An Attempt To Date
the Roman And Pagan Gods
G.D.O'Bradovich III
September, 2012
The following are the earliest dates found in the Oxford English Dictionary. Sixteenth century words are in bold.
Saturn, god
Venus, goddess Diana, goddess Jupiter, god Goblin Mercury, god Gorgon Pan, god Satyr Jove, god Minerva, goddess Hydra Cupid Chimera Hell, as place Neptune, god Minotaur Cerberus Medusa Nymph Nereides Sphinx Bacchus, god Tartar, (abode of the dead) Priapus, god Vulcan, god Cyclops Pegasus Scylla Demigod Harpy Bacchanal, orgy Dryad Triton, god Atlas, a god Typhon Hades as place Hades as god Trident, 3 prong staff Juno Hebe,goddess Hecate Chaos, a god Aphrodite Apollonian Nereid Gnome Kraken Adonis, god Undine Zeus |
888
1000 1205 1205 1327 1340 1348 1369 1374 1374 1374 1374 1381 1382 1384 1385 1385 1386 1390 1390 1390 1420 1496 1500-1520 1508 1513 1513 1515 1520 1530 1540 1550 1555 1584 1589 1592 1597 1599 1599 1606 1606 1638 1651 1658 1663 1680 1712 1755 1765 1821 1839 |
Orgy, from the Greek meaning "secret rites, dates from 1589. Orgies date from 1613.
The most interesting idea that one gets from this list is the recentness of these Deities into the English language. The most interesting fact is that Zeus makes an appearance in 1839. This is not a misprint. I did a double take myself. Zeus was so well known that the name did not appear in English until the 19th century. As I tell my apprentices, the good stuff is never written.
We can now understand why the stories associated with the gods, and their offspring, are so varied. Their adventures were, judging from this list, written at various times. Expecting the exploits of three main gods were written simultaneously, we are disappointed to learn that Jupiter (1205), Neptune (1385) and Hades (1599) are separated by almost 400 years.
The gentle reader must keep in mind the overt, and often forgotten, sexual nature of the listed deities. If we can trust the broad outline of the introduction of the gods, then a succession of deities occurs over 400 years. It is reminiscence of the backsliding Jews of the Old Testament. They will follow the god du jour, but not the established religion.
I am reluctant to say that Western Europe was a bacchanal (1550) for this time frame, however the perennial parade of Priapic Pantheons all but lead to this reasonable deduction.
The monogram for Jesus (IHS) dates from the 7th century. One would expect that the "ancient pagan" deities would be as old, or older, than Jesus. However, this is not what Philology indicates. The primordial god Chaos (1651) should be one of the first gods, but is not recorded in English until the 17th century. Clearly, this is a recent back story in an attempt to complete the mythology of creation.
Some of the entities (Goblins, Gnomes, Kraken, Undines) are not Roman deities and have been added to show that recent introduction of these non Continental creatures.
The gentle reader must bear in mind that Christian and Greek were synonymous at an early time. Therefore, the title of this paper is "Roman and Pagan Gods" and not "Roman and Greek Gods" as the Greeks have only one God.
We can now understand why the stories associated with the gods, and their offspring, are so varied. Their adventures were, judging from this list, written at various times. Expecting the exploits of three main gods were written simultaneously, we are disappointed to learn that Jupiter (1205), Neptune (1385) and Hades (1599) are separated by almost 400 years.
The gentle reader must keep in mind the overt, and often forgotten, sexual nature of the listed deities. If we can trust the broad outline of the introduction of the gods, then a succession of deities occurs over 400 years. It is reminiscence of the backsliding Jews of the Old Testament. They will follow the god du jour, but not the established religion.
I am reluctant to say that Western Europe was a bacchanal (1550) for this time frame, however the perennial parade of Priapic Pantheons all but lead to this reasonable deduction.
The monogram for Jesus (IHS) dates from the 7th century. One would expect that the "ancient pagan" deities would be as old, or older, than Jesus. However, this is not what Philology indicates. The primordial god Chaos (1651) should be one of the first gods, but is not recorded in English until the 17th century. Clearly, this is a recent back story in an attempt to complete the mythology of creation.
Some of the entities (Goblins, Gnomes, Kraken, Undines) are not Roman deities and have been added to show that recent introduction of these non Continental creatures.
The gentle reader must bear in mind that Christian and Greek were synonymous at an early time. Therefore, the title of this paper is "Roman and Pagan Gods" and not "Roman and Greek Gods" as the Greeks have only one God.
Adonai ,1483,
Adonis, a plant 1597, Adonian, an ancient festival mourning the death of Adonis, 1651, Adonic, a verse consisting of a dactyl followed by a spondee or troche, 1678, Adonist 1751, One who maintains that points of the Hebrew word translated "Jehovah" are really the vowel points of the word "Adonai." Adonis, a type of wig 1760, Adonis, a God, 1765, Adonean, Of or pertaining to Adonis, about 1864 |
Adonai (1483) is the Hebrew plural for "Lord".
Adonis is a plant as early as 1597. Adonian (1651) is the festival of Adonis who is not recorded until 1765. Adonic refers to poetry and not to Adonis. Adonist refers to Adonai and not Adonis From the above, we can infer that Adonis was the result of the corruption of "Adonai"- Adonai, 1483 Adonist, 1751 Adonis, 1760, a wig Adonis, 1765, a God |