A lot of my readers have mentioned the names in SHADOW OF THE LION: BLOOD ON THE MOON. For many of the names of the characters I used common spellings you might see in history books but for others I had to used the correct Greek names. In addition, the glossary was accidently left out of the volume (hopefully it will be included in Volume II THE FIELDS OF HADES, which will be published I 2016). So I have attached it here so readers can make reference to words they might not be familiar with.focuz
Here’s a quick lesson in pronouncing the Greek and Persian names:
There are only five vowel sounds in Greek, all of which are easy to produce, though they are not stressed as long as in English. On the other hand unstressed vowels are more clearly pronounced.
ai, I, n, u, oi, ei, ui are pronounced like ea in seat ADEIA= Adea NIKAIA=Nikea
oi and ai are pronounced like e or i
ou like through
eu like ev PEUKESTAS=Pevkestas EUMENES=Evmenes SELEUKOS=Selevkos
y like in sit KYNNA=Kinna
ph like in fall DEMETRIOS OF PHALIRON= Demetrios of Faliron
pt like in tall PTOLEMY (PTOLEMEIOS)= (p)Tolemy or Tolemeos (barely say the ‘p’)
Most of the names are pronounced as they look.
GLOSSARY
Agema the elite corps within a military body
Ankush a hook or goad used by a mahout
Arcon political leader or military commander
Argeadae (also Argeads) descendants of Argaeus. The Macedonian royal house.
Ashlar hewn or squared stone
Astrigali knucklebones (a bone – metatarsis – of a sheep, used in games
Aulos a wind instrument like a flute
Bema speaker’s platform, altar
Bireme a ship with two banks of oars
Bitumen an asphalt of Asia Minor used as a cement or mortar
Bothy a hut
Bouletarian Council house for citizens (boule) of Athens
Byssos a fine linen cloth
Carhanas a type of long horn used by Persians
Chiliarch commander of a thousand.
Chiton a tunic
Chlamys an oblong mantle
Daimon demon
Dhotis loincloth worn by Hindu men
Ephebe a young man (or cadet in the army)
Epigone successor or descendants (particularly the barbarian troops recruited and trained to replace discharged Macedonian veterans.
Epitaphion eulogy to the dead
Eremenos a man’s male lover
Eyrines the Furies, Greek goddesses of retribution
Galis wrath, bitterness of spirit
Greaves armor for the leg below the knee
Gatha twelve hymns from the sacred text of the Zorastrian faith
Goule a monstrous creature
Hegamon a leader (a general or commander-in-chief)
Helot a serf, slave
Hetaera a woman companions, high-class, cultivated courtesan
Himation a rectangular cloth draped over the left should and around the body, worn as a garment in ancient Greece
Hipparch a cavalry commander
Hoplites heavily armed infantry soldier
Hypaspist (pl. hypaspistai) shield bearers
Karwan caravan
Khotal a boy who assists the mahouts
Knucklebones see Astrigali
Kodjah old eunuch who tends the harem
Komos a ritualistic drunken procession
Kopis a slightly carved sword used for striking downwards (used by cavalrymen)
Kore relating to Persephone, or Cycladic marble statues of men
Krater a jar or vase used for mixing wine
Kukuvia small owl
Kyrbasia a Persian head dress
Maidan a square or field
Metic a resident alien, one who did not have citizenship
Mitra headdress worn by royalty
Moira destiny
Mole earth laid in the sea as a pier or breakwater
Mystai mystics, those related to mystery
Oligarchy a government in which a small group exercises control
Orisons prayers
Paean a joyous song or hymn of praise
Palaistra a school for wrestling
Parados entrance for the chorus in the theatre
Peltasts shield bearers
Peripatetics ‘walking’ philosopher who pace while discoursing (from the school of Aristotle)
Peristyle a colonnade surrounding a courtyard
Pezatairoi phalanx soldiers
Phalanx a body of heavily armed infantry formed in close, deep ranks
Pilaster an upright column
Pithoi pots, storage jars
Pothos an urge, or longing
Polis city state
Posset a hot drink of spiced milk curdled with wine
Proskynesis the Persian practice of obeisance (from blowing a kiss to groveling before the Great King)
Rython a vessel for pouring ritual libations
Satrap provincial governor
Satrapy province of Persian Empire
Sarissas Macedonian pike (15 – 18 ft in length)
Sistrum a percussion instrument like a rattle
Shahziad Persian princess
Shahryar wife of the Shah (or king)
Shikaris big game hunter
Skene building behind playing area in theatre
Skolion a celebratory song
Stater a gold or silver coin
Stoa ancient Greek porticoe
Stragile an metal instrument for scraping oil off an athlete’s body
Strategos (pl. Strategoi) a general, also military overseer in a city or province
Taxiarches (pl. Taxiarchoi) commander of a taxis
Taxis (pl. Taxeis) a unit (size can vary) phalanx battalion which numbered 1500 men each
Temenos a piece of land marked off from common people, especially for kings
Thyrsos a staff of giant fennel covered with ivy leaves, topped with a pine cone, carried by followers of Dionysus
Trierarch the commander of a trireme
Trireme warship with three banks of oars
Xenophobia fear and hatred of strangers and foreigners