A characteristic of Homer's style is the use of recurring epithets, such as rosy-fingered dawn or swift-footed Achilles. These epithets were metric stop-gaps as well as mnemonic devices for the aoidos (singer), both signs of the deep oral tradition that preceded the written codification of the Iliad and the Odyssey. This article is about the Greek poet Homer and the works attributed to him. ... Look up epithet in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Aoidos means singer in classical Greek. ... title page of the Rihel edition of ca. ... This article is about Homers epic poem. ...

Moreover, epithets in epic poetry from various Indo European traditions may be traced to a common tradition going much deeper into pre-history; for example, the phrase approximating "everlasting glory" or "undying fame" can be found in the Homeric Greek kleos aphthiton and the Sanskrit śrávo ákşitam; they "were, in terms of historical linguistics, equivalent in phonology, accentuation, and quantity (syllable length). In other words, they are descendants from a fragment of poetic diction (reconstructable as Proto-Indo-European *klewos ņdhg^whitom) which was handed down in parallel over many centuries, in continually diverging forms, by generations of singers whose ultimate ancestors shared an archetypal repertoire of poetic formulae and narrative themes." (John Curtis Franklin, Structural Sympathies in Ancient Greek and South-Slavic Heroic Singing.) For other meanings of epic, see Epic. ... For other uses, see Indo-European. ... Homeric Greek is the form of Ancient Greek that was used by Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey. ... Sanskrit ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... Phonology (Greek phonÄ“ = voice/sound and logos = word/speech), is a subfield of linguistics which studies the sound system of a specific language (or languages). ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Kinship and descent is one of the major concepts of cultural anthropology. ... Poetic diction is the term used to refer to the linguistic style, the vocabulary, and the metaphors used in the writing of poetry. ... The Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) is the hypothetical common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans. ...

A name plus an epithet constitute a formula which exactly fits the metric structure of the verse. The use of formulas is characteristic of ancient epic poetry. In literature, meter or metre (sometimes known as prosody) is a term used in the scansion (analysis into metrical patterns) of poetry, usually indicated by the kind of feet and the number of them. ...

Homer’s specific use of epithets is more than simply to complete rhythm patterns. Epithets deepen the meaning of each of the nouns that they modify. Epithets can inform the reader about the character’s origin, their parentage, appearance or state, skill-set, position, or heroic quality. Bryan Hainsworth, in his book The Iliad: A Commentary, compares Homer’s epithets to an author using “a simile to sharpen a scene in a narrative.” At the same time, he distinguishes between Homer’s two different types of epithets: the special and the generic. Special epithets are used exclusively for a particular character, while generic epithets are used repeatedly for a specific class of characters. Yet this distinction isn’t always clear – for example, the epithet “master of the war-cry” is used predominately with Menelaus, yet on occasion is also used to describe Diomedes.^[1]

List of epithets in Homer

• Abantes
  • great-hearted

• Achaeans
  • flowing-haired
  • bronzed-armored
  • strong-greaved
  • glancing-eyed
  • far-famed

• Achilles
  • son of Peleus
  • swift-footed (podas ôkus)
  • god-like (dios)
  • shepherd of the people
  • leader of men

• Aeneas
  • lord of men
  • godlike
  • son of Anchises
  • counselor of the Trojans
  • lord of the Trojans
  • high-hearted
  • likes

• Agamemnon
  • son of Atreus
  • wide-ruling
  • lord of men
  • godlike
  • powerful
  • skilled breaker of horses
  • shepherd of the people
  • brilliant

• Agenor
  • high-hearted

• Aias/Ajax
  • "Great" Aias
  • swift
  • gigantic
  • high-hearted

• Andromache
  • daughter of Eetion
  • white-armed

• Antilochus
  • son of Nestor

• Aphrodite
  • laughing
  • daughter of Zeus

• Apollo
  • distant deadly Archer
  • god of the silver bow
  • rouser of armies
  • son of Zeus

• Ares
  • curse of men
  • sacker of cities
  • of the glinting helmet
  • manslaughtering
  • women raping

• Athena
  • Pallas
  • gray-eyed
  • hope of soldiers

• Atreus
  • breaker of horses

• Ariadne
  • lovely-haired

• Artemis
  • the archer-goddess
  • of the golden distaff

• Demeter
  • fair-haired

• Diomedes
  • god-like
  • high-spirited
  • son of Tydeus
  • great spearman
  • horse tamer
  • master of the war cry
  • the powerful

• Hector
  • tall
  • horse tamer
  • shepherd of the people
  • son of Priam
  • of the glinting helmet
  • brilliant
  • man-killing

• Helen
  • long-dressed
  • lovely haired
  • daughter of a noble house

• Hera
  • ox-eyed lady
  • goddess of the white arms

• Hephaestus
  • the famous craftsman
  • the famous lame god

• Hermes
  • messenger
  • son of Zeus
  • giant-killer
  • the strong one

• Iris
  • wind-footed

• Kronos
  • devious-devising
  • all-powerful

• Menelaus
  • red-haired king
  • master of the war-cry
  • fair-haired
  • son of Atreus
  • war-like
  • spear-famed

• Naubolos
  • great-hearted

• Nestor
  • godlike
  • splendid
  • Gerenian charioteer
  • son of Neleus
  • Pylos born king
  • sweet spoken
  • high-hearted

• Odysseus
  • brilliant
  • sacker of cities
  • god-like
  • resourceful
  • noble
  • tried
  • wise
  • loved of Zeus
  • great glory of the Aecheans
  • great-hearted

• Onchestos
  • the sacred

• Pandaros
  • Lykaeon's splendid son
  • the strong and blameless son of Lykaon
  • godlike

• Patroclus
  • son of Menoitius
  • horseman

• Paris
  • Alexandros
  • godlike
  • son of Priam

• Polites
  • son of Priam

• Polyphemos
  • godlike

• Sarpedon
  • leader of the Lycians

• Thetis
  • lovely-haired
  • silver-footed

• Thersites
  • of the endless speech

• Trojans
  • breakers of horses

• Tydeus
  • driver of horses
  • high-hearted

• Zeus
  • mighty
  • son of Kronos
  • wide-seeing
  • the cloud-gatherer
  • father of gods and men
  • master of the bright lightning

The Achaeans (in Greek , Achaioi) is the collective name given to the Greek forces in Homers Iliad (used 598 times). ... For other uses, see Achilles (disambiguation). ... Aeneas flees burning Troy, Federico Barocci, 1598. ... This article is about a character in Greek mythology. ... In history and Greek mythology, Agenor (which means very manly) was a king of Tyre. ... Aias (Greek: ), or Ajax, king of Salamis, a legendary hero of ancient Greece. ... Andromache grieves the loss of Hector In Greek mythology, Andromache was the wife of Hector and daughter of Eetion, sister to Podes. ... In Greek mythology, Antilochus (also transliterated as Antílokhos) was the son of Nestor, king of Pylos. ... The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Apollo (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient Greek god; for other uses, see Ares (disambiguation). ... This is the Greek name of the capital of the Hellenic Republic (Greece). ... In Greek mythology, King Atreus (Greek: Ατρεύς, Atreús) (fearless) of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia and father of Agamemnon and Menelaus. ... Drinking scene with Dionysus and Ariadne on his lap. ... For other uses, see Artemis (disambiguation). ... This article is about the grain goddess Demeter. ... Diomēdēs or Diomed (Gk:Διομήδης - God-like cunning or advised by Zeus) is a hero in Greek mythology, mostly known for his participation in the Trojan War. ... For other uses, see Hector (disambiguation). ... Helen of Troy redirects here. ... For other uses, see Hera (disambiguation). ... Hephaestus (pronounced or ; Greek Hēphaistos) was a Greek god whose Roman equivalent was Vulcan; he was the god of technology, blacksmiths, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metals and metallurgy, and fire. ... For other uses, see Hermes (disambiguation). ... Iris, by Luca Giordano In Greek mythology, Iris is the personification of the rainbow and messenger of the gods. ... Not to be confused with Chronos, the personification of time. ... Menelaus regains Helen, detail of an Attic red-figure crater, ca. ... In Greek mythology, Nestor of Gerênia (Greek: Νέστωρ) was the son of Neleus and Chloris, and the King of Pylos. ... For other uses, see Odysseus (disambiguation). ... In Homers Iliad, Pandarus or Pandaros is the son of Lycaon and a famous archer. ... A cup depicting Achilles bandaging Patroklos arm, by the Sosias Painter. ... See List of King Priams children Statue of Paris in the British Museum This article is about the prince of Troy. ... In Greek mythology, Polites referred to two different people. ... Polyphemus (transliterated as Polyphemos in Robert Fitzgeralds translation), a character in Greek Mythology, is a Cyclops, a son of Poseidon and Thoosa. ... In Greek mythology, Sarpedon referred to several different people. ... This article is about the Greek sea nymph. ... In Greek mythology, Thersites, son of Agrius, was a rank-and-file soldier of the Greek army during the Trojan War. ... For other uses of Troy or Ilion, see Troy (disambiguation) and Ilion (disambiguation). ... In Greek mythology, Tydeus was the father of Diomedes and husband of Deipyle. ... For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). ...

Source

Howe, V.J. "Epithets in Homer." Online. Available http://www.angelfire.com/art/archictecture/articles/008.htm. 16 October 2007.

References

1. ^ Hainsworth, Bryan. The Iliad: A Commentary. Cambridge: University Press, 1993.