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Centaur
A centaur ( ; ; ), occasionally hippocentaur, also called Ixionidae (), is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse that was said to live in the mountains of Thessaly. In one version of the myth, the centaurs were named after Centaurus (Greek mythology), Centaurus, and, through his brother Lapithes (hero), Lapithes, were kin to the legendary tribe of the Lapiths. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as being as wild as untamed horses, and were said to have inhabited the region of Magnesia (regional unit), Magnesia and Mount Pelion in Thessaly, the Foloi oak forest in Ancient Elis, Elis, and the Malean peninsula in southern Laconia. Centaurs are subsequently featured in Roman mythology, and were familiar figures in the medieval bestiary. They remain a staple of modern fantastic literature. Etymology The Greek word ''kentauros'' is generally regarded as being of obscure origin. The etymology from ''ken'' + ''tau ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lapiths
The Lapiths (; , ''Lapithai'', Grammatical number, sing. Λαπίθης) were a group of legendary people in Greek mythology, who lived in Thessaly in the valley of the Pineios (Thessaly), Pineios and on the mountain Pelion. They were believed to have descended from the mythical Lapithes (hero), Lapithes, brother of Centaurus (Greek mythology), Centaurus, with the two heroes giving their names to the races of the Lapiths and the Centaur, Centaurs respectively. The Lapiths are best known for their involvement in the ''Centauromachy'' (), a mythical fight that broke out between them and the Centaurs during Pirithous and Hippodamia (wife of Pirithous), Hippodamia's wedding. Mythology Origin The Lapiths were an Aeolians, Aeolian tribe who, like the Myrmidons, were natives of Thessaly. The genealogies make them a kindred people with the centaurs: In one version, Lapithes (hero), Lapithes (Λαπίθης) and Centaurus (Greek mythology), Centaurus (Κένταυρος) were said to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Centaurus (Greek Mythology)
In Greek mythology, Centaurus () is the son of Apollo and Stilbe, daughter of the River gods (Greek mythology), river-god Peneus, Peneius and the naiad Creusa (Naiad), Creusa. He is the twin brother of the hero Lapithes (hero), LapithesDiodorus Siculus4.69.1/ref> and father of the race of mythological beasts known as the Centaurs or Ixionidae (Ιξιονίδαι, ''Ixionidai''). The Centaurs are half-man, half horse; having the torso of a man extending where the neck of a horse should be. They were a kindred people with the Lapiths and were said to be wild, savage, and lustful. Mythology After Ixion, king of the Lapiths, fell into insanity and was ostracized by his people, Zeus sympathized greatly with Ixion and brought him up to Mount Olympus, Olympus to dine with the gods. There Ixion saw Hera, Zeus' wife and queen of the gods, with whom he fell instantly in love and began to desire her sexually. Zeus, suspicious of Ixion, set for him a trap by fashioning a figure from cloud ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satyr
In Greek mythology, a satyr (, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( ), and sileni (plural), is a male List of nature deities, nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, exaggerated erection. Early artistic representations sometimes include horse-like legs, but, by the sixth century BC, they were more often represented with human legs. Comically hideous, they have mane-like hair, bestial faces, and snub noses and they always are shown naked. Satyrs were characterized by their ribaldry and were known as lovers of wine, music, dancing, and women. They were companions of the god Dionysus and were believed to inhabit remote locales, such as woodlands, mountains, and pastures. They often attempted to seduce or rape nymphs and mortal women alike, usually with little success. They are sometimes shown masturbation, masturbating or engaging in bestiality. In classical Athens, satyrs made up the Greek chorus, chorus in a genre of play kn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hybrid Beasts In Folklore
Hybrid beasts are creatures composed of parts from different animals, including Human-animal hybrids, humans, appearing in the folklore of a variety of cultures as legendary creatures. In burial sites Remains similar to those of mythological hybrids have been found in burial sites discovered by archaeologists. Known combinations include horse-cows, sheep-cows, and a six-legged sheep. The skeletons were formed by ancient peoples who joined together body parts from animal carcasses of different species. The practice is believed to have been done as an offering to their gods. Description These forms' Motif (narrative), motifs appear across cultures in many mythologies around the world. Such hybrids can be classified as partly human hybrids (such as mermaids or centaurs) or non-human hybrids combining two or more non-human animal species (such as the griffin or the chimera (mythology), chimera). Hybrids often originate as zoomorphic deities who, over time, are given an anthropomorp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minotaur
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur (, ''Mīnṓtauros''), also known as Asterion, is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "part man and part bull". He dwelt at the center of the Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze-like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, upon command of King Minos of Crete. According to tradition, every nine years the people of Athens were compelled by King Minos to choose Sacrificial victims of the Minotaur, fourteen young noble citizens (seven men and seven women) to be offered as sacrificial victims to the Minotaur in retribution for the death of Minos's son Androgeus (son of Minos), Androgeos. The Minotaur was eventually slain by the Athenian hero Theseus, who managed to navigate the labyrinth with the help of a thread offered to him by the King's daughter, Ariadne. Etymology The word "Minotaur" derives from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Foloi Oak Forest
The Folóï oak forest () is an oak forest in southwestern Greece. It is located in the municipal unit of Foloi, Olympia, Elis, in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The Folóï oak forest is situated at an altitude of 688m, on the plateau of the Folóï mountain. It is an ecosystem unique in the Balkan peninsula and consists of a territory of , which is almost entirely covered by deciduous oaks that form a dense forest area. Mythology The Pholóē oak forest was known to Ancient Greeks, because of its proximity to many of their settlements in the Elis region. The mysterious beauty of the forest inspired them to believe that it was a habitat of centaurs and dryads. They gave the forest the name ''Pholóē'' (, modern Greek pronunciation: Folóï) and the chief of the Centaurs the name ''Phólos'' (). The dryads () were "oak spirits" of the forest. Flora The broadleaf oak, ''Quercus frainetto'' (Hungarian oak) is the primary species of oak in the forest, and it cover ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Legendary Creature
A legendary creature is a type of extraordinary or supernatural being that is described in folklore (including myths and legends), and may be featured in historical accounts before modernity, but has not been scientifically shown to exist. In the classical era, monstrous creatures such as the Cyclops and the Minotaur appear in heroic tales for the protagonist to destroy. Other creatures, such as the unicorn, were claimed in accounts of natural history by various scholars of antiquity. Some legendary creatures are Hybrid beasts in folklore, hybrid beasts. Some legendary creatures originated in traditional mythology and were believed to be real creatures--for example, dragons, griffins and unicorns. Others are based on real encounters or garbled accounts of travellers' tales, such as the Vegetable Lamb of Tartary, a sheeplike animal which supposedly grew tethered to the earth. Creatures A variety of mythical animals appear in the art and stories of the classical era. For exampl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greek Mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories concern the ancient Greek religion's view of the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, nature of the world; the lives and activities of List of Greek deities, deities, Greek hero cult, heroes, and List of Greek mythological creatures, mythological creatures; and the origins and significance of the ancient Greeks' cult (religious practice), cult and ritual practices. Modern scholars study the myths to shed light on the religious and political institutions of ancient Greece, and to better understand the nature of mythmaking itself. The Greek myths were initially propagated in an oral tradition, oral-poetic tradition most likely by Minoan civilization, Minoan and Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean singers starting in the 18th century&n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Etymology
Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. Most directly tied to historical linguistics, philology, and semiotics, it additionally draws upon comparative semantics, morphology, pragmatics, and phonetics in order to attempt a comprehensive and chronological catalogue of all meanings and changes that a word (and its related parts) carries throughout its history. The origin of any particular word is also known as its ''etymology''. For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts, particularly texts about the language itself, to gather knowledge about how words were used during earlier periods, how they developed in meaning and form, or when and how they entered the language. Etymologists also apply the methods of comparative linguistics to reconstruct in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euhemerism
In the fields of philosophy and mythography, euhemerism () is an approach to the interpretation of mythology in which mythological accounts are presumed to have originated from real historical events or personages. Euhemerism supposes that historical accounts become myths as they are exaggerated in the retelling, accumulating elaborations and alterations that reflect cultural mores. It was named after the Greek mythographer Euhemerus, who lived in the late 4th century BC. In the more recent literature of myth, such as '' Bulfinch's Mythology'', euhemerism is termed the "historical theory" of mythology. Euhemerus was not the first to attempt to rationalize mythology in historical terms: euhemeristic views are found in earlier writings including those of Sanchuniathon, Xenophanes, Herodotus, Hecataeus of Abdera and Ephorus. However, the enduring influence of Euhemerus upon later thinkers such as the classical poet Ennius (b. 239 BC) and modern author Antoine Banier (b. 1673 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palaephatus
Palaephatus (Ancient Greek: ) was the author of a rationalizing text on Greek mythology, the paradoxographical work ''On Incredible Things'' (; ), which survives in a (probably corrupt) Byzantine edition. This work consists of an introduction and 52 brief sections on various Greek myths. The first 45 have a common format: a brief statement of a wonder tale from Greek mythology, usually followed by a claim of disbelief ("This is absurd" or "This is not likely" or "The true version is..."), and then a sequence of every-day occurrences which gave rise to the wonder-story through misunderstanding. The last seven are equally brief retellings of myth, without any rationalizing explanation. Palaephatus's date and name are uncertain; many scholars have concluded that the name "Palaephatus" is a pseudonym. What little evidence is extant suggests that the author was likely active during the late fourth century BCE. ''On Incredible Things'' Palaephatus's introduction sets his approach betw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Attica
Attica (, ''Attikḗ'' (Ancient Greek) or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital city, capital of Greece and the core city of the metropolitan area, as well as its surrounding suburban cities and towns. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Sea, bordering on Boeotia to the north and Megaris to the west. The southern tip of the peninsula, known as Laurion, Lavrio, was an important Mines of Laurion, mining region. The history of Attica is closely linked with that of Athens. In ancient times, Attica corresponded with the Athens city-state. It was the most prominent region in Ancient Greece, specifically during the Golden Age of Athens in the Classical Greece, classical period. Classical Athens, Ancient Attica (the classical Classical Athens, Athens city-state) was divided into deme, demoi, or municipalities, from the reform of Cleisthenes in 508/7 BC, gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
