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There was a farmer who had a dog,
And Bingo was his name-o.
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name-o.
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.[a] 2 The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.”
In Hinduism the Conch is an attribute of Vishnu as is the Wheel (Sudarshana). Vaishnavism holds that Shakyamuni Buddha is an Avatar of Vishnu.
The conch shell is thought to have been the original horn-trumpet; ancient Indian mythical epics relate heroes carrying conch shells. The Indian god Vishnu is also described as having a conch shell as one of his main emblems; his shell bore the name Panchajanya meaning "having control over the five classes of beings".[3]
Shankha is used as a material for making bangles, bracelets and other objects.[9] Due to its aquatic origin and resemblance to the vulva, it has become an integral part of the Tantric rites. In view of this, its symbolism is also said to represent female fertility. Since water itself is a fertility symbol, shankha, which is an aquatic product is recognised as symbolic of female fertility. In ancient Greece, shells, along with pearls, are mentioned as denoting sexual love and marriage, and also mother goddesses.[7]
Different magic and sorcery items are also closely connected with this trumpet. This type of device existed long before the Buddhist era.
Shankha's significance is traced to the nomadic times of the animists who used the sound emanating from this unique shell to drive away evil demons of whom they were scared.[8] The same is still believed in Hinduism.[5] Over the centuries, the shankha was adopted as one of the divine symbols of Hinduism.[8]
The sound of the shankha symbolises the sacred Om sound. Vishnu holding the conch represents him as the god of sound.
are a sacred suite of Eight Auspicious Signs endemic to a number of Indian religions such as Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.
Groupings of eight auspicious symbols were originally used in India at ceremonies such as an investiture or coronation of a king. An early grouping of symbols included: throne, swastika, handprint, hooked knot, vase of jewels, water libation flask, pair of fishes, lidded bowl. In Buddhism, these eight symbols of good fortune represent the offerings made by the gods to Shakyamuni Buddha immediately after he gained enlightenment.[3]
The endless knot has been described as "an ancient symbol representing the interweaving of the Spiritual path, the flowing of Time and Movement within That Which is Eternal.
Since the knot has no beginning or end it also symbolizes the wisdom of the Buddha.
Because there is no visible beginning or ending, it may represent immortality and eternity—as does the more complicated Buddhist Endless Knot.
Solomon's Knot appears on tombstones and mausoleums in Jewish graveyards and catacombs in many nations. In this context, Solomon's Knot is currently interpreted to symbolize eternity.
Mandala (Sanskrit: मण्डल Maṇḍala, 'circle') is a spiritual and ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the Universe.[1] The basic form of most mandalas is a square with four gates containing a circle with a center point. Each gate is in the general shape of a T.
Fibonacci sequences appear in biological settings,[8] in two consecutive Fibonacci numbers, such as branching in trees, arrangement of leaves on a stem, the fruitlets of a pineapple,[9] the flowering of artichoke, an uncurling fern and the arrangement of a pine cone.[10] In addition, numerous poorly substantiated claims of Fibonacci numbers or golden sections in nature are found in popular sources, e.g., relating to the breeding of rabbits in Fibonacci's own unrealistic example, the seeds on a sunflower, the spirals of shells, and the curve of waves.[51] The Fibonacci numbers are also found in the family tree of honeybees.[52]
What is physics? Physics is nothing but the laws of harmony that you can write on vibrating strings. What is chemistry? Chemistry is nothing but the melodies you can play on interacting vibrating strings. What is the universe? The universe is a symphony of vibrating strings.
conscience (n.)
early 13c., from Old French conscience "conscience, innermost thoughts, desires, intentions; feelings" (12c.), from Latin conscientia "knowledge within oneself, sense of right, a moral sense," from conscientem (nominative consciens), present participle of conscire "be (mutually) aware," from com- "with," or "thoroughly" (see com-) + scire "to know" (see science).
Probably a loan-translation of Greek syneidesis, literally "with-knowledge." Sometimes nativized in Old English/Middle English as inwit. Russian also uses a loan-translation, so-vest, "conscience," literally "with-knowledge."
cochlea (n.)
"spiral cavity of the inner ear," 1680s, from Latin cochlea "snail shell," from Greek kokhlias "snail, screw," etc., from kokhlos "spiral shell," perhaps related to konkhos "mussel, conch."
(kŏngk) Conk
n.
The head.
A blow, especially on the head.
Chiefly British. The human nose.
conk (v.)
as in conk out, 1918, coined by World War I airmen, perhaps in imitation of the sound of a stalling motor, reinforced by conk (v.) "hit on the head," originally "punch in the nose" (1821), from conk (n.), slang for "nose" (1812), perhaps from fancied resemblance to a conch (pronounced "conk") shell.
cockle (n.1)
type of mollusk, early 14c., from Old French coquille (13c.) "scallop, scallop shell; mother of pearl; a kind of hat," altered (by influence of coque "shell") from Vulgar Latin *conchilia, from Latin conchylium "mussel, shellfish," from Greek konkhylion "little shellfish," from konkhe "mussel, conch." Phrase cockles of the heart (1660s) is perhaps from similar shape, or from Latin corculum, diminutive of cor "heart."
Strombus is a genus of medium to large sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Strombidae, which comprises the true conchs and their immediate relatives.
idea (n.)
late 14c., "archetype of a thing in the mind of God; Platonic `idea,'" from Latin idea "idea,"
and in Platonic philosophy "archetype," from Greek idea "ideal prototype,"
literally "the look of a thing (as opposed to the reality); form; kind, sort, nature,"
from idein "to see," from PIE *wid-es-ya-,
suffixed form of root *weid- "to see" (see vision).
According to Freud the id is unconscious by definition:
"It is the dark, inaccessible part of our personality,
what little we know of it we have learned from our study of the Dreamwork
and of the construction of neurotic symptoms, and most of that is of a
negative character and can be described only as a contrast to the ego. "
and ultimately comes from PIE *pag- ("to fix").[11]
Verb[edit]
present active pango, present infinitive pangere, perfect active pepigi, supine pactum
I fasten, fix, set; drive or sink in.
I set or plant something in the ground.
(figuratively) I settle, determine, agree, conclude, stipulate, fix; pledge.
conceive (v.)
late 13c., conceiven, "take (seed) into the womb, become pregnant,"
from stem of Old French conceveir (Modern French concevoir),
from Latin concipere (past participle conceptus) "to take in and hold; become pregnant,"
from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + comb. form of capere "to take," from PIE *kap- "to grasp"
(see capable). Meaning "take into the mind" is from mid-14c., a figurative sense also
found in the Old French and Latin words. Related: Conceived; conceiving.
com-
word-forming element usually meaning "with, together," from Latin com,
archaic form of classical Latin cum "together, together with, in combination,"
from PIE *kom- "beside, near, by, with" (cf. Old English ge-, German ge-).
The prefix in Latin sometimes was used as an intensive.
capable (adj.)
1560s, from Middle French capable or directly from Late Latin capabilis
"receptive; able to grasp or hold," used by theologians, from Latin capax
"able to hold much, broad, wide, roomy;" also "receptive, fit for;"
adjectival form of capere "to grasp, lay hold, take, catch; undertake;
take in, hold; be large enough for; comprehend," from PIE *kap- "to grasp"
(cf. Sanskrit kapati "two handfuls;" Greek kaptein "to swallow, gulp down;"
Lettish kampiu "seize;" Old Irish cacht "servant-girl," literally "captive;"
Welsh caeth "captive, slave;" Gothic haban "have, hold;" Old English hæft "handle,"
habban "to have, hold," Modern English have).
carpo
pluck, carp, enjoy, pick, split, pick off
PIE *kerp- "to gather, pluck, harvest" (see harvest (n.)).
dies
day, time, timespan, space of time, lifetime, day-time
Deus Divus
God, Deity, Spirit
A shell of the Florida crown conch Melongena corona inhabited by a hermit crab
Cancer
Latin cancer "a crab," later, "malignant tumor," from Greek karkinos,
which, like the Modern English word, has three meanings: crab, tumor, and the zodiac constellation
(late Old English), from PIE root *qarq- "to be hard" (like the shell of a crab);
cf. Sanskrit karkatah "crab," karkarah "hard;" and perhaps
cognate with PIE root *qar-tu- "hard, strong," source of English hard.
lobster (n.)
marine shellfish, Old English loppestre "lobster, locust," corruption of Latin locusta, lucusta "lobster, locust," by influence of Old English loppe "spider," a variant of lobbe. The ending of Old English loppestre is the fem. agent noun suffix (cf. Baxter, Webster; see -ster), which approximated the Latin sound.
Perhaps a transferred use of the Latin word;
trilobite fossils in Worcestershire limestone quarries were known colloquially as locusts,
which seems to be the generic word for "unidentified arthropod," as apple is for "foreign fruit."
OED says the Latin word originally meant "lobster or some similar crustacean, the application to the
locust being suggested by the resemblance in shape." Locusta in the sense "lobster" also appears in French (langouste now "crawfish, crayfish," but in Old French "lobster" and "locust;" a 13c. psalter has God giving over the crops of Egypt to the langoustes) and Old Cornish (legast).
sea-lion (n.)
c.1600, "kind of lobster," from sea + lion. Later the name of a fabulous animal (in heraldry, etc.), 1660s. Applied from 1690s to various species of large eared seals.
At the moment, the Sea-lion is prominent in the Philippines, where it features on the coat-of-arms of its capital, primatial see, and its President's Seal.
The English name of Singapore is derived from the Malay word Singapura (Sanskrit: सिंहपुर, literally Lion City), hence the customary reference to the nation as the Lion City.
chelate (adj.)
"having pincer-like claws," 1826 as a term in zoology;
1920 in chemistry, from Modern Latin chela "claw" (from Greek khele "claw, talon, cloven hoof;"
see chelicerae) + -ate (2). Related: Chelated; chelating; chelation.
Excalibur (n.)
King Arthur's sword, c.1300, from Old French Escalibor,
corruption of Caliburn, in Geoffrey of Monmouth (c.1140) Caliburnus,
apparently from Welsh Caledvwlch probably a variant of the legendary Irish sword name Caladbolg
which may be literally "hard-belly," i.e. "voracious." For first element, see callus; for second,
see belly (n.).
sword (n.)
Old English sweord, from Proto-Germanic *swerdan
(cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian swerd, Old Norse sverð, Swedish svärd, Middle Dutch swaert,
Dutch zwaard, Old High German swert, German Schwert), related to Old High German sweran "to hurt,"
from *swertha-, literally "the cutting weapon," from PIE root *swer- (3) "to cut, pierce."
swear (v.)
Old English swerian "take an oath" (class VI strong verb; past tense swor, past participle sworen),
from Proto-Germanic *swarjan-, (cf. Old Saxon swerian, Old Norse sverja, Danish sverge, Old Frisian swera, Middle Dutch swaren, Old High German swerien, German schwören, Gothic swaren "to swear"),
from PIE root *swer- (1) "to speak, talk, say" (cf. Old Church Slavonic svara "quarrel").
Also related to the second element in answer. The secondary sense of "use bad language" (early 15c.)
developed from the notion of "invoke sacred names."
glaive (v.)
late 13c., used in Middle English of various weapons,
from Old French glaive "lance, spear, sword," also figuratively used for "violent death"
(12c.), from Latin gladius "sword" (see gladiator); influenced by clava "knotty branch, cudgel, club,"
related to clavus "nail."
nail (n.)
Old English negel "metal pin," nægl "fingernail (handnægl), toenail,"
from Proto-Germanic *naglaz (cf. Old Norse nagl "fingernail,"
nagli "metal nail;" Old Saxon and Old High German nagel, Old Frisian neil,
Middle Dutch naghel, Dutch nagel, German Nagel "fingernail, small metal spike"),
from PIE root *(o)nogh "nail" (cf. Greek onyx "claw, fingernail;" Latin unguis "nail, claw;"
Old Church Slavonic noga "foot," noguti "nail, claw;" Lithuanian naga "hoof," nagutis "fingernail;"
Old Irish ingen, Old Welsh eguin "nail, claw").
In Sanskrit, a nāgá (नाग) is a cobra, a specific type of snake (hooded snake). A synonym for nāgá is phaṇin (फणिन्). There are several words for "snake" in general, and one of the very commonly used ones is sarpá (सर्प). Sometimes the word nāgá is also used generically to mean "snake".[1][2] The word is cognate with English 'snake', Germanic: *snēk-a-, Proto-IE: *(s)nēg-o-.[3]
crawl (v.)
c.1200, creulen, from a Scandinavian source, perhaps Old Norse krafla "to claw (one's way),"
from the same root as crab (n.1). If there was an Old English *craflian, it has not been recorded.
Related: Crawled; crawling.
reptile (n.)
late 14c., "creeping or crawling animal," from Old French reptile (early 14c.)
and directly from Late Latin reptile, noun use of neuter of reptilis (adj.) "creping, crawling,"
from rept-, past participle stem of repere "to crawl, creep," from PIE root *rep- "to creep, crawl"
(cf. Lithuanian replioju "to creep").
Jacob's Ladder by William Blake (c. 1800, British Museum, London)
After waking up, Jacob exclaimed: "This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!" Subsequently, he called the place Bet-El, which translates to "House of God".
Bonsai (盆栽?, lit. plantings in tray, from bon, a tray or low-sided pot and sai, a planting or plantings, About this sound pronunciation (help·info))[1] is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ. The Japanese tradition dates back over a thousand years, and has its own aesthetics and terminology.
These creations of carefully pruned trees and rocks are small-scale renditions of natural landscapes. They are often referred to as living sculptures or as three-dimensional poetry. Their artistic composition captures the spirit of nature and distinguishes them from ordinary potted plants.
In the Tang dynasty, a set of four important qualities for the rocks were recognized. They are: thinness (shou), openness (tou), perforations (lou), and wrinkling (zhou).[1]
Chinese scholar's rocks influenced the development of Korean suseok and Japanese suiseki.[3]
The Marble Boat pavilion in the garden of the Beijing Summer Palace (1755)
The Lion Grove Garden in Suzhou (1342), known for its fantastic and grotesque rocks
Yun Shouping's Mogu painting: Lotus Flower Breaking the Surface
According to Chinese tradition, bird-and-flower painting covers "flowers, birds, fish, and insects" (Traditional Chinese: 花鳥魚蟲, Simplified Chinese: 花鸟鱼虫 huā, niǎo, yú, chóng). It can thus deal with a wide range of natural topics, including flowers (plants), fish, insects, birds, pets (dogs, cats) etc.
From the days of their common origin, Chinese painting and Chinese writing have been allied arts. They use the same equipment and share aims, techniques, and standards. Ever since the beginning, bamboo has been written and also been painted in the same manner, in other words, a work depicting bamboo is both a painting and a piece of calligraphy. There are so-called “bamboo painters” who all their lives paint only bamboo. The bamboo is strong, upright, and dependable. He may bend with the wind, the storm and the rain, but he never breaks. He is a true gentleman of courage and endurance (Ju 1989).
According to Ch'eng Hsi:
Shan shui painting is a kind of painting which goes against the common definition of what a painting is. Shan shui painting refutes color, light and shadow and personal brush work. Shan shui painting is not an open window for the viewer's eye, it is an object for the viewer's mind. Shan shui painting is more like a vehicle of philosophy.[5]
The Wu Xing, (五行 wŭ xíng) also known as the Five Elements, Five Phases, the Five Agents, the Five Movements, Five Processes, and the Five Steps/Stages, is a fivefold conceptual scheme that many traditional Chinese fields used to explain a wide array of phenomena, from cosmic cycles to the interaction between internal organs, and from the succession of political regimes to the properties of medicinal drugs.
After it came to maturity in the second or first century BCE during the Han dynasty, this device was employed in many fields of early Chinese thought, including seemingly disparate fields such as geomancy or Feng shui, astrology, traditional Chinese medicine, music, military strategy and martial arts. The system is still used as a reference in some forms of complementary and alternative medicine and martial arts.
Feng shui (UK Listeni/ˌfɛŋ ˈʃuːi/;[1] US /fʌŋ ʃweɪ/;[2] pinyin: fēng shuǐ, pronounced [fɤ́ŋ ʂwèi] ( listen)) is a Chinese philosophical system of harmonizing the human existence with our surrounding environment. Feng Shui is one of the Five Arts of Chinese Metaphysics, classified as Physiognomy (observation of appearances through formulas and calculations). The Feng Shui practice was created so humans can work with the omnipresent invisible forces that bind the Universe, Earth, and man together, known as Qi/Chi/Energy.
The term feng shui literally translates as "wind-water" in English. This is a cultural shorthand taken from the passage of the now-lost Classic of Burial recorded in Guo Pu's commentary:[5]
Qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water.[5]
"Kakesuzuri funa dansu were Edo period shipboard chests for seals, money, charts and documents."
Al-Ħajaru l-Aswad, "the Black Stone", is located in the Kaaba's eastern corner. Its northern corner is known as the Ruknu l-ˤĪrāqī, "the Iraqi corner", its western as the Ruknu sh-Shāmī, "the Levantine corner", and its southern as Ruknu l-Yamanī "the Yemeni corner".[1][6] The four corners of the Kaaba roughly point toward the four cardinal directions of the compass.[1] Its major (long) axis is aligned with the rising of the star Canopus toward which its southern wall is directed, while its minor axis (its east-west facades) roughly align with the sunrise of summer solstice and the sunset of winter solstice.[7][8]
To anyone living in the northern hemisphere, but far enough south to see the star, it served as a southern pole star. This lasted only until magnetic compasses became common.
To the Bedouin people of the Negev and Sinai, Canopus is known as Suhayl. It and Polaris are the two principal stars used for navigation at night. Due to the fact that it disappears below the horizon, it became associated with a cowardly or changeable nature, as opposed to always-visible Polaris, which was circumpolar and hence 'steadfast'.[35]
The Maori people of New Zealand/Aotearoa had several different names for Canopus. Ariki ("High-born"), was known as a solitary star that appeared in the east, prompting people to weep and chant.[25] They also named it Atutahi, Aotahi or Atuatahi, "Stand Alone".[26]
An Egyptian priestly poet of the time of Thutmose III wrote of it as Karbana, "the star which pours his light in a glance of fire, When he disperses the morning dew."[15]
In Greek mythology, Canopus (or Canobus) was the pilot of the ship of King Menelaus of Sparta during the Trojan War.
One from the legend of the Trojan War, where the constellation Carina was once part of the now-obsolete constellation of Argo Navis, which represented the ship used by Jason and the Argonauts. The brightest star in the constellation was given the name of a ship's pilot from another Greek legend: Canopus, pilot of Menelaus' ship on his quest to retrieve Helen of Troy after she was taken by Paris.
pirate (n.)
c.1300 (mid-13c. as a surname), from Latin pirata "sailor, corsair, sea robber"
(source of Spanish, Italian pirata, Dutch piraat, German Pirat), literally "one who attacks (ships),"
from Greek peirates "brigand, pirate," literally "one who attacks," from peiran "to attack,
make a hostile attempt on, try," from peira "trial, an attempt, attack," from PIE root *per- "try"
(cf. Latin peritus "experienced," periculum "trial,
experiment; attempt on or against; enterprise;" see peril).
pearl (n.)
mid-13c., from Old French perle (13c.) and directly from Medieval Latin perla (mid-13c.),
of unknown origin. Perhaps from Vulgar Latin *pernula, diminutive of Latin perna,
which in Sicily meant "pearl," earlier "sea-mussel," literally "ham, haunch, gammon,"
so called for the shape of the mollusk shells.
Other theories connect it with the root of pear,
also somehow based on shape, or Latin pilula "globule," with dissimilation.
The usual Latin word for "pearl" was margarita (see margarite).
peril (n.)
c.1200, from Old French peril "danger, risk" (10c.),
from Latin periculum "an attempt, trial, experiment; risk, danger,"
with instrumentive suffix -culum and element also found in experiri "to try,"
cognate with Greek peria "trial, attempt, experience," empeiros "experienced,"
Old Irish aire "vigilance," Gothic ferja "watcher," Old English fær "danger, fear" (see fear (n.)).
The English word “pear” is probably from Common West Germanic pera,
probably a loanword of Vulgar Latin pira, the plural of pirum, akin to Greek ?p??? apios
(from Mycenaean ápisos),[2] which is of Semitic origin (Aramaic/Syriac "pirâ", meaning "fruit",
from the verb "pra", meaning "to beget, multiply, bear fruit"). The place name Perry and Pharisoulopol
can indicate the historical presence of pear trees. The term "pyriform" is sometimes used to describe
something which is pear-shaped.
Calligraphy of the "Basmala" phrase bismi-llāhi ar-raħmāni ar-raħīmi بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم in the form of a pear
According to Greek legend, the first partridge appeared when Daedalus threw his nephew,
Perdix, off the sacred hill of Minerva in a fit of jealous rage.
Supposedly mindful of his fall, the bird does not build its nest in the trees,
nor take lofty flights and avoids high places.[1]
Partridges appear as part of the first gift listed in the Christmas carol,
"The 12 Days of Christmas". As such, "A partridge in a pear tree" is sung as the last line of each chorus.
On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..
12 Drummers Drumming
11 Pipers Piping
10 Lords-a-Leaping
9 Ladies Dancing
8 Maids-a-Milking
7 Swans-a-Swimming
6 Geese-a-Laying
5 Gold Rings
4 Colly Birds
3 French Hens[7]
2 Turtle Doves
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.
The 1780 version has "four colly birds" -- "colly" being a regional English expression for "black".[18]
This wording must have been opaque to many even in the nineteenth century: "canary birds",
"colour'd birds", "curley birds", and "corley birds" are found in its place. Frederic Austin's 1909 version,
which introduced the now-standard melody, also altered the fourth day's gift to four calling birds,
and this variant has become the most popular.
In Scotland, early in the 19th century, the recitation began:
"The king sent his lady on the first Yule day, | A popingo-aye [parrot];
| Wha learns my carol and carries it away?" The succeeding gifts were two partridges,
three plovers, a goose that was grey, three starlings, three goldspinks, a bull that was brown,
three ducks a-merry laying, three swans a-merry swimming, an Arabian baboon, three hinds a-merry hunting, three maids a-merry dancing, three stalks o' merry corn.[1]
According to The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes,
"Suggestions have been made that the gifts have significance,
as representing the food or sport for each month of the year.
Importance [certainly has] long been attached to the Twelve Days, when,
for instance, the weather on each day was carefully observed to see what it would be in the
corresponding month of the coming year.
In 1979, a Canadian hymnologist, Hugh D. McKellar, published an article,
"How to Decode the Twelve Days of Christmas", claiming that "The Twelve Days of Christmas"
lyrics were intended as a catechism song to help young Catholics learn their faith,
at a time when practising Catholicism was criminalized in England (1558 until 1829).
William S. and Ceil Baring-Gould suggest that the presents sent on the first seven days were all birds
—-the "Five gold rings" were not actually gold rings, but refer to the five golden rings of the
ringed pheasant.[29] Others suggest the gold rings refer to "five goldspinks"—a goldspink being an
old name for a Goldfinch;[30] or even canaries.[31] However, the 1780 publication includes an
illustration that clearly depicts the "five gold rings" as being jewelry.[8]
Pear leaves were smoked in Europe before tobacco was introduced.[21][22]
Pear wood is one of the preferred materials in the manufacture of high-quality woodwind instruments
and furniture. It is also used for wood carving, and as a firewood to produce aromatic smoke
for smoking meat or tobacco. Pear wood is valued for kitchen spoons, scoops and stirrers,
as it does not contaminate food with color, flavor or smell, and resists warping and splintering
despite repeated soaking and drying cycles. Lincoln[20] describes it as "a fairly tough, very stable wood...
(used for) carving... brushbacks, umbrella handles, measuring instruments such as set squares and T-squares... recorders... violin and guitar fingerboards and piano keys... decorative veneering." Pearwood is the favored wood for architect's rulers because it does not warp. It is similar to the wood of its relative, the apple tree,
Pyrus malus (also called Malus domestica) and used for many of the same purposes.[20]
Py´rus
n. 1. (Bot.) A genus of rosaceous trees and shrubs having pomes for fruit. It includes the apple, crab apple, pear, chokeberry, sorb, and mountain ash.
in part from fig as "small, valueless thing," but also from Greek and Italian use of their versions of the word as slang for "vulva," apparently because of how a ripe fig looks when split open [Rawson, Weekley].
Fig trees have profoundly influenced culture through several religious traditions. Among the more famous species are the Sacred Fig tree (Pipal, Bodhi, Bo, or Po, Ficus religiosa) and the Banyan Fig (Ficus benghalensis). The oldest living plant of known planting date is a Ficus religiosa tree known as the Sri Maha Bodhi planted in the temple at Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka by King Tissa in 288 BCE. The common fig is one of the two sacred trees of Islam, and there is a sura in Quran named "The Fig" or At-Tin (سوره تین). In East Asia, figs are important in Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. The Buddha is traditionally held to have found bodhi (enlightenment) while meditating under a Sacred Fig (F. religiosa). The same species was Ashvattha, the "world tree" of Hinduism. The Plaksa Pra-sravana was said to be a fig tree between the roots of which the Sarasvati River sprang forth; it is usually held to be a Sacred Fig but more probably seems to be a Wavy-leaved Fig (F. infectoria). The Common Fig tree is cited in the Bible, where in Genesis 3:7, Adam and Eve cover their nakedness with fig leaves. The fig fruit is also included in the list of food found in the Promised Land, according to the Torah (Deut. 8). Jesus cursed a fig tree for bearing no fruit (Mark 11:12–14). The fig tree was sacred in ancient Cyprus where it was a symbol of fertility.
The expression fig leaf has a pejorative metaphorical sense meaning a flimsy or minimal cover for any thing or behaviour that might be considered shameful, with the implication that the cover is only a token gesture and the truth is obvious to all who choose to see it.[5]
A metaphorical fig leaf is something visible but innocuous, as against a coverup in which the existence of something may be entirely hidden.
In the context of negotiation, an offer might be characterized as a "fig leaf" if that offer is actually a ploy to conceal a sinister plan.
In Ancient Greek art, male nakedness, including the genitals, was common, although the female vulval area was generally covered in art for public display. This tradition continued in Ancient Roman art until the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity, when heroic nudity vanished.
The term is a metaphorical reference to the Biblical Book of Genesis, in which Adam and Eve used fig leaves to cover their nudity after eating the fruit from the Tree of knowledge of good and evil.
In the system of Greek numerals iota has a value of 10.[1]
The tenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet is יוד YoD. The lower case IOTA is as small as the Hebrew יוד YoD, (Y . י. ) -- which is why IOTA means a small quantity or a JOT. The Greek rendering of Yod as letter I may also be seen at FENWAY, where יון YaVaN is IONIA.
tinct (n.)
c.1600, from Latin tinctus "a dyeing," from tingere (see tincture).
Tin Pan Alley (n.)
"hit song writing business," 1908, from tin pan,
slang for "a decrepit piano" (1882).
The original one was 28th Street in New York City, home to many music publishing houses.
The Adamic language is, according to Jews (as recorded in the midrashim) and some Christians, the language spoken by Adam (and possibly Eve) in the Garden of Eden. It is variously interpreted as either the language used by God to address Adam (the divine language), or the language invented by Adam with which he named all things (including Eve), as in Genesis 2:19.
Some other early Latter-day Saint leaders, including Brigham Young,[9] Orson Pratt[10] and Elizabeth Ann Whitney[11] claimed to have received several words in the Adamic language in revelations. Some Latter-day Saints believe that the Adamic language is the "pure language" spoken of by Zephaniah[12] and that it will be restored as the universal language of humankind at the end of the world.[13][14][15]
Dante concludes (Paradiso XXVI) that Hebrew is a derivative of the language of Adam. In particular, the chief Hebrew name for God in scholastic tradition, El, must be derived of a different Adamic name for God, which Dante gives as I.[6]
Later, in chapter 27, Agrippa mentions the Divine Language again:
But because the letters of every tongue, as we shewed in the first book, have in their number, order, and figure a Celestiall and Divine originall, I shall easily grant this calculation concerning the names of spirits to be made not only by Hebrew letters, but also by Chaldean, and Arabick, Ægyptian, Greek, Latine, and any other...
The word asemic means "having no specific semantic content".[1] With the nonspecificity of asemic writing there comes a vacuum of meaning which is left for the reader to fill in and interpret.
In common with the mythology of many other civilizations and cultures which tell of a Great Flood, certain Native American tribes tell of a deluge which came over the Earth. After the water subsides, various explanations are given for the new diversity in speech.
The Aztecs' story maintains that only a man, Coxcox, and a woman, Xochiquetzal, survive, having floated on a piece of bark. They found themselves on land and begot many children who were at first born unable to speak, but subsequently, upon the arrival of a dove were endowed with language, although each one was given a different speech such that they could not understand one another.[2]
scion (n.)
c.1300, "a shoot or twig," especially one for grafting, from Old French sion, cion "descendant; shoot, twig; offspring" (12c., Modern French scion, Picard chion), of uncertain origin. OED rejects derivation from Old French scier "to saw." Perhaps a diminutive from Frankish *kid-, from Proto-Germanic *kidon-, from PIE *geie- "to sprout, split, open" (see chink (n.1)).
In general, the terms "dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably. In ornithological practice, "dove" tends to be used for smaller species and "pigeon" for larger ones, but this is in no way consistently applied, and historically, the common names for these birds involve a great deal of variation between the terms.
They lay one or two eggs, and both parents care for the young, which leave the nest after seven to 28 days.[1] Unlike most birds, both sexes of doves and pigeons produce "crop milk" to feed to their young, secreted by a sloughing of fluid-filled cells from the lining of the crop. Young doves and pigeons are called "squabs"
"Dove" is also a term of endearment in the Song of Songs and elsewhere. In Hebrew, Jonah (יוֹנָה) means dove.[17] The "sign of Jonas" in Mat 16:1–4 is related to the "sign of the dove".[18]
Jesus's parents sacrificed doves on his behalf after his circumcision (Luke 2:24). Later, the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus at his baptism like a dove (Matthew 3:16), and subsequently the "peace dove" became a common Christian symbol of the Holy Spirit.
baptize (v.)
c.1300, from Old French batisier (11c.), from Latin baptizare, from Greek baptizein "to immerse, to dip in water," also used figuratively, e.g. "to be over one's head" (in debt, etc.), "to be soaked (in wine);" in Greek Christian usage, "baptize;" from baptein "to dip, steep, dye, color," from PIE root *gwabh- "to dip, sink."
fish (n.)
Old English fisc, from Proto-Germanic *fiskaz (cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Old High German fisc, Old Norse fiskr, Middle Dutch visc, Dutch vis, German Fisch, Gothic fisks), from PIE *peisk- "fish" (cf. Latin piscis, Irish iasc, and, via Latin, Italian pesce, French poisson, Spanish pez, Welsh pysgodyn, Breton pesk).
In the Ancient Near East and Mediterranean, doves were used as symbols for the Canaanite mother goddess Asherah, the Phoenician goddess Tanit, and the Roman goddesses Venus and Fortuna.[20]
"Awesome God" is a contemporary worship song written by Rich Mullins
and first recorded on his 1988 album, Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth.
It was the first single from the album and rose to the number one spot on
Christian radio and subsequently became a popular congregational song.[1]
Its title is inspired by a biblical expression (Nehemiah 1:5, Nehemiah 9:32, Psalm 47, Daniel 9:4, etc.),
variously translated as "Awesome God", (JPS, in the old-fashioned meaning "awe-inspiring"), "great" (KJV),among other alternatives. Due to the popularity of the song it became Mullins' signature song.[2]
shuck (shk)n.
1.
a. A husk, pod, or shell, as of a pea, hickory nut, or ear of corn.
b. The shell of an oyster or clam.
2. Informal Something worthless. Often used in the plural: an issue that didn't amount to shucks.
tr.v. shucked, shuck·ing, shucks
1. To remove the husk or shell from.
2. Informal To cast off: shucked their coats and cooled off; a city trying to shuck a sooty image.
interj. shucks (shks)
Used to express mild disappointment, disgust, or annoyance.
mull1
məl/Submit
verb
gerund or present participle: mulling
1.
think about (a fact, proposal, or request) deeply and at length.
"she began to mull over the various possibilities"
synonyms: ponder, consider, think over/about, reflect on,
contemplate, turn over in one's mind, chew over, cogitate on, give some thought to
note (n.)
c.1300, "a song, music, instrumental music; a musical note,"
from Latin nota "letter, character, note," originally "a mark,
sign, means of recognition," which is perhaps related to notus,
past participle of noscere (Old Latin *gnoscere) "to know" (see know).
feng shui (n.)
also feng-shui, 1797, from Chinese, from feng "wind" + shui "water."
A system of spiritual influences in natural landscapes and a means of regulating them.
A gnomon [ˈnoʊmɒn] NO-mon, from Greek γνώμων, gnōmōn, literally "one that knows or examines",[1][2] is the part of a sundial that casts the shadow.
Maat was also personified as a goddess regulating the stars, seasons, and the actions of both mortals and the deities, who set the order of the universe from chaos at the moment of creation. Her (ideological) counterpart was Isfet.
Davy Jones' Locker, also Davy Jones's Locker, is an idiom for the bottom of the sea: the state of death among drowned sailors and shipwrecks.[2] It is used as a euphemism for drowning or shipwrecks which the sailor(s)'s and/or ship(s)'s remains are consigned to the bottom of the sea (to be sent to Davy Jones' Locker).[3]
The origins of the name of Davy Jones, the sailor's devil,[2] are unclear, with a 19th-century dictionary tracing Davy Jones to a "ghost of Jonah".[4] Other explanations of this nautical superstition have been put forth, including an incompetent sailor or a pub owner who kidnapped sailors.
The 1898 Dictionary of Phrase and Fable connects Dave to the West Indian duppy (duffy) and Jones to biblical Jonah:
He’s gone to Davy Jones’s locker, i.e. he is dead. Jones is a corruption of Jonah, the prophet, who was thrown into the sea. Locker, in seaman’s phrase, means any receptacle for private stores; and duffy is a ghost or spirit among the West Indian negroes.
So the whole phrase is, "He is gone to the place of safe keeping, where duffy Jonah was sent to."
—E. Cobham Brewer[4]
An early description of Davy Jones occurs in Tobias Smollett's The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle, published in 1751:[4]
This same Davy Jones, according to sailors, is the fiend that presides over all the evil spirits of the deep, and is often seen in various shapes, perching among the rigging on the eve of hurricanes:, ship-wrecks, and other disasters to which sea-faring life is exposed, warning the devoted wretch of death and woe.
—Tobias Smollett[4]
In the story Jones is described as having saucer eyes, three rows of teeth, horns, a tail, and blue smoke coming from his nostrils.
Davy Jones pictured by George Cruikshank in 1832, as described by Tobias Smollett in The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle[1]
The tale of Davy Jones causes fear among sailors, who may refuse to discuss Davy Jones in any great detail.[citation needed] Not all traditions dealing with Davy Jones are fearful. In traditions associated with sailors crossing the Equatorial line, there was a "raucous and rowdy" initiation presided over by those who had crossed the line before, known as shellbacks, or Sons of Neptune. The eldest shellback was called King Neptune, and Davy Jones would be re-enacted as his first assistant.[9]
In Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island, Davy Jones appears three times, for example in the phrase “in the name of Davy Jones”.[14][15]
In Charles Dickens's Bleak House (1852–3), the character Mrs. Badger quotes her former husband's work ethic, portraying Davy Jones in a formidable light:
"It was a maxim of Captain Swosser's", said Mrs. Badger, "speaking in his figurative naval manner, that when you make pitch hot, you cannot make it too hot; and that if you only have to swab a plank, you should swab it as if Davy Jones were after you."
—Charles Dickens[13]
Herman Melville mentions Jones in the 1851 classic Moby-Dick:
There was young Nat Swaine, once the bravest boat-header out of all Nantucket and the Vineyard; he joined the meeting, and never came to good. He got so frightened about his plaguy soul, that he shrinked and sheered away from the whales, for fear of after-claps, in case he got stove and went to Davy Jones.
—Herman Melville[12]
The concept of Davy Jones was conflated with the legend of the Flying Dutchman in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, in which Davy Jones's locker is portrayed as a sort of purgatory, with Davy Jones being a captain assigned to ferry those drowned at sea to the afterlife before he corrupted his purpose out of anger at his betrayal by his lover, the sea goddess Calypso.
Fiddler's Green is a legendary imagined afterlife, where there is perpetual mirth, a fiddle that never stops playing, and dancers who never tire. Its origins are obscure, although some point to the Greek myth of the Elysian Fields as a potential inspiration.
One sailor's tale published in 1832 speaks of Fiddler's Green as being "nine miles beyond the dwelling of his Satanic majesty".[1] In maritime folklore it is a kind of afterlife for sailors who have served at least 50 years at sea,[2][3] where there is rum and tobacco.[4]
The author Richard McKenna wrote a story, first published in 1967, entitled "Fiddler's Green", in which he considers the power of the mind to create a reality of its own choosing, especially when a number of people consent to it. The main characters in this story are also sailors, and have known of the legend of Fiddler's Green for many years.[8]
In Neil Gaiman's award winning comic book series, The Sandman, Fiddler's Green is a place located inside of the Dreaming, a place that sailors have dreamed of for centuries. Fiddler's Green is also personified as a character as well as a location in the fictional world. This Character in personification is largely based upon casual associations of the English author G. K. Chesterton
The Sandman is a mythical character in Northern European folklore who brings good dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto the eyes of children while they sleep at night.
Traditionally, he is a character in many children's stories. He is said to sprinkle sand or dust on or into the eyes of the child at night to bring on dreams and sleep. The grit or "sleep" in one's eyes upon waking is supposed to be the result of the Sandman's work the previous evening.
Hans Christian Andersen's 1841 folk tale Ole Lukøje recorded the Sandman, named Ole Lukøje, by relating dreams he gave to a young boy in a week through his magical technique of sprinkling dust in the eyes of the children. Andersen wrote:
There is nobody in the world who knows so many stories as Ole-Luk-Oie, or who can relate them so nicely.
But Ole-Luk-Oie does not wish to hurt them, for he is very fond of children, and only wants them to be quiet that he may relate to them pretty stories, and they never are quiet until they are in bed and asleep. As soon as they are asleep, Ole-Luk-Oie seats himself upon the bed. He is nicely dressed; his coat is made of silken fabric; it is impossible to say of what color, for it changes from green to red, and from red to blue as he turns from side to side. Under each arm he carries an umbrella; one of them, with pictures on the inside, he spreads over the good children, and then they dream the most beautiful stories the whole night. But the other umbrella has no pictures, and this he holds over the naughty children so that they sleep heavily, and wake in the morning without having dreams at all.
fountain (n.)
early 15c., "spring of water that collects in a pool," from Old French fontaine "natural spring" (12c.), from Late Latin fontana "fountain, spring" (source of Spanish and Italian fontana), from noun use of fem. of Latin fontanus "of a spring," from fons (genitive fontis) "spring (of water);" cognate with Sanskrit dhanvati "flows, runs."
The extended sense of "artificial jet of water" (and the structures that make them) is first recorded c.1500. "A French fountain-pen is described in 1658 and Miss Burney used one in 1789" [Weekley].
The Fountain of Youth is a legendary spring that supposedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks or bathes in its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted across the world for thousands of years, appearing in writings by Herodotus, the Alexander romance, and the stories of Prester John. Stories of similar waters were also evidently prominent among the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean during the Age of Exploration, who spoke of the restorative powers of the water in the mythical land of Bimini.
The legend became particularly prominent in the 16th century, when it became attached to the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, first Governor of Puerto Rico. According to an apocryphal combination of New World and Eurasian elements, Ponce de León was searching for the Fountain of Youth when he traveled to what is now Florida in 1513.
Herodotus mentions a fountain containing a special kind of water in the land of the Macrobians, which gives the Macrobians their exceptional longevity.[1] A story of the "Water of Life" appears in the Eastern versions of the Alexander romance, which describes Alexander the Great and his servant crossing the Land of Darkness to find the restorative spring.
There are countless indirect sources for the tale as well. Eternal youth is a gift frequently sought in myth and legend, and stories of things such as the philosopher's stone, universal panaceas, and the elixir of life are common throughout Eurasia and elsewhere. An additional hint may have been taken from the account of the Pool of Bethesda in the Gospel of John, in which Jesus heals a man at the pool in Jerusalem.
French 14th-century ivory mirror case with a Fountain of Youth
Originally this ivory plaque was the back for a disk-shaped mirror of polished metal. It is carved with a scene of the Fountain of Youth. Elderly men and women walk or travel by cart from the left to the mythical Fountain of Youth at the right. They bathe and reemerge as young couples who enter into the castle at the center and court above upon the battlements. The frame, a circle within a square, has four crouched dragon-like creatures in each corner.
The Fountain of Youth serves a metaphor for anything that potentially increases longevity.
The panacea /pænəˈsiːə/, named after the Greek goddess of Universal remedy, Panacea, also known as panchrest[citation needed], was supposed to be a remedy that would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely. It was sought by the alchemists as a connection to the elixir of life and the philosopher's stone, a mythical substance which would enable the transmutation of common metals into gold.
comb (n.)
Old English camb "comb, crest, honeycomb" (later Anglian comb), from West Germanic *kambaz (cf. Old Saxon and Old High German camb, German Kamm, Middle Dutch cam, Dutch kam, Old Norse kambr), literally "toothed object," from PIE *gombhos, from root *gembh- "to bite, tooth" (cf. Greek gomphos "a molar tooth," Sanskrit gambha-s "tooth").
comb (v.)
late 14c. (implied in past participle kombid), verb derived from comb (n.); replacing the former verb, Old English cemban, which however survives in unkempt. Related: Combed; combing.
Bowser, also known as King Koopa, full name Bowser Koopa, is a video game character and the main antagonist of Nintendo's Mario franchise. In Japan, the character is known as Koopa (クッパ Kuppa?)[1] and bears the title of Daimaō (大魔王?, lit. "Great Demon King").[2] In the United States, the character was first referred to as "Bowser, King of the Koopa" and "The sorcerer king" in the Super Mario Bros. instruction manual.[3] Bowser is the leader and most powerful of the turtle-like Koopa race, and has been the greedy archnemesis of Mario ever since his first appearance, in the game Super Mario Bros. His ultimate goals are to marry Princess Peach, defeat Mario, and conquer the Mushroom Kingdom.
peach (n.)
c.1400 (late 12c. as a surname), from Old French pesche "peach, peach tree" (Old North French peske, Modern French pêche), and directly from Medieval Latin pesca, from Late Latin pessica, variant of persica "peach, peach tree," from Latin malum Persicum, literally "Persian apple," translating Greek Persikon malon, from Persis "Persia" (see Persian).
As the main setting of the series, the island boasts a number of unusual properties.
Its location changes at times and it cannot be reached by ordinary means.
The island is surrounded by some sort of barrier which causes disruptions
in the normal flow of time for those who cross it.
Electromagnetic phenomena are common on the island,
and it seems to bestow unusual healing properties to its residents.
One of the writers of LOST once joked that the island may ultimately turn out to be a giant turtle. But what if it wasn't a joke?
Brasil, also known as Hy-Brasil or several other variants,[1] is a phantom island which was said to lie in the Atlantic Ocean west of Ireland. In Irish myths it was said to be cloaked in mist, except for one day each seven years, when it became visible but still could not be reached.
Kumari Kandam [1] (Tamil:குமரிக்கண்டம், Kumarikkaṇṭam; 30,000 BC – 16,000 BC) is the name of a supposed sunken landmass referred to in the ancient Tamil and Sanskrit Matsya Purana.
Lemuria /lɨˈmjʊəriə/[1] is the name of a hypothetical "lost land" variously located in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Mu is the name of a fictional continent that was once believed to have existed in one of Earth's oceans, but disappeared at the dawn of human history.
The concept and the name were proposed by 19th-century traveler and writer Augustus Le Plongeon, who claimed that several ancient civilizations, such as those of Egypt and Mesoamerica, were created by refugees from Mu—which he located in the Atlantic Ocean.[1] This concept was popularized and expanded by James Churchward, who asserted that Mu was once located in the Pacific.[2]
Turtle Island is a term used by several Northeastern Woodland Native American tribes, especially the Haudenosaunee or Iroquois Confederacy, for the continent of North America.[1]
The World Turtle (also referred to as the Cosmic Turtle, the World-bearing Turtle, or the Divine Turtle) is a mytheme of a giant turtle (or tortoise) supporting or containing the world. The mytheme, which is similar to that of the World Elephant and World Serpent, occurs in Hindu, Chinese, and Native American mythology. The "World-Tortoise" mytheme was discussed comparatively by Edward Burnett Tylor (1878:341).
In Chinese mythology the creator goddess Nüwa cut the legs off the giant sea turtle Ao (鳌) and used them to prop up the sky after Gong Gong damaged the Buzhou Mountain that had previously supported the heavens.
Indeed, Wilhelm von Humboldt suggested that the idea of a world-elephant was due to a confusion,
caused by the Sanskrit noun Naga having the dual meaning of "serpent" and "elephant"
(named for its serpent-like trunk), thus representing a corrupted account of the world-serpent.[1][2][3]
The various Hindu myths of the world being carried or enclosed by either a tortoise,
a serpent or an elephant were referred to by Taylor (1878:339).[4]
"After this at a distance of ten days' journey there is another
hill of salt and spring of water, and men dwell round it. Near this
salt hill is a mountain named Atlas, which is small in circuit and
rounded on every side; and so exceedingly lofty is it said to be,
that it is not possible to see its summits, for clouds never leave
them either in the summer or in the winter. This the natives say is
the pillar of the heaven. After this mountain these men got their name,
for they are called Atlantians; and it is said that they neither eat
anything that has life nor have any dreams."
(Source: Herodotus History Book IV, 184.)
"Turtles all the way down" is a jocular expression of the infinite regress problem in cosmology posed by the "unmoved mover" paradox. The phrase was popularized by Stephen Hawking in 1988. The "turtle" metaphor in the anecdote represents a popular notion of a "primitive cosmological myth", namely the flat earth supported on the back of a World Turtle.
Pangu (simplified Chinese: 盘古; traditional Chinese: 盤古; pinyin: Pángǔ; Wade–Giles: P'an ku; literally "Plate Ancient") was the first living being and the creator of all in some versions of Chinese mythology.
In the beginning there was nothing in the universe except a formless chaos. However this chaos coalesced into a cosmic egg for about 18,000 years. Within it, the perfectly opposed principles of Yin and Yang became balanced and Pangu emerged (or woke up) from the egg. Pangu is usually depicted as a primitive, hairy giant with horns on his head and clad in furs. Pangu set about the task of creating the world: he separated Yin from Yang with a swing of his giant axe, creating the Earth (murky Yin) and the Sky (clear Yang). To keep them separated, Pangu stood between them and pushed up the Sky. This task took 18,000 years; with each day the sky grew ten feet (3 meters) higher, the Earth ten feet wider, and Pangu ten feet taller. In some versions of the story, Pangu is aided in this task by the four most prominent beasts, namely the Turtle, the Qilin, the Phoenix, and the Dragon.
This is Professor Qin's reconstruction of the true creation myth preceding the myth of Pangu. Note that it is not actually a creation myth:
A brother and his sister became the only survivors of the prehistoric Deluge by crouching in a gourd that floated on water. The two got married afterwards, and a mass of flesh in the shape of a whetstone was born. They chopped it and the pieces turned into large crowds of people, who began to reproduce again. The couple were named 'Pan' and 'Gou' in the Zhuang ethnic language, which stand for whetstone and gourd respectively.
apple (n.)
Old English æppel "apple; any kind of fruit; fruit in general," from Proto-Germanic *ap(a)laz (cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Dutch appel, Old Norse eple, Old High German apful, German Apfel), from PIE *ab(e)l "apple" (cf. Gaulish avallo "fruit;" Old Irish ubull, Lithuanian obuolys, Old Church Slavonic jabloko "apple"), but the exact relation and original sense of these is uncertain (cf. melon).
melon (n.)
late 14c., from Old French melon (13c.), from Medieval Latin melonem (nominative melo), from Latin melopeponem, a kind of pumpkin, from Greek melopepon "gourd-apple" (name for several kinds of gourds bearing sweet fruit), from melon "apple" (see malic) + pepon, a kind of gourd, probably noun use of pepon "ripe" (see pumpkin).
In Greek, melon was used in a generic way for all foreign fruits (cf. similar use of apple). The Greek plural of "melon" was used from ancient times for "a girl's breasts."
Pomona (n.)
Roman goddess of fruit, from Latin pomum "apple; fruit," of uncertain origin. "Possibly from *po-emo- 'taken off, picked'; *po-omo- or *pe-omo- are also conceivable" [de Vaan]. Or perhaps borrowed from a lost Mediterranean language.
Atlas
1580s, Titan, son of Iapetus and Clymene, supposed to uphold the pillars of heaven, which was his punishment for being the war leader of the Titans in the struggle with the Olympian gods. The name in Greek perhaps means "The Bearer (of the Heavens)," from a-, copulative prefix, + stem of tlenai "to bear," from PIE root *tele- "to lift, support, weigh." Mount Atlas, in Mauritania, was important in Greek cosmology as a support of the heavens.
Atlantic
late 14c., occean of Athlant "sea off the west coast of Africa" (early 15c. as occean Atlantyke), from Latin Atlanticus, from Greek Atlantikos "of Atlas," adjectival form of Atlas (genitive Atlantos), in reference to Mount Atlas in Mauritania (see Atlas). Applied to the whole ocean since c.1600.
Atlantis
mythical island-nation, from Greek Atlantis, literally "daughter of Atlas." All references trace to Plato's dialogues "Timaeus" and "Critias," both written c.360 B.C.E.
Maia
Roman goddess of fertility, Latin Maia, literally "she who brings increase," related to magnus "great" (see magnate). Maia, one of the Pleiades, is from Greek Maia, daughter of Atlas, mother of Hermes, literally "mother, good mother, dame; foster-mother, nurse, midwife," said by Watkins to be from infant babbling (see mamma).
extol (v.)
also extoll, c.1400, "to lift up," from Latin extollere "to place on high, raise, elevate," figuratively "to exalt, praise," from ex- "up" (see ex-) + tollere "to raise," from PIE *tel-, *tol- "to bear, carry" (cf. Greek talantos "bearing, suffering," tolman "to carry, bear," telamon "broad strap for bearing something," Atlas "the 'Bearer' of Heaven;" Lithuanian tiltas "bridge;" Sanskrit tula "balance," tulayati "lifts up, weighs;" Latin tolerare "to bear, support," latus "borne;" Old English þolian "to endure;" Armenian tolum "I allow"). Figurative sense of "praise highly" in English is first attested c.1500. Related: Extolled; extolling.
The Garden of the Hesperides is Hera's orchard in the west, where either a single tree or a grove of immortality-giving golden apples grew. The apples were planted from the fruited branches that Gaia gave to her as a wedding gift when Hera accepted Zeus. The Hesperides were given the task of tending to the grove, but occasionally plucked from it themselves. Not trusting them, Hera also placed in the garden a never-sleeping, hundred-headed dragon named Ladon as an additional safeguard.
The Gardens of the Hesperides with the golden apples were believed to exist in some island in the ocean,
turtle (n.1)
reptile, c.1600, "marine tortoise," from French tortue "turtle, tortoise," of unknown origin. The English word is perhaps a sailors' mauling of the French one, influenced by the similar sounding turtle (n.2). Later extended to land tortoises; sea-turtle is attested from 1610s. Turtleneck "close-fitting collar" is recorded from 1895.
tortoise (n.)
1550s, altered (perhaps by influence of porpoise) from Middle English tortuse (late 15c.), tortuce (mid-15c.), tortuge (late 14c.), from Medieval Latin tortuca (mid-13c.), perhaps from Late Latin tartaruchus "of the underworld" (see turtle). Others propose a connection with Latin tortus "twisted," based on the shape of the feet. The classical Latin word was testudo, from testa "shell." First record of tortoise shell as a coloring pattern is from 1782.