Misplaced Pages

#602397

66-610: The festival of the Skira ( Ancient Greek : Σκίρα ) or Skirophoria ( Ancient Greek : Σκιροφόρια ) in the calendar of ancient Athens , closely associated with the Thesmophoria , marked the dissolution of the old year in May/June. At Athens, the last month of the year was Skirophorion , after the festival. Its most prominent feature was the procession that led out of Athens to a place called Skiron near Eleusis , in which

132-412: A Byzantine encyclopedia based on classical sources, states that Dionysus was so named "from accomplishing [διανύειν] for each of those who live the wild life. Or from providing [διανοεῖν] everything for those who live the wild life." Academics in the nineteenth century, using study of philology and comparative mythology , often regarded Dionysus as a foreign deity who was only reluctantly accepted into

198-590: A cow"), in the Mysteries of Lerna . Braetes , Βραίτης ("related to beer") at Thrace . Brisaeus , Βρισαῖος , a surname of Dionysus, derived either from mount Brisa in Lesbos or from a nymph Brisa, who was said to have brought up the god. Briseus , Βρῑσεύς ("he who prevails") in Smyrna . Bromios Βρόμιος ("roaring", as of the wind, primarily relating to the central death/resurrection element of

264-425: A family member or husband to the male domination festivals, as it would have been seen as inappropriate for an unmarried girl or married woman to go unsupervised. Non-citizen women and slaves would be present as prostitutes or workers for the male guests, but were not included in the actual festival. Select male festivals would include women in their festivities. Often it was high-born women who were allowed to attend

330-512: A military connotation, and thanks the god for his assistance to the Athenians during wars. It could also commemorate a specific intervention at the origin of the festival. The event in question, according to the ancient writers, could be the help brought to Theseus in his war against the Amazons , or the assistance provided to the king Erechtheus during his struggle against Eumolpus . During

396-627: A newly woven peplos was dedicated to Athena. The Dionysia was a large religious festival in ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus , the central event of which was the performance of tragedies and, from 487 BCE, comedies . It was the second-most important festival after the Panathenaia . The Dionysia actually comprised two related festivals, the Rural Dionysia and the City Dionysia, which took place in different parts of

462-459: Is a god of epiphany , sometimes called "the god who comes". Wine was a religious focus in the cult of Dionysus and was his earthly incarnation. Wine could ease suffering, bring joy, and inspire divine madness. Festivals of Dionysus included the performance of sacred dramas enacting his myths, the initial driving force behind the development of theatre in Western culture . The cult of Dionysus

528-520: Is also a "cult of the souls"; his maenads feed the dead through blood-offerings, and he acts as a divine communicant between the living and the dead. He is sometimes categorised as a dying-and-rising god . Romans identified Bacchus with their own Liber Pater , the "Free Father" of the Liberalia festival, patron of viniculture, wine and male fertility, and guardian of the traditions, rituals and freedoms attached to coming of age and citizenship, but

594-643: Is found in other names, such as that of the Dioscures , and may derive from Dios , the genitive of the name of Zeus . Nonnus, in his Dionysiaca , writes that the name Dionysus means "Zeus-limp" and that Hermes named the new born Dionysus this, "because Zeus while he carried his burden lifted one foot with a limp from the weight of his thigh, and nysos in Syracusan language means limping". In his note to these lines, W. H. D. Rouse writes "It need hardly be said that these etymologies are wrong". The Suda ,

660-533: Is found on a dinos by the Attic potter Sophilos around 570 BC and is located in the British Museum . By the seventh century, iconography found on pottery shows that Dionysus was already worshiped as more than just a god associated with wine. He was associated with weddings, death, sacrifice, and sexuality, and his retinue of satyrs and dancers was already established. A common theme in these early depictions

726-923: The Dipylon Gate in the northern sector of the city. The procession, led by the Kanephoros , made its way to the Areopagus and in front of the Temple of Athena Nike next to the Propylaea . Only Athenian citizens were allowed to pass through the Propylaea and enter the Acropolis. The procession passed the Parthenon and stopped at the great altar of Athena in front of the Erechtheum . Every four years

SECTION 10

#1732781103603

792-865: The Eteoboutadai . Their joint temple on the Acropolis was the Erechtheum , where Poseidon embodied as Erechtheus remained a numinous presence. The Hermaea ( Ancient Greek : Ἔρμαια ) were ancient Greek festivals held annually in honour of Hermes , notably at Pheneos at the foot of Mt Cyllene in Arcadia . Usually the Hermaea honoured Hermes as patron of sport and gymnastics, often in conjunction with Heracles . They included athletic contests of various kinds and were normally held in gymnasia and palaestrae . The Athenian Hermaea were an occasion for relatively unrestrained and rowdy competitions for

858-632: The Maenads , the female worshippers of Dionysus. The Anthesteria , one of the four Athenian festivals in honour of Dionysus (collectively the Dionysia), was held annually for three days, the eleventh to thirteenth of the month of Anthesterion (the January/February full moon); it was preceded by the Lenaia. At the centre of this wine-drinking festival was the celebration of the maturing of

924-618: The Palace of Nestor in Pylos , dated to around 1300 BC. The details of any religion surrounding Dionysus in this period are scant, and most evidence comes in the form only of his name, written as di-wo-nu-su-jo ("Dionysoio" = 'of Dionysus') in Linear B , preserved on fragments of clay tablets that indicate a connection to offerings or payments of wine, which was described as being "of Dionysus". References have also been uncovered to "women of Oinoa",

990-518: The Panathenaia as basket-bearers, but would not participate in the feast itself. The public festivals of Anthesteria and Dionysia , included women both in attendance and rites of sacrifice. The festival of Argive held in honor of Hera was attended by both men and women. The men and women's involvement in Argive was close to equal, as they shared rites of feasting and sacrifice. Athenian women held their own festivals that often excluded men, such as

1056-786: The Proerosia , the Thargelia , the Pyanospia , the Thalysia and the Pithoigia . These offerings were made to ask for help in the production of crops and the breeding animals from Gods and Goddesses such as Demeter, Apollo, and Artemis. The offerings were more likely to happen in areas prone to frost, drought, rain and hailstorms. The offerings consisted of liquid and solid food, and was usually presented daily or at common feasts. Jon D. Mikalson in his book, The Sacred and Civil Calendar of

1122-478: The Thesmophoria , Adonia , and Skira . Festivals hosted by women were not supported by the state and instead were private festivals run and funded by wealthy women. For this reason they were often hosted inside homes and held at night. The Thesmophoria was a major women's festival held in the honour of Demeter . Women's festivals were often dedicated to a goddess and were held as a way of social, religious and personal expression for women. Wealthy women would sponsor

1188-552: The birth of a child. It was a family festival of the Athenians , at which the newly born child was introduced into the family, and children of poorer families received its name. Children of wealthier families held a naming ceremony on the tenth day called dekate . This ceremony, unlike the Amphidromia, was open to the public by invitation. No particular day was fixed for this solemnity; but it did not take place very soon after

1254-407: The ephebes , and Solon tried to prohibit adults from attending. The Heracleia were ancient festivals honouring the divine hero Heracles . The ancient Athenians celebrated the festival, which commemorated the death of Heracles, on the second day of the month of Metageitnion (which would fall in late July or early August), at the Κυνοσαργες (Kynosarges) gymnasium at the demos Diomeia outside

1320-592: The "place of wine", who may correspond to the Dionysian women of later periods. Other Mycenaean records from Pylos record the worship of a god named Eleuther, who was the son of Zeus, and to whom oxen were sacrificed. The link to both Zeus and oxen, as well as etymological links between the name Eleuther or Eleutheros with the Latin name Liber Pater , indicates that this may have been another name for Dionysus. According to Károly Kerényi , these clues suggest that even in

1386-669: The "son of Zeus". Jane Ellen Harrison believed that the name Dionysus means "young Zeus". Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin of the name, since all attempts to find an Indo-European etymology are doubtful. Later variants include Dionūsos and Diōnūsos in Boeotia ; Dien(n)ūsos in Thessaly ; Deonūsos and Deunūsos in Ionia ; and Dinnūsos in Aeolia , besides other variants. A Dio- prefix

SECTION 20

#1732781103603

1452-549: The Athenian Year , states "The total number of positively dated festival days (i.e., the total in the two lists) is 120, which constitutes 33 percent of the days of the year". Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth , Dionysus ( / d aɪ . ə ˈ n aɪ s ə s / ; Ancient Greek : Διόνυσος Diónūsos ) is the god of wine-making, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity , insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy , and theatre . He

1518-627: The Indians. Isodaetes , Ισοδαίτης , meaning "he who distributes equal portions", cult epithet also shared with Helios. Kemilius , Κεμήλιος ( kemas : "young deer, pricket"). Liknites ("he of the winnowing fan"), as a fertility god connected with mystery religions . A winnowing fan was used to separate the chaff from the grain. Lenaius , Ληναῖος ("god of the wine-press") Lyaeus , or Lyaios (Λυαῖος, "deliverer", literally "loosener"), one who releases from care and anxiety. Lysius , Λύσιος ("delivering, releasing"). At Thebes there

1584-518: The Minoan period. Since the festival was celebrated by Athens and all the Ionian cities, it is assumed that it must have preceded the Ionian migration of the late eleventh or early tenth century BCE. The Boedromia ( Ancient Greek : Βοηδρόμια ) was an ancient Greek festival held at Athens on the 7th of Boedromion (summer) in the honour of Apollo Boedromios (the helper in distress). The festival had

1650-835: The Roman state treated independent, popular festivals of Bacchus ( Bacchanalia ) as subversive, partly because their free mixing of classes and genders transgressed traditional social and moral constraints. Celebration of the Bacchanalia was made a capital offence, except in the toned-down forms and greatly diminished congregations approved and supervised by the State. Festivals of Bacchus were merged with those of Liber and Dionysus. The dio- prefix in Ancient Greek Διόνυσος ( Diónūsos ; [di.ó.nyː.sos] ) has been associated since antiquity with Zeus ( genitive Dios ), and

1716-470: The Thesmophoria, marked the dissolution of the old year in May/June. At Athens, the last month of the year was Skirophorion , after the festival. Its most prominent feature was the procession that led out of Athens to a place called Skiron near Eleusis , in which the priestess of Athena and the priest of Poseidon took part, under a ceremonial canopy called the skiron , which was held up by

1782-425: The act was less focused on violence or aggression, and more focused on ritual. Women and men had very specific roles in sacrifices. Only female virgins, called kanephoroi , could lead the procession as they were required to carry the sacred implements and provisions at the sacrifices. The kanephoroi was also required to raise the ololuge , a screaming howl in which the woman would perform as the man would begin killing

1848-552: The animal. The men were the sacrificers; they would cut their hair as an offering, then butcher the animal on the altar. The animal would be skinned and then cooked over the altar for the participants to consume. Ritual sacrifice in Athens had three main steps: the preparation of the sacrifice, the distribution, and consumption of the sacrificial animal. Other forms of sacrifice took place at Athenian festivals, such as food and other items. Offerings of agricultural products took place at

1914-589: The ashes thrown into the sea (or over the land, to act as a fertilizing influence). The Adonia ( Ἀδώνια ), or Adonic feasts , were ancient feasts instituted in honour of Aphrodite and Adonis , and observed with great solemnity among the Greeks , Egyptians , etc. The festival took place in the late summer and lasted between one and eight days. The event was run by women and attended exclusively by them. All Athenian women were allowed to attend, including widows, wives and unmarried women of different social classes. On

1980-410: The birth of the child, for it was believed that most children died before the seventh day, and the solemnity was therefore generally deferred till after that period, that there might be at least some probability of the child remaining alive. Athenian women were allowed to attend the majority of festivals, but often had limited participation in the festivities or feasts. They would have been escorted by

2046-471: The city. The Adonis was an event where women were allowed unusual freedom and independence, as they could socialize without constraint under their own terms. The Thesmophoria was a festival held in Greek cities, in honour of the goddesses Demeter and her daughter Persephone . The name derives from thesmoi , or laws by which men must work the land. The Thesmophoria were the most widespread festivals and

Skira - Misplaced Pages Continue

2112-545: The cry "euae" in lyric passages, and in Euripides ' play, The Bacchae . Iacchus , Ἴακχος a possible epithet of Dionysus, associated with the Eleusinian Mysteries . In Eleusis , he is known as a son of Zeus and Demeter . The name "Iacchus" may come from the Ιακχος ( Iakchos ), a hymn sung in honor of Dionysus. Indoletes , Ἰνδολέτης , meaning slayer/killer of Indians. Due to his campaign against

2178-529: The event, sacrifices were also made to Artemis Agrotera . The Thargelia ( Ancient Greek : Θαργήλια ) was one of the chief Athenian festivals in honour of the Delian Apollo and Artemis , held on their birthdays, the 6th and 7th of the month Thargelion (about 24 and 25 May). Essentially an agricultural festival, the Thargelia included a purifying and expiatory ceremony. While the people offered

2244-426: The events and elect other women to preside over the festival. Common themes of festivals hosted by women were the transitioning from a girl to a woman, as well as signs of fertility. There were festivals held as a way to protest the power of the men in Athens, and empower the women in the community. The Skira was an example of a woman-only event that was held annually in the summer as an opposition to men. This festival

2310-429: The first day, they brought into the streets statues of Adonis, which were laid out as corpses; and they observed all the rites customary at funerals, beating themselves and uttering lamentations, in imitation of the cries of Aphrodite for the death of her paramour. The second day was spent in merriment and feasting; because Adonis was allowed to return to life, and spend half of the year with Aphrodite. The Adonis festival

2376-451: The first-fruits of the earth to the god in token of thankfulness, it was at the same time necessary to propitiate him, lest he might ruin the harvest by excessive heat, possibly accompanied by pestilence. The purificatory preceded the thanksgiving service. On the 6th a sheep was sacrificed to Demeter Chloe on the Acropolis , and perhaps a swine to the Fates , but the most important ritual was

2442-474: The following: Two men, the ugliest that could be found (the Pharmakoi ) were chosen to die, one for the men, the other (according to some, a woman) for the women. On the day of the sacrifice they were led round with strings of figs on their necks, and whipped on the genitals with rods of figwood and squills. When they reached the place of sacrifice on the shore, they were stoned to death, their bodies burnt, and

2508-483: The god taking both an active male and a passive female role. It is subversive for Dionysus to receive anal sex; a high status male was expected to penetrate his youthful lovers. Anthroporraistes , Ἀνθρωπορραίστης ("man-destroyer"), a title of Dionysus at Tenedos. Bassareus , Βασσαρεύς a Thracian name for Dionysus, which derives from bassaris or "fox-skin", which item was worn by his cultists in their mysteries. Bougenes , Βουγενής or Βοηγενής ("borne by

2574-424: The god. Dimetor Διμήτωρ ("twice-born") Refers to Dionysus's two births. Dendrites Δενδρίτης ("of the trees"), as a fertility god. Dithyrambos , Διθύραμβος used at his festivals, referring to his premature birth. Eleutherios Ἐλευθέριος ("the liberator"), an epithet shared with Eros . Endendros ("he in the tree"). Enorches ("with balls"), with reference to his fertility, or "in

2640-401: The hands of Dionysus' followers in later myths, but as an epithet of Dionysus himself, whose mythology describes a god who must endure suffering before triumphing over it. According to Kerényi, the title of "man who suffers" likely originally referred to the god himself, only being applied to distinct characters as the myth developed. The oldest known image of Dionysus, accompanied by his name,

2706-500: The head, panther or tiger skins, serpents, phallic symbolism (Shiva lingam), association as a wanderer and outcaste and association with ritual ecstasy. Shiva is understood to be one of a triple godhead that includes Vishnu and Brahma. Dionysus is noted in several references with an association with the east and India. A Mycenaean variant of Bacchus was thought to have been "a divine child" abandoned by his mother and eventually raised by " nymphs , goddesses , or even animals." Dionysus

Skira - Misplaced Pages Continue

2772-466: The inscription on item KH Gq 5 is thought to confirm Dionysus's early worship. In Mycenaean Greek the form of Zeus is di-wo . The second element -nūsos is of unknown origin. It is perhaps associated with Mount Nysa , the birthplace of the god in Greek mythology, where he was nursed by nymphs (the Nysiads ), although Pherecydes of Syros had postulated nũsa as an archaic word for "tree" by

2838-497: The main expression of the cult of Demeter, aside from the Eleusinian Mysteries . The Thesmophoria commemorated the third of the year when Demeter abstained from her role of goddess of the harvest and growth in mourning for her daughter who was in the realm of the Underworld . Their distinctive feature was the sacrifice of pigs. The festival of the Skira or Skirophoria in the calendar of ancient Athens, closely associated with

2904-417: The men who were sent to Ionia by the kings and were attended exclusively by the descendants of these men. In these festivals, men would present their sons to the clan to swear an oath of legitimacy. The oath was made to preserve the purity of the bloodline and their connection to the original settlers. The oath was followed by a sacrifice of either a sheep or a goat, and then the sons' names getting inscribed in

2970-462: The most common animals were sheep, lamb, and goat. This is because they were readily available in Athens and the cost of them was minimal. Bigger sacrifices included bulls and oxen. These animals were reserved for larger festivals like Buphonia . Goats were commonly sacrificed at the festivals of Dionysus, Apotropaiso , Lykeios , and Pythois . Sacrifice in Athenian festivals was very formal, and

3036-535: The myth, but also the god's transformations into lion and bull, and the boisterousness of those who drink alcohol. Also cognate with the "roar of thunder", which refers to Dionysus' father, Zeus "the thunderer". ) Choiropsalas χοιροψάλας ("pig-plucker": Greek χοῖρος = "pig", also used as a slang term for the female genitalia). A reference to Dionysus's role as a fertility deity. Chthonios Χθόνιος ("the subterranean") Cistophorus Κιστοφόρος ("basket-bearer, ivy-bearer"), Alludes To baskets being sacred to

3102-473: The powerful. His thyrsus , a fennel-stem sceptre, sometimes wound with ivy and dripping with honey, is both a beneficent wand and a weapon used to destroy those who oppose his cult and the freedoms he represents. Those who partake of his mysteries are believed to become possessed and empowered by the god himself. His origins are uncertain, and his cults took many forms; some are described by ancient sources as Thracian , others as Greek. In Orphism , he

3168-408: The priestess of Athena , the priest of Poseidon , and in later times, the priest of Helios , took part, under a ceremonial canopy called the skiron , which was held up by a member of the family of the Eteoboutadai or by the priest of Erechtheus. Their joint temple on the Acropolis was the Erechtheum , where Poseidon embodied as Erechtheus remained a numinous presence. The canopy symbolized

3234-470: The protection of the Attic soil from the blazing heat of the sun. At Skiron there was a sanctuary dedicated to Demeter / Kore and one to Athena. As a festival of dissolution, the Skira was a festival proverbial for license, in which men played dice games, but a time also of daytime fasting, and of the inversion of the social order, for the bonds of marriage were suspended, as women banded together and left

3300-477: The quarters where they were ordinarily confined, to eat garlic together "according to ancestral custom", and to sacrifice and feast together, at the expense of the men. The Skira is the setting for Aristophanes ' comedy Ecclesiazusae (393 BCE), in which the women seize the opportunity afforded by the festival, to hatch their plot to overthrow male domination . Athenian festivals The Panathenaea ( Ancient Greek : Παναθήναια , "all-Athenian festival")

3366-460: The register. At Athens , the Apaturia , a Greek citizenship festival took place on the 11th, 12th and 13th days of the month Pyanepsion (mid-October to mid-November). At this festival, the various phratries , or clans, of Attica met to discuss their affairs, along with initiating the sons into the clans. The Amphidromia was a ceremonial feast celebrated on the fifth or seventh day after

SECTION 50

#1732781103603

3432-455: The sixth century BC. On a vase of Sophilos the Nysiads are named νύσαι ( nusae ). Kretschmer asserted that νύση ( nusē ) is a Thracian word that has the same meaning as νύμφη ( nýmphē ), a word similar with νυός ( nuos ) (daughter in law, or bride, I-E *snusós, Sanskr. snusā ). He suggested that the male form is νῦσος ( nūsos ) and this would make Dionysus

3498-445: The standard Greek pantheon at a relatively late date, based on his myths which often involve this theme—a god who spends much of his time on earth abroad, and struggles for acceptance when he returns to Greece. However, more recent evidence has shown that Dionysus was in fact one of the earliest gods attested in mainland Greek culture. The earliest written records of Dionysus worship come from Mycenaean Greece , specifically in and around

3564-533: The testicles" in reference to Zeus' sewing the baby Dionysus "into his thigh", understood to mean his testicles). Used at Samos according to Hesyichius , or Lesbos according to the scholiast on Lycophron's Alexandra . Eridromos ("good-running"), in Nonnus' Dionysiaca. Erikryptos Ἐρίκρυπτος ("completely hidden"), in Macedonia. Euaster (Εὐαστήρ), from the cry "euae". Euius ( Euios ), from

3630-470: The thirteenth century BC, the core religion of Dionysus was in place, as were his important myths. At Knossos in Minoan Crete , men were often given the name "Pentheus", who is a figure in later Dionysian myth and which also means "suffering". Kerényi argued that to give such a name to one's child implies a strong religious connection, potentially not the separate character of Pentheus who suffers at

3696-584: The variants of the name seem to point to an original *Dios-nysos . The earliest attestation is the Mycenaean Greek dative form 𐀇𐀺𐀝𐀰 (di-wo-nu-so) , featured on two tablets that had been found at Mycenaean Pylos and dated to the twelfth or thirteenth century BC. At that time, there could be no certainty on whether this was indeed a theonym , but the 1989–90 Greek-Swedish Excavations at Kastelli Hill , Chania, unearthed, inter alia , four artefacts bearing Linear B inscriptions; among them,

3762-452: The walls of Athens, in a sanctuary dedicated to Heracles. His priests were drawn from the list of boys who were not full Athenian citizens ( nothoi ). The Apaturia ( Greek : Ἀπατούρια ) were Ancient Greek festivals held annually by all the Ionian towns, except Ephesus and Colophon who were excluded due to acts of bloodshed. The festivals honored the origins and the families of

3828-483: The wine stored at the previous vintage, whose pithoi were now ceremoniously opened, and the beginning of spring. Athenians of the Classical age were aware that the festival was of great antiquity; Walter Burkert points out that the mythic reflection of this is the Attic founder-king Theseus ' release of Ariadne to Dionysus, but this is no longer considered a dependable sign that the festival had been celebrated in

3894-563: The year. They were also an essential part of the Dionysian Mysteries . The Lenaia ( Ancient Greek : Λήναια ) was an annual festival with a dramatic competition but one of the lesser festivals of Athens and Ionia in ancient Greece. The Lenaia took place (in Athens) in the month of Gamelion , roughly corresponding to January. The festival was in honour of Dionysus Lenaius . Lenaia probably comes from lenai , another name for

3960-517: Was also known as Bacchus ( / ˈ b æ k ə s / or / ˈ b ɑː k ə s / ; Ancient Greek : Βάκχος Bacchos ) by the Greeks (a name later adopted by the Romans ) for a frenzy he is said to induce called baccheia . As Dionysus Eleutherius ("the liberator"), his wine, music, and ecstatic dance free his followers from self-conscious fear and care, and subvert the oppressive restraints of

4026-438: Was held annually to honor the death of Adonis, Aphrodite's mortal lover who was killed by a boar. Women would participate in the festival by planting their own gardens of Adonis inside of fractured pottery vessels to transport to the rooftops where the ceremonies took place. The women would march through the city to the sea, where Adonis was born and buried. This was preceded by wailing on the rooftops that could be heard throughout

SECTION 60

#1732781103603

4092-487: Was held in honor of the Goddesses Athena and Demeter, where women would eat garlic as it was linked to sexual abstinence to oppose the men in the community and their husbands. Blood sacrifices were a common occurrence in Athenian festivals. Athenians used blood sacrifices to make the accord between gods and men, and it renewed the bonds of the community. Many animals were sacrificed in Athenian festivals, but

4158-543: Was the metamorphosis, at the hand of the god, of his followers into hybrid creatures, usually represented by both tame and wild satyrs , representing the transition from civilized life back to nature as a means of escape. While scholarly references are scarce, there exists a notable overlap between the Greco-Roman Dionysus and the Hindu god Shiva. Shared iconography and background include a crescent or horns on

4224-415: Was the most important festival for Athens and one of the grandest in the entire ancient Greek world. Except for slaves, all inhabitants of the polis could take part in the festival. This holiday of great antiquity is believed to have been the observance of Athena 's birthday and honoured the goddess as the city's patron divinity, Athena Polias ('Athena of the city'). A procession assembled before dawn at

4290-675: Was variably known with the following epithets : Acratophorus , Ἀκρατοφόρος ("giver of unmixed wine"), at Phigaleia in Arcadia . Acroreites at Sicyon . Adoneus , a rare archaism in Roman literature, a Latinised form of Adonis , used as epithet for Bacchus. Aegobolus Αἰγοβόλος ("goat-shooter") at Potniae , in Boeotia . Aesymnetes Αἰσυμνήτης ("ruler" or "lord") at Aroë and Patrae in Achaea . Agrios Ἄγριος ("wild"), in Macedonia . Androgynos Ἀνδρόγυνος ( androgynous , specifically in intercourse) referring to

4356-545: Was variously a son of Zeus and Persephone ; a chthonic or underworld aspect of Zeus; or the twice-born son of Zeus and the mortal Semele . The Eleusinian Mysteries identify him with Iacchus , the son or husband of Demeter . Most accounts say he was born in Thrace, traveled abroad, and arrived in Greece as a foreigner. His attribute of "foreignness" as an arriving outsider-god may be inherent and essential to his cults, as he

#602397