From The Alpha and the Omega - Volume III
by Jim A. Cornwell, Copyright © July 20, 2002, all rights reserved
"Volume III - The Eighth Month - Constellation Names for Serpends"
In the Eighth Month of Scorpius
Serpends Caput or Cauda (Snake)
The constellation name for Serpends:
- The constellation name for Serpends Caput or Cauda: "Head" or "Tail" "of the Snake." This constellation is divided into two: Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda. It signifies the snake with which Ophiuchus is struggling and this certainly seems appropriate for the two halves are separated by that constellation.
It was all one constellation with Ophiuchus at one time. This also merits in favor that Ophiuchus could not be a thirteenth constellation of the Zodiac.
- Latin Serpentarius.
- In "The Witness of the Stars," by E.W. Bullinger, page 56 "In Latin he is called Serpentarius (referring to Ophiuchus)."
- Rolleston confirms this and states that Serpentarius is the "holder of the serpent."
- One source claims Serpens and serpent comes from Latin serpere, to creep, from the Indo-European root *serp- 'to crawl, creep'. Its Latin origin (serpens, serpentis) is normally substituted for 'snake.'
- Richard H. Allen comments: Serpentarius first appeared with the scholiast on Germanicus, while Serpentiger, Serpentis Lator, Serpentis Praeses, and Serpentinarius are seen for it; as also the Anguifer of Columella, which was Anguiger elsewhere. Cicero and Manilius had the peculiar Anguitenens. Golius insisted that this sky figure represents a Serpent-charmer, one of the Psylli of Libya, noted for their skill in curing the bites of poisonous serpents; and this would seem to be confirmed by the constellation's title le Psylle in Schjellerup's edition of Al Sufi's work.
- From the 30 stars Tablet from Birs Nimroud (Borsippa).
- In the 5,000 year old Tablet of the 30 stars (lunar mansions) from Birs-Nimroud,
- Asterism XXVI (26) is seen as Kakkab Tsir/ /Ilu Nin-ki-gal:
- Thus Kakkab Tsir means "The Asterism of the Snake."
- Allen stated under Ophiuchus: Euphratean astronomers knew it, or a part of it with Serpens, as Nu-tsir-da; and Brown associates it with Sa-gi-mu, the God of Invocation.
- Allen states: Serpens shared with Ophiuchus the Euphratean title of Nu-tsir-da, the Image of the Serpent; and is supposed to have been one of the representatives of divinity to the Ophites, the Hivites of Old Testament times.
- Allen states: Babylonian records allude to some constellation near the pole as a Snail drawn along on the tail of a Dragon that may have been our constellation; while among the inscriptions we find Sir, a Snake, but to which of the sky serpents this applied is uncertain.
- Then Ilu Nin-ki-gal means "The Goddess Queen-of-the-Great-Region."
- It is made up of h (eta) (Sabik), x (Xi) (Wajrik) and J (theta, q) (Kashud) Ophiuchi.
- Ninkigal (Nin-lil, Nin-ge, Ereshki-gal, or Persephone), its regent-divinity is "Queen-of-the-Ghost-World" and "Queen-of-the-Underworld" (Scheol-Hades).
- Sumerian nin: queen, mistress, proprietress, lady; lord.
- Sumerian ki: n., earth; place; ground; grain; prep., where; wherever, whenever.
- Sumerian kì: to build; to make; to act.
- Sumerian ki-a-na : death offering ('earth' + 'water' + 'to water').
- Sumerian šubur: earth. Of interest is the word Sahara may derive from Sumerian sahar: dust, sand, earth, mud, loam; rubbish; sediment (cf., kuš7) (sa5, 'red-brown', + hara, 'crushed, pulverized').
- Sumerian dugsáhar [SAR]: clay pot.
- Sumerian gal, gal: n., a large cup. adj., big, large, great.
- Sumerian gu-la: large, great (cf., gal; gu-ul).
- J. Epping (1889) "Astronmisches Aus Babylon," provides the Babylonian and Hassan Al-Saba (Saudia Arabia) provides the Arabic source for the following 28 lunar mansion names listed as:
- From Capricornus Star Names we find the following mention of the above Asterism:
- Babylonian #26 Qarnu-šahû.
- Of interest is the Sumerian šah-ú: pasture grazing pig ('pig' + 'plants, grass'), whereas in Delphinus we find the Sumerian šah: domestic pig.
- Serpent.
- Sumerian mer(2), mir(2): n., storm wind; violent storm; north(wind); anger; belt, waistband; an encircling snake. adj., angry.
- Sumerian ušum, ušu: n., dragon, composite creature (uš11, 'snake venom', + am, 'wild ox'), adj., solitary, alone.
- Sumerian muš: n., snake; reptile, adj., bitter.
- Sumerian muš2,3: n., diadem; a city's irrigated, cultivated territory; face, appearance, aspect. v., to glisten, shine.
- Sumerian muš4: a biting insect.
- Hebrew nachash, naw-khawsh', from Heb. nachash, naw-khash', to hiss, thus a snake (from its hiss), serpent.
- Hebrew zachal, zaw-khal, a primary root to crawl, by implication to fear, be afraid, serpent, worm.
- Hebrew tanniyn, tan-neen', or tanniym (Ezek. 29:3), from Heb. tan, tan, to elongate, a monster, sea-serpent, jackal, dragon, whale, thus a marine or land monster.
- Arabic Unukalhai, "the serpent's neck," where Unuk, (Heb. 'anak), means encompassing.
- The a star is called Unukalhai, which is in Serpens Caput and named from the Arabic word for "the serpent's neck."
- Encompassing.
- Hebrew 'anak, an-awk' probably from an unused root meaning to be narrow, according to most a plumb-line, and to others a hook, plumb-line.
- Hebrew 'anaq, aw-nawk', from Heb. 'anaq, aw-nak', a primary root properly to choke, to collar, adorn with a necklace, fig. to fit out with supplies, compass about as a chain, furnish, liberally, thus a necklace (as if strangling), chain.
- Hebrew chanak, khaw-nak', a primary root properly to narrow, [compared to Heb. chanaq, khaw-nak', to throttle, or to choke oneself to death (by rope), hang self, strangle], fig. to initiate or discipline, dedicate, train up.
- Hebrew chuwg, khoog, a circle, to describe a circle, compass.
- In "The Witness of the Stars," by E.W. Bullinger, page 57 "The brightest star in the Serpent, a (in the neck), is named Unuk, which means encompassing."
- Arabic Al hay
or Unuk Al Hay, represents a reptile.
- Arabic Al Hay (Arabic) for the reptile. Probably means, "living thing," as in Heb. Chay.
- Living.
- Hebrew chay, khah'ee, from Heb. chayah, khaw-yaw', a primary root to live, thus alive, hence raw (flesh), fresh, strong, life (living thing).
Another source calls this in Hebrew Alyah, the Accursed.
- The star in Serpens J or q Alya, which marks the tip of the snake's tail from the Arabic word that may mean, "tail."
- Rolleston stated the "Hebrew name is Alyah, the accursed."
- One source says Alya, means "snake," and Arabic Al-Alyah, "the fatty tail of a sheep."
It is also noted that the b star in Ophiuchus and Serpens is also called Chelbalrai, "the serpent enfolding."
- In "The Witness of the Stars," by E.W. Bullinger, page 57 "b (in the jaw), named in the Arabic, Cheleb, or Chelbalrai, the serpent enfolding."
Greek:
- Richard H. Allen comments: The Greeks knew it as Ophis Ophioukhou, or simply as Ophis, and familiarly as Erpeton and Egkhelus (eel), respectively the Serpent and the Eel; the Latins, occasionally as Anguilla, Anguis, and Coluber; but universally as Serpens, often qualified as the Serpent of Aesculapius, Caesius, Glaucus, Laocoon, and of Ophiuchus; and as Serpens Herculeus, Lernaeus, and Sagarinus.
The 1515 Almagest and the Alfonsine Tables of 1521 had Serpens Alangue, thus combining their corrupted Latin with their equally corrupted Arabic, as often is the case with those works. It also was Draco Lesbius and Tiberinus, and, perhaps, Ovid's and Vergil's Lucidus Anguis.
- Allen under Draco comments: ... although Eratosthenes and Hipparchos called it Ophis (Greek for snake), and in the Latin Tables, as with some of the poets, it occasionally appeared, with the other starry snakes, as Anguis, Coluber, Python, and Serpens (another constellation Serpens). From the latter came Aesculapius (identified with Ophiuchus), and perhaps Audax.
Egyptian/Coptic:
- On the Denderah Zodiac see Serpens
- The Serpent seen under the feet of Ophiuchus is called "Khu, ruled or enemy."
- In "The Witness of the Stars," by E.W. Bullinger, page 58 "In the Zodiac of Denderah ... serpent (Serpens), which is called Khu, and means ruled or enemy."
Other names for Serpends: Serpens, the snake, Serpens Alan'gue, Alangue, Al Hay'yah, Alha'fa (Chilmead), Al Rau'dah, Al Nasals' al Yamaniy'yah (stars), No sak'al Shamaliy'yah (Shamiyy).
- Richard H. Allen states: In the astronomy of Arabia it was Al Hayyah, the Snake, — Chilmead's Alhafa; but before that country was influenced by Greece there was a very different constellation here, Al Raudah, the Pasture; the stars beta and gamma, with gamma and beta Herculis, forming the Nasak Shamiyy, the Northern Boundary; while delta, alpha, and epsilon Serpentis, with delta, epsilon, zeta, and eta Ophiuchi, were the Nasak Yamaniyy, the Southern Boundary. The enclosed sheep were shown by the stars now in the Club of Hercules, guarded on the west by the Shepherd and his Dog, the stars alpha in Ophiuchus and Hercules.
- The Arabians translated the Greek name into Al Hawwa’, which Assemani repeated as Alhava, Collector_serpentum; but it appeared on the globes as Al Haur, turned by the Moors into Al Hague, and by early astronomical writers into Alangue, Hasalangue, and Alange; the Turks having the similar Yilange. It has been suggested, however, that these may have come from the Latin Anguis, a word that the astronomical Arabians and Moors well knew.
- Serpens shared with Ophiuchus the Euphratean title of Nu-tsir-da, the Image of the Serpent; and is supposed to have been one of the representatives of divinity to the Ophites, the Hivites of Old Testament times.
- The comparatively void space between nu and epsilon was the Chinese Tien Shi Yuen, the Enclosure of the Heavenly Market.
- Seen as le Serpent in France, il Serpente in Italy, and die Schlange in Germany.
See Star Names for Serpends.
This file last updated on July 15, 2008.
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