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Centaur

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Here are 3 definitions of the word centaur:

cen.taur \'sen-.to.(*)r\ n [ME, fr. L Centaurus, fr. Gk Kentauros] 1: one of a race fabled to be half man and half horse and to dwell in the mountains of Thessaly. A centaur is a mythical creature with the head and torso of a man joined to the body of a horse.

centaur (noun or adjective) Or centaurus (Latin) or Kentaurous (Greek). A being resembling the combination of a human and a horse, as if the head and neck of the horse were replaced with the head, arms, and torso of the human. Species alternately classified as "Homo Equus" and "Equus Sapiens", possibly "Kentaurous Sapiens".

half-horse (noun) A "politically correct" term for a civilized centaur.

And now for some history. With there origin's beginning in Greek mythology, the centaur is just one of the most enduring mythological creations, persisting through art and literature in the Middle Ages and enjoying a rebirth with the twentieth century explosion in the genre of fantasy.

Most generally the centaurs of Greek mythology are creatures that are part human and part horse. Today they are usually portrayed with the torso and head of a male or female, and the body of a horse. Centaurs may best be explained as the creation of a folktale in which wild inhabitants of the mountains and savage spirits of the forests were combined in a half-human, half-animal form. In early art they were portrayed as human beings in front, with the body and hind legs of a horse attached to the back; later, they were men only as far as the waist. Some say that they fought using only rough branches of trees as weapons.

According to Greek mythology, KENTAUROS as they are called, are said to inhabited Mount Pelion in Thessaly, northern Greece and in Arcadia.

History shows us that centaurs were well known for being drunk and having amorous habits. Their general character was that of wild, lawless, and inhospitable beings, the slaves of their animal passions. According to legend they were the offspring of Ixion, King of the neighboring Lapiths. And were best known for their fight with the Lapiths. On the wedding day of Pirithous King of the Lapiths, the son and successor of Ixion, they violated the female guests and attempted to abduct the Kings bride. The centaurs eventually lost the battle and were driven from Mount Pelion.

An exception to this was the kind and wise centaur Chiron, or Cheiron the centaur sage who had tutored several great Greek heroes. Including Jason, Hercules, Theseus, Achilles, and the healer Asclepius. He was said to have been immortal and, after being wounded by Hercules, was allowed by Zeus to give his immortality to Prometheus rather than live on in agony. Zeus then placed him in the stars as a constellation. Cheiron was supposedly the son of the titan Kronos (Zeus' father) and Phillyra (an oceanid, or sea nymph), and not a scion of the centaur race.

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This page was last updated: Tuesday, May 15, 2001 5:30 PM