Abstract
Amongst the most popular Latvian lexemes for spirit or soul belong dvēsele, gars and veļi. Seeking for the more specific nature of each of them and bearing in mind their mythological dimension, these mythologems are analysed within the scope of Latvian burial folksongs, still not omitting etymological and phraseological background.
It turns out the lexeme gars does not occur in this thematic cycle of folksongs, not in terms of meaning one's immaterial part. However, both its widespread use in Christian context in general language as well as the roots of the lexeme reaching back to hot vapour, steam, might cause rather a confusion in distinguishing this mythonym from the next one, dvēsele.
Attested in the earliest Latvian sources and being fairly popular also in the defined core material, dvēsele often represents an umbrella term for soul. Nevertheless, it clearly has its own function too.
In the burial folksongs, this mythologeme appears frequently together with Christian symbols, yet with not so unusual exceptions. The etymology of the word suggests a certain proximity to breath, breathing, and phraseology reveals its connection to kind of a life-force.
Thus, it seems possible dvēsele might be understood as a substance which leaves the body after its death and heads towards other space, according to what is said in burial folksongs, mostly to the God Dievs. The last of the examined lexemes, veļi, occurs in the cycle of burial folksongs typically in the plural genitive form.
The astonishing concentration in the defined material emerges when compared to just a marginal use in the whole corpora of language. Unlike dvēsele, forms derived from veļi embark upon the path linked to grave (ground) where the Mother of veļi and children of veļi constitute a community resembling a large family.