Unicorn

views updated May 21 2018

Unicorn

The word unicorn comes from the Latin for "one-horned" and refers to an imaginary beast that appears in the legends of China, India, Mesopotamia*, and Europe. Since medieval times the unicorn has often been portrayed as a horse with a single horn growing from its forehead. Descriptions of the animal in various sources differ somewhat, but they all agree on the horn. Some images of unicorns were probably based on real animals, such as the one-horned rhinoceros or the narwhala small whale with a single long tooth or tusk that resembles a spiral ivory horn.

In Chinese tradition, the unicorn was one of four magical or spiritual creaturesalong with the phoenix, tortoise, and dragonthat were regarded as signs of good fortune. The appearance of a unicorn signaled the birth or death of a great person; one was said to have appeared when Confucius, a famous wise man, was born.

The Western image of the unicorn comes in part from the Hebrew Bible. During its translation into Greek, a Hebrew word for "wild ox" was changed to a Greek word that people interpreted as a reference to either a unicorn or a rhinoceros. Around 400 b.c., the Greek historian Ctesias wrote of a wild beast in India that had a single horn and fought elephants. It was probably the rhinoceros, though later writers developed an image that much more closely resembled a horned horse.

medieval relating to the Middle Ages in Europe, a period from about a.d. 500 to 1500

By the Middle Ages, Europeans had come to believe that these horselike unicorns really existed in remote parts of the world. Among the legends linked to them was the belief that water touched by a unicorn's horn became safe for animals and people to drink. From this tradition developed the idea that powdered unicorn horn offered protection against poison and possibly cured disease as well. Rich and important people treasured horns


*See Names and Places at the end of this volume for further information.

and powders said to have come from unicorns. Some kings, fearing that rivals might try to poison them, drank from vessels that they believed to be unicorn horns.

Although unicorns were thought to be fierce fighters, they were also symbols of purity. Perhaps this was because the ancient Greeks and Romans had associated them with virgin goddesses such as Artemis, whose chariot was said to be drawn by eight unicorns. According to tradition, one way to capture a unicorn was to send a very young virgin into the forest. The unicorn would be attracted to her and would rest its head in her lap, at which point a hunter could catch the animal.

See also Animals in Mythology.

unicorn

views updated May 17 2018

u·ni·corn / ˈyoōnəˌkôrn/ • n. 1. a mythical animal typically represented as a horse with a single straight horn projecting from its forehead. ∎  a heraldic representation of such an animal, with a twisted horn, a deer's feet, a goat's beard, and a lion's tail. 2. hist. a carriage drawn by three horses, two abreast and one leader. ∎  a team of three horses arranged in such a way.ORIGIN: Middle English: via Old French from Latin unicornis, from uni- ‘single’ + cornu ‘horn,’ translating Greek monokerōs.

unicorn

views updated May 29 2018

unicorn a mythical animal typically represented as a horse with a single straight horn projecting from its forehead; a heraldic representation of such an animal, with a twisted horn, a deer's feet, a goat's beard, and a lion's tail.

The unicorn has at various times been identified or confused with the rhinoceros, with various species of antelope, or with other animals having a horn (or horns) or horn-like projection from the head. According to Pliny it had a body resembling that of a horse, the head of a deer, the feet of an elephant, and the tail of a lion, with one black horn projecting from the middle of the forehead. In biblical translation, unicorn may be used for a kind of wild ox.

The horn of this animal was reputed to possess medicinal or magical properties, especially as an antidote to or preventive of poison. It was also said that it could only be captured by a virgin.

In heraldry, the unicorn is a supporter of the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom.
unicorn's horn a horn regarded as or alleged to be obtained from the legendary unicorn, but in reality that of the rhinoceros, narwhal, or other animal, frequently mounted or made into a drinking cup and employed as a preventive of or charm against poison.

unicorn

views updated May 21 2018

unicorn fabulous one-horned equine beast XIII; carriage drawn by three horses arranged one and two XVIII. — (O)F. unicorne — L. unicornis one-horned, (Vulg.) unicorn, f. UNI- + cornū HORN.

unicorn

views updated Jun 08 2018

unicorn In mythology and heraldry, a magical animal resembling a graceful horse or young goat with one thin conical or helical horn on its forehead.