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Does anyone know what it really means? Some sources say "flax" others say "mourning song" or "mourning". Klick on the name, it's supposed to be Latin: Linus, does anyone speak Latin and explain what it really means?
Oh and there used to be an Oxford Dictionary of First names online, does anyone know whether it's still available? Thanks.
Oh and there used to be an Oxford Dictionary of First names online, does anyone know whether it's still available? Thanks.
This message was edited 7/16/2011, 6:04 AM
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From A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford University Press:
"Latin form of the Greek name Linos, which is of uncertain origin. In Greek mythology, Linus is both a famous musician who taught music to Hercules and an infant son of Apollo who had been exposed to die on a mountainside in Argos. The name may have been invented to explain the obscure refrain, “ailinon”, of the so-called “Linus song”, a lament sung at harvest time in Argos. In the Christian era, Linus is the name of the second pope, St Peter's successor, who was martyred in c.76. He has been tentatively identified with the Linus to whom Paul sends greetings in 2 Timothy 4: 21. The given name has occasionally been used in America. It is now associated with a character in the extremely popular Peanuts strip cartoon series, a little boy inseparable from his security blanket."
The Oxford Dictionary of First Names is online as part of Ancestry.com's Learning Center.
"Latin form of the Greek name Linos, which is of uncertain origin. In Greek mythology, Linus is both a famous musician who taught music to Hercules and an infant son of Apollo who had been exposed to die on a mountainside in Argos. The name may have been invented to explain the obscure refrain, “ailinon”, of the so-called “Linus song”, a lament sung at harvest time in Argos. In the Christian era, Linus is the name of the second pope, St Peter's successor, who was martyred in c.76. He has been tentatively identified with the Linus to whom Paul sends greetings in 2 Timothy 4: 21. The given name has occasionally been used in America. It is now associated with a character in the extremely popular Peanuts strip cartoon series, a little boy inseparable from his security blanket."
The Oxford Dictionary of First Names is online as part of Ancestry.com's Learning Center.
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Awesome, thank you so much :)
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Well, this (scholarly) source here lists the Greek word for flax as source for Linos/Linus, but with a "perhaps":
http://3scriptures.org/3Script/NewTst/Grk/3000-3099.htm
The lamentation explanation can be found as well, but also with a "may":
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Linus.aspx
So maybe both theories are credible, without any possibility to decide after such a long time which is really correct.
I think I remember that Oxford name dictionary. It went offline a looong time ago.
http://3scriptures.org/3Script/NewTst/Grk/3000-3099.htm
The lamentation explanation can be found as well, but also with a "may":
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Linus.aspx
So maybe both theories are credible, without any possibility to decide after such a long time which is really correct.
I think I remember that Oxford name dictionary. It went offline a looong time ago.
This message was edited 7/16/2011, 8:28 AM
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Thank you! :)
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