2050 BCE the Egyptians came out with their own version, the first solar calendar.
In many mythologies the Dawn and Dawn Goddess are celebrated as bringer of light. In Proto-Indo-European myth, she's the daughter of the Sky or Sky God. In nature myth the name of a God or Goddess is often also the physical manifestation, making no distinction between the deity and the event.
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The German Goddess Ēostre also takes her name from the Proto-Indo-European root H₂éwsōs, though she's celebrated as a Goddess of the season of Spring rather than the spirit of dawn. Her meaning, of cycles, rebirth and beginnings, is similar to that of the Dawn Goddess.
Other Dawn Goddesses include the Slavic Zorya, Hindu Ushas and Greek Eos. In Sioux mythology, Anpao, spirit of the dawn, has two faces. In Munag Sumalâ, the golden Kapampangan serpent child of Aring Sinukuan represents dawn. Colors associated with the Dawn goddess are those of the Sun: hues of red, gold, saffron, orange, amber, yellow and white.
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