A Shrine to the Virgin Mary or Marian Shrine, in Christian culture and practice, is a shrine marking an apparition or other miracle ascribed to the Blessed Virgin Mary, or a site on which is centered a historically strong Marian devotion. Such locales are often the destination of Marian pilgrimages .

Many of the shrines have acquired a symbolic value for patriotism and nationalism in their area.

Among the shrines considered most significant for their apparitions:

• Our Lady of Fatima in Fatima, Portugal
• The Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City, Mexico
• The Basilica of Our Lady, Queen of Ireland in Knock, Ireland
• Loreto, Italy
• The Black Madonna of Czestochowa in Czestochowa, Poland
• The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lichen in Lichen (Poland) , Poland
• The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in Lourdes, France
• The Sanctuary of the Black Virgin of Montserrat , Montserrat, Catalonia, Spain
• Our Lady of La Vang in La Vang , Vietnam
• Our Lady of La Salette in La Salette, France
• Our Lady of Walsingham in Walsingham, England
• Our Lady of Ipswich in Ipswich, England
• Our Lady of Ostra Brama in Vilnius, Lithuania
• Basilica of the Virgin Mary, India
• Our Lady of China in Donglu, China
• the Virgin of Sheshan , Help of Christians in Sheshan , China

Other shrines include:

• Our Lady of Bliss near Guiyang, China
• Covadonga, Asturias, Spain.
• Guadalupe , Spain.
• the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary in Longtian , China
• the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes in Qingyang , China
• the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC
• Shrine of Our Lady, Bradstowe
• Valvanera , Spain
• Our Lady of Combermere in Ontario, Canada

Use in Personal Names

In Hispanic culture, Marian shrines are a frequent source of female names of the form María de [...]. Some names omit Mary/María and include only the prominent source of the sobriquet (e.g. Pilar from Nuestra Senora del Pilar, or Lourdes from Our Lady of Lourdes ).

See also

• Marian apparition

External links

• Truly Open Directory Web Page