Divine Names on the Spot: Towards a Dynamic Approach of Divine Denominations in Greek and Semitic Contexts (Orbis Biblicus Et Orientalis, 293)

'Ancient Greek and Semitic languages resorted to a large range of words to name the divine. Gods and goddesses were called by a variety of names and combinations of onomastic attributes. This broad lexicon of names is characterised by plurality and a tendency to build on different sequences of names; therefore, the Mapping Ancient Polytheisms project focuses on the process of naming the divine in order to better understand the ancient divine in terms of a plurality in the making. A fundamental rule for reading ancient divine names is to grasp them in their context - time and place, a ritual, the form of the discourse, a cultural milieu...: a deity is usually named according to a specific situation. From Artemis Eulochia to al-Lat, al-'Uzza and Manat, from Melqart to "my rock" in the biblical book of Psalms, this volume journeys between the sanctuary on Mount Gerizim and late antique magical practices, revisiting rituals, hymnic poetry, oaths of orators and philosophical prayers. While targeting different names in different contexts, the contributors draft theoretical propositions towards a dynamic approach of naming the divine in antiquity.' --Provided by publisher Ancient Greek and Semitic languages resorted to a large range of words to name the divine. Gods and goddesses were called by a variety of names and combinations of onomastic attributes. This broad lexicon of names is characterised by plurality and a tendency to build on different sequences of names; therefore, the Mapping Ancient Polytheisms project focuses on the process of naming the divine in order to better understand the ancient divine in terms of a plurality in the making. A fundamental rule for reading ancient divine names is to grasp them in their context ? time and place, a ritual, the form of the discourse, a cultural milieu?: a deity is usually named according to a specific situation. From Artemis Eulochia to al-Lat, al-'Uzza and Manat, from Melqart to "my rock" in the biblical book of Psalms, this volume journeys between the sanctuary on Mount Gerizim and late antique magical practices, revisiting rituals, hymnic poetry, oaths of orators and philosophical prayers. While targeting different names in different contexts, the contributors draft theoretical propositions towards a dynamic approach of naming the divine in antiquity.--publisher's description 'Names, images, and narratives are intimately related and frequently polysemous. As pieces of information on the gods, they convey fragments of knowledge and attempts to interpret the multifaceted complexity of the divine world. In what Robert Parker describes as an "archipelago", images and narratives are like compasses used to approach the mapping of the gods. The different contributions collected in this volume, dealing with the Greek and the Semitic worlds (the two main areas of the "Mapping Ancient Polytheisms" project), explore connections but also discrepancies between these different semantics, in order to highlight specificities and commonalities in the onomastic and iconographic languages.' --Provided by publisher