Mary, the mother of Jesus in Christianity, is known by many different titles (Blessed Mother, Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady, Holy Virgin, Madonna), epithets (Star of the Sea, Queen of Heaven, Cause of Our Joy), invocations (Panagia, Mother of Mercy, God-bearer Theotokos), and several names associated with places (Our Lady of Loreto, Our Lady of Fátima). All of these descriptives refer to the same woman named Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ (in the New Testament). They are used differently by Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and some Anglicans. (Note: Mary Magdalene, Mary of Clopas, and Mary Salome are different women.) Some descriptives of Mary are properly titles, dogmatic in nature, while some are invocations. Other descriptives are poetic or allegorical or have lesser or no canonical status, but form part of popular piety, with varying degrees of acceptance by Church authorities. Another class of titles refer to depictions of Mary in Catholic Marian art and in art generally. A rich range of Marian titles also are used in musical settings of pieces dedicated to her.

Historical and cultural context

The relatively large number of titles given to Mary may be explained in several ways. Some titles grew due to geographic and cultural reasons, e.g., through the veneration of specific icons. Others were related to Marian apparitions. Mary's intercession is sought for a large spectrum of human needs in varied situations. This has led to the formulation of many of her titles (good counsel, Help of the Sick, etc.). Moreover, meditations and devotions on the different aspects of Mary's role in the life of Jesus have led to additional titles, such as Our Lady of Sorrows. Still further titles have been derived from dogmas and doctrines, such as, the Assumption of Mary, Dormition of the Mother of God and Immaculate Conception. The veneration of Mary was consolidated in the year 431 when, at the Council of Ephesus, the descriptive, Theotokos, or Mary the bearer (or mother) of God, was declared a dogma. Thereafter Marian devotion, centred on the subtle and complex relationship between Mary, Jesus, and the Church, began to flourish, first in the East and later in the West. The Reformation diminished Mary's role in many parts of Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Council of Trent and Counter Reformation intensified Marian devotion among Roman Catholics. Around the same period, Mary became an instrument of evangelisation in the Americas and parts of Asia and Africa, e.g. gaining impetus from reported apparitions at Our Lady of Guadalupe, which resulted in a large number of conversions to Christianity in Mexico. Following the Reformation, baroque literature on Mary experienced unprecedented growth, with over 500 instances of Mariological writings during the 17th century alone. During the Age of Enlightenment, the emphasis on scientific progress and rationalism put Catholic theology and Mariology often on the defensive later in the 18th century. Books, such as The Glories of Mary by Alphonsus Liguori, were written in defence of the cult of Mary.

Dogmatic titles

In the Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches the Assumption of Mary may be celebrated as the Dormition, or the "Falling Asleep" of the Mother of God, it is an important feast day, not based on a scriptural canon but affirmed by tradition.

Early titles of Mary

"Our Lady" is a common title to give to Mary as a sign of respect and honor. In French she is called "Notre Dame" and in Spanish she is "Nuestra Señora".

Papal actions

Descriptive titles of Mary related to visual arts

Devotional titles

In the Loreto Litanies Mary's prayers are invoked under more than fifty separate titles, such as "Mother Most Pure", "Virgin Most Prudent", and "Cause of Our Joy". Other devotional titles include:

Theological Mariology

With the exception of Jesus Christ, who is believed to have a twofold nature, both human and divine, (dyophysitism), the Blessed Virgin Mary is considered among many Christians to be the unique human being about whom there is a dogma. She is connected to four different dogmas and numerous Marian titles. Christian invocations, titles, and art bear witness to the prominent role she has been accorded in the history and programme of salvation in parts of Christendom, although this is not shared by many (mainly reformed) Christian churches. In the Hail Mary prayer, she is addressed as "full of grace" by Archangel Gabriel of the Annunciation speaking in the Name of God. The Nicene Creed, declares that Jesus was "incarnate by the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary, and was made man,". This has given rise to the descriptive, "spouse of the Holy Spirit". Tradition has it that the Virgin Mother of God was anointed by the Holy Spirit, hence putting her on a par with the anointing of the Kings, Prophets, Judges, and High Priests of Israel, as Jesus Christ is said to have been. This in turn opens the way to titles such as: In the Roman Catholic and in the Orthodox Churches, the Virgin Mother of God is venerated in a special form expressed in Greek as hyperdulia, that is, secondary only to the adoration reserved for the Triune God. She is venerated and honoured in this way since no other being--whether angelic or human--has greater power than Mary to intercede with God in the distribution of Grace to His children.

Titles associated with devotional images

Titles of images related to epithets include: • Our Lady of Confidence • Our Lady of Consolation • Our Lady of Good Success • Our Lady of Guidance • Our Lady of the Hens • Our Lady of Peace • Our Mother of Perpetual Help • Our Lady of Prompt Succor • Our Lady of the Rocks • Our Lady of the Turning Eyes Titles of images related to places of worship include: • Our Lady of Altagracia (Dominican Republic) • Our Lady of Bethlehem • Our Lady of Chartres • Our Lady of Combermere • Our Lady of Covadonga • Our Lady of Ipswich • Our Lady of Joy • Our Lady of Atocha • Santa Marian Kamalen (Guam) • Our Lady of Good Health (India) • Our Lady of Korattymuthy (India) • Our Lady of Lebanon • Our Lady of Loreto • Our Lady of Manaoag • Our Lady of Maulawin • Our Lady of La Naval de Manila • Our Lady of Nazaré • Our Lady of Peñafrancia • Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage of Noveleta • Our Lady of Piat • Our Lady of Porta Vaga • Our Lady of Turumba

Titles associated with apparitions

• Our Lady of Akita • Our Lady of All Nations • Our Lady of Balintawak • Our Lady of Banneux • Our Lady of Beauraing • Our Lady of Cabeza • Our Lady of Caravaggio • Our Lady of China • Our Lady of Coromoto • Our Lady of Fátima • Our Lady of Guadalupe • Our Lady of Good Health • Our Lady of Good Help • Our Lady of the Hens • Our Lady of Kibeho (Mother of the Word) • Our Lady of Knock • Our Lady of La Salette • Our Lady of La Vang • Our Lady of Laus • Our Lady of Lourdes • Our Lady of Maulawin • Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal • Our Lady of Mount Carmel • Our Lady of Pellevoisin • Our Lady of Pontmain • Our Lady of the Pillar • Our Lady of the Snows • Our Lady of Walsingham • Our Lady of Zeitoun

Latin America

A number of titles of Mary found in Latin America pertain to cultic images of her represented in iconography identified with a particular already existent title adapted to a particular place. Our Lady of Luján in Argentina refers to a small terracotta image made in Brazil and sent to Argentina in May, 1630. Its appearance seems to have been inspired by Murillo's Immaculates. Our Lady of Copacabana (Bolivia): is a figure related to devotion to Mary under the title "Most Blessed Virgin de la Candelaria, Our Lady of Copacabana". About four feet in height, the statue was made by Francisco Tito Yupanqui around 1583 and is garbed in the colors and dress of an Inca princess. • Field Marshal of the Army of Paraguay • Nossa Senhora dos Aflitos (Our Lady of the Troubled), Brazil • Nuestra Señora de la Anunciación (Our Lady of the Annunciation) • Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Our Lady of the Assumption) • Our Lady of Aparecida • Our Lady of Carmel of the Maipú • Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico City • Our Lady of the Rosary of Chiquinquirá • Our Lady of the Rosary of San Nicolás, Buenos Aires, Argentina • Virgin de la soledad de Parral (Our Lady of Solitude of Parral), Parral, Mexico • Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles (Our Lady of the Angels), Costa Rica • Virgin of Suyapa (Honduras) • Virgin of the Thirty-Three • Rainha da Floresta (Queen of the Forest), Santo Daime in Brazil • Virgen del Pozo (Our Lady of the Well) Puerto Rico

Titles in the Eastern Orthodox Church

Theotokos means "God-bearer" and is translated as "Mother of God". This title was given to Mary at the Third Ecumenical Council in Ephesus in 431 AD.(cf. Luke 1:43). • Life-giving Spring • Our Mother the Holy Virgin (John 19:27) • Our Lady of Kazan • Our Lady of St. Theodore • Panagia • Panagia tis Angeloktistis • Panagia Episkopi • Panagia Portaitissa • The Queen Who is by the Right Side of the King (from Ps.45:9) • Our Lady of Philermos • Theotokos of Bogolyubovo • Theotokos of Buchyn • Theotokos of Kursk • Theotokos of Miasena • Theotokos of Tikhvin • Theotokos of Tolga • Theotokos of Vladimir

Titles of Mary in Islam

The Qur'an refers to Mary by the following titles:

Citations