|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
Pleiad
Pleiad [from Pleiades ], group of seven tragic poets of Alexandria who flourished c.280 BC under Ptolemy II Philadelphus. Of the works of the men usually given in lists of the Pleiad only those of Lycophron survive. A group of enthusiastic French poets took c.1553 the name Pléiade from the Alexandrian Pleiad. The conventional seven of this group are Ronsard (the leader), Joachim Du Bellay , Belleau , Jodelle , Tyard , Baïf , and Daurat . Their avowed purpose was to encourage the writing of French, as against Latin, in order to enrich the French language and to establish a modern literature equal to other literatures. They cultivated the use of classical and Italian forms, especially of the sonnet.
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Pleiad." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pleiad." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Pleiad.html "Pleiad." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Pleiad.html |
|
Pleiades
PleiadesIn Greek mythology, the Pleiades were seven sisters who were the daughters of the Titan Atlas and the nymph Pleione. Their names were Maia, Electra, Taygete, Celaeno, Alcyone, Sterope, and Merope. The Pleiades are best known as a constellation in the sky consisting of seven stars. Titan one of a family of giants who ruled the earth until overthrown by the Greek gods of Olympus nymph minor goddess of nature, usually represented as young and beautiful According to one legend, Zeus* turned the Pleiades into a constellation after they had killed themselves out of sorrow over the death of their sisters, the Hyades. A better-known version of the story says that the giant hunter Orion fell in love with the seven sisters and pursued them constantly. To save the Pleiades from Orion's attentions, Zeus turned them into stars and set them in the night sky. However, this did not stop Orion. He, too, was changed into a constellation, the one that appears to chase the Pleiades through the heavens. One of the stars in the constellation of the Pleiades is not as bright as the others. Some say this is Merope, who was ashamed of her love for a mortal. Others say it is Electra, mourning for the destruction of Troy*, the city descended from her son Dardanus. See also Orion. |
|
|
Cite this article
"Pleiades." Myths and Legends of the World. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pleiades." Myths and Legends of the World. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3490900395.html "Pleiades." Myths and Legends of the World. 2001. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3490900395.html |
|
Pleiades
Pleiades the seven daughters of the Titan Atlas and the Oceanid Pleione, the eldest of whom, Merope, was ‘the lost Pleiad’, and not represented by a star. They were pursued by the hunter Orion until Zeus changed them into stars. Their name has been given to a cluster of stars (usually spoken of as seven and also called Seven Sisters) in the constellation Taurus; six stars are visible to the naked eye but there are actually some five hundred present, formed very recently in stellar terms.
|
|
|
Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pleiades." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pleiades." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Pleiades.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Pleiades." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Pleiades.html |
|
Pleiades
Ple·ia·des / ˈplēədēz/ 1. Greek Mythol. the seven daughters of the Titan Atlas and the Oceanid Pleione. They were pursued by the hunter Orion until Zeus changed them into a cluster of stars. 2. Astron. a well-known open cluster of stars in the constellation Taurus. Six (or more) stars are visible to the naked eye but there are actually some five hundred in the cluster, formed very recently in stellar terms. Also called Seven Sisters. |
|
|
Cite this article
"Pleiades." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pleiades." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-pleiades.html "Pleiades." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-pleiades.html |
|
Pleiades
Pleiades in Greek mythology, seven daughters of Atlas and the nymph Pleione. According to one legend they were the attendants of Artemis and were changed into stars by the gods when they were pursued by the amorous hunter Orion. Their names were Maia, Merope, Electra, Celaeno, Taygete, Sterope (or Asterope), and Alcyone. The lost Pleiad was either Electra 2 or Merope . |
|
|
Cite this article
"Pleiades." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pleiades." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Pleiades2.html "Pleiades." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Pleiades2.html |
|
Pleiades
Pleiades •Andes
•Hades, Mercedes
•Archimedes • Thucydides • aphides
•Eumenides, Parmenides
•Maimonides, Simonides
•Euripides • cantharides • Hesperides
•Hebrides
•Aristides, bona fides
•Culdees
•Alcibiades, Hyades, Pleiades
•Cyclades • antipodes • Sporades
•Ganges • Apelles
•tales, Thales
•Achilles, Antilles
•Los Angeles • Ramillies • Pericles
•isosceles • Praxiteles • Hercules
•Empedocles • Sophocles • Damocles
•Androcles • Heracles • Themistocles
•Hermes • Menes • testudines
•Diogenes • Cleisthenes
•Demosthenes
•Aristophanes, Xenophanes
•manganese • Holofernes • editiones principes • herpes
•lares, primus inter pares
•Antares, Ares, Aries, caries
•antifreeze • Ceres • Buenos Aires
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Pleiades." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Pleiades." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Pleiades.html "Pleiades." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-Pleiades.html |
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
