Iavnana

Iavnana (Georgian: იავნანა) is a genre of Georgian folk song, traditionally intended as a lullaby, but historically sung also as healing songs for the sick children. Some of the Iavnana lyrics are, however, of didactical or heroic character.

The name of the genre comes from its refrain iavnana (or iavnaninao, nana naninao, etc.), which contains the vocable nana (ნანა), purportedly derived from the name of a pagan mother goddess. Some of its variants, e.g., iavnana vardo nana, combine the names of the two flowers violet (ia) and rose (vardi) which frequently feature in Georgian folklore and classical literature, and are commonly associated with feminine and masculine symbols, respectively.