How did foreign writers sometimes misunderstand Baltic gods and rituals?

Foreign writers, particularly Germans who expanded into Baltic lands, often misunderstood Baltic religion due to linguistic barriers and a dogmatic, negative bias rooted in Christian interpretations. Because these conquerors did not understand Baltic languages, many historical documents contain names of gods and divinities that lack any factual basis.1

Furthermore, these accounts were heavily influenced by the Christian worldview of the time, which led to the mischaracterization of indigenous religious practices. For example, in the syncretistic environment where Baltic traditions persisted alongside Christianity, local religious leaders—who were likely clan patriarchs—were labeled as sorcerers (Zauberer) by church authorities, despite being held in high reverence by the Baltic people.12

Later, an uncritical approach by some scholars led to the erroneous identification of "gods" that were actually just etymological derivations from the names of Christian saints. Additionally, some Western European scholars underestimated the importance of Baltic folklore by incorrectly assuming it was on the same level as thoroughly Christianized Western European folklore.1