Greek popular meteorology from antiquity to the present : the folk-interpretation of celestial signs

This book, the only one of its kind in the English language, examines the Greek attempts to predict weather change by means of naked-eye observation of celestial phenomena, unaided by scientific meteorology. In ’A Catalogue of Signs’, which constitutes the main body of the book, the author sets forth systematically 720 signs derived from clouds, comets, dew, hoar frost, lightning, mist, moon, planets, rainbow, stars, sun, thunder, and winds: the assemblage of signs associated with each predictive phenomenon is preceded by a brief introduction, which includes a resume of the views of the Greek natural philosophers, mainly those of Aristotle, on the nature of the phenomenon and on its relationship to the weather, if such a relationship was thought to exist. The book aims to impose a comprehensible order on that part of the amorphous body of Greek popular meteorology that is concerned with celestial phenomena; it testifies to the abiding interest of the Greeks, from their earliest days to the present, in the observation of these phenomena as a guide to weather prediction. It will be of interest not only to all students of Greek culture, but also to folklorists and meteorologists. Its publication is opportune at the present time when, more than ever before, the world is concerned with climatic change and its impact on our environment. This book, the only one of its kind in the English language, examines the attempts of the Greeks to predict weather change by means of naked-eye observation of celestial phenomena, unaided by scientific meteorology. It has as its theme an important, but neglected, aspect of the experience of the Greek people over the past three millennia, i.e. their attempts to predict weather change by means of naked-eye observation of celestial phenomena, unaided by scientific meteorology. Its author was motivated both by his academic training as a classicist and by his upbringing, more than two generations ago, on an upland farm in the south-west Ireland, where he became familiar from an early age with local lore of the weather. His written sources, ancient, Byzantine-Medieval, and modern, are supplemented by data collected from folklore manuscripts and in field–work in Greece, both mainland and islands. Given the pioneering nature of the book, it is appropriate that a significant part of the Preface be devoted to guidance for the reader. In the Prolegomena the author discusses inter alia the importance of the weather for the ancient Greeks and the influence of weather lore on Greek poets, as exemplified by Homer, Archilochus, and Aeschylus. In a Catalogue of Signs, which constitutes the main body of the book, he sets forth systematically 720 signs derived from clouds, comets, dew, hoar frost, lightning, mist, moon, planets, rainbow, stars, sun, thunder, and winds: the assemblage of signs associated with each predictive phenomenon is preceded by a brief introduction, which includes a resumé of the views of the Greek natural philosophers, mainly those of Aristotle, on the nature of the phenomenon and on its relationship to the weather, if such a relationship was thought to exist. Chiefly for the benefit of classical scholars who may wish to investigate the important question of the interrelationships of ancient and Byzantine-Medieval writers on weather lore, all relevant passages from these writers are quoted in full. Greek evidence is frequently supported by Latin analogies and by modern analogies from countries (e.g, Ireland) other than Greece. For the benefit of the Greekless reader all critical passages are translated. The book aims to impose a comprehensible order on that part of the amorphous body of Greek popular meteorology that is concerned with celestial phenomena; it testifies to the abiding interest of the Greeks, from their earliest days to the present, in the observation of these phenomena as a guide to weather prediction. It will be of interest not only to all students of Greek culture, but also to folklorists and meteorologists. Its publication is opportune at the present time when, more than ever before, the world is concerned with climatic change and its impact on our environment. Title Page 2 Copyright Page 3 Table of Contents 5 Preface 11 Acknowledgements 15 Guidelines for the Reader 19 Prolegomena 30 Catalogue of Signs 90 Appendix 398 Bibliography 402 Index 414 Maps 432