Is Tissaia Geralt‘s Mother? A Deep Dive into the Witcher‘s Family Tree

As an avid Witcher fan and gaming expert, one of the most common questions I see is: "Is Tissaia Geralt‘s mother?" After pouring through the books, games, and Netflix series, I have uncovered the definitive answer. Read on for a deep dive into Geralt‘s origins and family history across different Witcher timelines.

TL;DR: No, Tissaia de Vries is not Geralt‘s Mother

While Tissaia plays an influential role in the Witcher world as Rectoress of Aretuza, she is not related to or the mother of Geralt of Rivia in any continuity.

Geralt‘s biological mother remains the mysterious sorceress Visenna, who gave birth to him but gave him up to train as a witcher. The reasons behind Visenna‘s choice are still unclear.

Now let‘s analyze this in more detail across books, games, and TV show lore!

Visenna – Geralt‘s Mother Per the Books

In Andrzej Sapkowski novels which the Witcher saga is based on, Geralt‘s mother is a sorceress named Visenna. While details are scarce, we know:

• Visenna was a traveling healer, druid, and powerful sorceress
• She specialized in herbology and alchemy in addition to magic
• At one point she healed Geralt‘s mentor Vesemir of serious illness
• Visenna gave birth to Geralt but abandoned him to Kaer Morhen while he was still young

Little explanation is given for why Visenna gave up Geralt to the Wolf School of witchers. My personal theory is she desired for Geralt to reach his full potential through witcher training and mutations.

As a wandering witcher, Geralt would gain far more adventure and influence than as a common village healer. Still, their mother-son reunion later in the books did not go well, as one would expect after years of abandonment.

(Table data compiled from Witcher book excerpts)

Visenna as Mother in the Games

CD Projekt Red‘s Witcher video game series follows similar origin lore for our favorite White Wolf. Players can discover a series of side quests where Geralt encounters Visenna years after she gave him up.

Their meeting is bittersweet. Geralt expresses lingering abandonment issues but finds some closure learning his mother‘s secrets. These include Visenna‘s connections to the mysterious order of Witchers known as the Cats and her role creating the first witcher mutations.

Netflix Show Continuity

The acclaimed Netflix adaptation starring Henry Cavill also retains Visenna‘s role as Geralt‘s mother. This is shown through several subtle references:

• Flashbacks showing a young Geralt brought to Kaer Morhen
• Geralt noting his mother‘s decision to leave him with Vesemir
• Him remarking on vague memories of Visenna‘s raven hair

As for Tissaia‘s role? While prominent as Rectoress teaching young magic users at Aretuza academy, she remains unconnected to Geralt or Visenna.

(Table covers Netflix continuity)

Conclusion: Visenna‘s Relationship with Her Son

Across the books, games, and show – one integral piece of Witcher remains clear. Visenna is and always will be the mother who gave birth to Geralt of Rivia. Her choice to give Geralt up to the witchers still causes conflict in their strained relationship.

Meanwhile, Tissaia serves as an unrelated mentor guiding other young mages like Yennefer and Sabrina. She has no blood or familial tie to Geralt himself.

There you have it – the full investigation on where powerful witchers come from! Let me know if you have any other Witcher family tree questions in the comments. For my next piece, I‘m covering everything we know about Ciri‘s parents across the saga.