Dis Pater
Dis Pater | |
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God of soil fertility and mineral wealth, later associated with the Underworld | |
Soranus |
Dis Pater (
Dis Pater's name was commonly shortened to Dis, and this name has since become an alternative name for the underworld or a part of the underworld, such as the
Etymology
The name Dis is a contraction of the Latin adjective dives ('wealthy, rich'), probably derived from divus, dius ('godlike, divine') via the form *deiu-(o)t- or *deiu-(e)t- ('who is like the gods, protected by/from the gods').
Cicero gave a similar etymology in De Natura Deorum, suggesting the meaning 'father of riches', and comparing the deity to the Greek name Pluto (Plouton, Πλούτων), meaning "the rich one", a title bestowed upon the Greek god Hades.
Mythology
Dis Pater eventually became associated with death and the underworld because mineral wealth such as gems and precious metals came from underground, wherein lies the realm of the dead, i.e. Hades' (Pluto's) domain.
In being conflated with
Dis Pater was sometimes identified with the
A
Worship
In 249 BC and 207 BC, the
See also
- Crom (fictional deity)
- Demeter
- Dievas
- Dis (Divine Comedy)
- Dyaus Pita
- Dyēus
- God the Father
- Hades
- Tiwaz
- Zeus
References
- ^ a b de Vaan 2008, pp. 173–174.
- ISBN 978-3-406-01374-4, p. 247.
- ISBN 0-631-13209-0.
- "Mount Soracte is located in the territory of the Hirpini next to Via Flaminia. It was on this mountain that a sacrifice to Dis Pater was once performed – because it is devoted to chthonic deities – as wolves suddenly appeared and plundered the entrails from the ire. The shepherds chased the wolves for a long time, until they arrived at a cave emanating pestilential gases that killed people standing nearby. The reason for the emergence of this plague was that they had chased the wolves. They received a message that they could calm it down by imitating wolves; that means, living by plundering. They did so, and since then these people have been called Hirpi Sorani."
- ISBN 0-500-01516-3.
- ^ Vendryes, Joseph (1958). Études celtiques (in French). Les Belles Lettres.
- ^
Nash, Ernest (1961–1962). Pictorial Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Vol. 1. London, UK: A. Zwemmer Ltd. p. 57. OCLC 14110024.ISBN 978-0-87817-265-8
- ^
Richardson, L. Jr. (1 October 1992). A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome (illustrated ed.). London, UK / Baltimore, MD: Thames and Hudson / Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 110–111. ISBN 0-8018-4300-6.ISBN 978-0-8018-4300-6
Bibliography
- ISBN 978-90-04-16797-1.
External links
- Media related to Dis Pater at Wikimedia Commons