Bees in religion

Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), canonized as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397.

Saint Valentine was a 3rd-century Roman saint, commemorated in Western Christianity on February 14 and in Eastern Orthodoxy on July 6. From the High Middle Ages, his feast day has been associated with a tradition of courtly love. He is also a patron saint of Terni, epilepsy, and beekeepers. Saint Valentine was a clergyman – either a priest or a bishop – in the Roman Empire who ministered to persecuted Christians. He was martyred and his body buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14, which has been observed as the Feast of Saint Valentine since at least the eighth century.

The Bee (Arabic: الْنَّحْل; an-naḥl) is the 16th chapter (sūrah) of the Qur'an, with 128 verses (āyāt). It is named after honey bees mentioned in verse 68, and contains a comparison of the industry and adaptability of honey bees with the industry of man.

Aristaeus (; ) was the mythological culture hero credited with the discovery of many rural useful arts and handicrafts, including beekeeping. He was the son of the huntress Cyrene and Apollo.

Brigid or Brigit ( , ; meaning 'exalted one'), also Bríg, is a goddess of pre-Christian Ireland. She appears in Irish mythology as a member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the daughter of the Dagda and wife of Bres, with whom she had a son named Ruadán.

Melissa is a feminine given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (mélissa), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (meli), "honey". In Hittite, melit signifies "honey". Melissa is a common variant form, with others being Malissa, Melesa, Melessa, Meliza, Mellisa, Melosa, and Molissa.

Bhramari () is the Hindu goddess of bees. She is an incarnation of the goddess Mahadevi in Shaktism.

200px|thumb|Βee goddesses, perhaps one of the Thriae, found at Camiros, [[Rhodes, dated to 7th century BCE (British Museum)]]

Ah Muzen Cab (also Ah Musen Kab) is the Maya god of bees and honey. He is possibly the same figure as "the Descending God" or "the Diving God" and is consistently depicted upside-down. The Temple of the Descending God is located in Tulum. The bees used by the Maya are Melipona beecheii and Melipona yucatanica, species of stingless bee. Ah Muzen Cab is a Melipona bee.

Gold Minoan ornament from Malia is a pectoral pendant consisting of two bees

Mellona or Mellonia was an ancient Roman goddess said by St. Augustine to promote the supply of honey (Latin mel, mellis) as Pomona did for apples and Bubona for cattle. Arnobius describes her as "a goddess important and powerful regarding bees, taking care of and protecting the sweetness of honey."

mythological and historical depictions of bees

Saint Gobnait (?), also known as Gobnat or Mo Gobnat or Abigail or Deborah, is the name of an early medieval female Irish saint whose church was Móin Mór, later Bairnech, in the village of Ballyvourney (), County Cork in Ireland. She is associated with the Múscraige and her church and convent lay on the borders between the Múscraige Mittine and Eóganacht Locha Léin. Her feast day is February 11.

set of mythological Greek characters

thumb|300px|Aristeas and bugonia. Virgil's Georgics. Lyon. 1517 Bugonia (; bougoníā) was a folk practice in the ancient Mediterranean region based on the belief that bees were spontaneously generated from a cow's carcass. By extension, it was thought that fumigation with cow dung was beneficial to the health of the hive.