History of Serpents and Dragons

History of Serpents and Dragons, Book I.

A ...perished, was previously taken by Hesychius A 5th-century Greek grammarian to mean a fish, and in the works of Aratus A Greek didactic poet it is read as the constellation Ophis The Serpent constellation. In Aratus's work, there is a riddle of this kind: "What things are the same in the Heavens, on the earth, and in the sea?" to which the answer is: "The Serpent, the Bear, the Eagle, the Dog, and the Hare." Alluding to this, Reusner Nicolaus Reusner, a German jurist and poet speaks in this manner in his Poetic Paradise:

Serpents, Hares, Bears, Eagles, and Dogs,
The Earth, the Sea, and the Heavens possess them all alike.

Furthermore, ophis Greek: ὄφις, serpent signifies a certain affection of the head, which is otherwise explained in the medical schools as ophiasis A form of alopecia where hair loss occurs in winding, snake-like patterns. This occurs when the hair first thins and later falls out in specific patches resembling the path of a serpent; this condition is categorized under alopecia. In the writings of Caelius Rhodiginus, ophis is understood as a Pericarpium, an Armilla, or a bracelet ornament; this is not without reason, as it cinches the arm in the manner of a circle or a serpent. Finally, ophis designates a woman’s head ornament, because the hair is piled high in slippery coils like serpents—an ornament which Statius Papinius called a "structure of hair." B

SYNONYMS AND THEIR ETYMOLOGIES.

Etymology of "Serpent." Decorative initial 'H' in a square frame, depicting a figure in a landscape with trees and buildings in the background. This animal borrowed the name "Serpent" Latin: Serpens from its secret approaches, by which it "creeps" Latin: serpit, since it does not progress with open steps. However, Festus Sextus Pompeius Festus, a Roman grammarian derives this word from the Greek verb herpein ἕρπειν, to crawl, such that in the Latin version the letter 'S' is added in place of the breathing mark; just as hex Greek: ἡξ, six is expressed in Latin as sex. This name "Serpent" encompasses all animals of both masculine and feminine gender that crawl without the use of feet, or those that have such tiny feet that they seem to crawl rather than walk on legs. Nevertheless, lizards and other beasts of this kind that crawl on their bellies and chests should not be called "serpents" Latin: serpentes but rather "crawlers" Latin: repentes. In the past, the Serpent was called Serpula by the ancients, if Festus has reached the truth.

Etymology of "Snake." Otherwise, it is also called Coluber Snake or adder because it glides in slippery tracks with winding coils; for whatever is easily dropped while being held is called "slippery" Latin: lubricum. Others derive the etymology from the Greek word kolobouros κολόβουρος, meaning dock-tailed or stump-tailed. Truly, this name is not found in classical authors. It signifies that which has a mutilated tail; and if anything is to be said about the origin of this word, it must be stated that someone might have been able to derive Coluber from the chelydrus or chersydrus Types of venomous water or land snakes through force and a great change of letters. Others named it Coluber from "dwelling in shadows" Latin: colendis umbris, an etymology which Virgil respects when he sings:
Book 3 of the Georgics.

Or the snake accustomed to seeking shelter and shade.
Baptista Mantuanus A Carmelite poet of the Renaissance repeats the same in this verse:
In the Eclogues.

Often the snake hides under the soft shade of the grass.
D Although many of the ancients accepted Coluber for "Serpent" and vice versa, some understood it as a specific species—namely, for a domestic serpent—while others understood Coluber to mean primarily a water serpent. Book 2 of The History of Plants, Chapter 6. Therefore, Theophrastus wrote that the hydrus water snake withers when the pools dry up, and Theodore Gaza translated coluber for hydrus. Ponzettus Ferdinando Ponzetti, author of a work on poisons, also speaking on this matter, handed down that the Coluber is craftier than many others, for it approaches the water to cool itself and deposit its venom. Besides this name Coluber, one reads Colubra in approved authors, which is used for a female serpent. However, Victorius understood the "blind snakes of the belly" to mean not serpents, but intestinal worms.

Etymology of "Anguis." To the aforementioned synonyms is added anguis serpent/snake, because a serpent is so named when it is, as it were, "angular" Latin: angulosus, almost always folded, and never seen straight. It is of common gender like "Serpent," but it was more often used in the masculine gender, though occasionally in the feminine by Varro. Indeed, in the ablative case, it is inflected as angue or angui. It is also a general name no less than "Serpent"; although Servius A 4th-century commentator on Virgil restricted this word to serpents living only in the water, it is nevertheless said of terrestrial ones as well. Furthermore, Celsus A Roman medical encyclopedist attests that the "serpent" and the "anguis" are the same animal Book 5. in these words: "Again, there is not a single genus of serpents; they require treatment, which..."