haemony

English

Etymology

Coined by John Milton for the play Comus around 1634 (see quotation below). Various scholars suggest that the word comes from a classical source such as Latin Haemonia (“Thessaly”, a place associated with magic),[1] Ancient Greek αἷμα (haîma, “blood”), or Ancient Greek αἵμων (haímōn, “skillful”).[2]

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈhiːməni/

Noun

haemony (uncountable)

  1. (rare) A magical plant mentioned by John Milton, said to be good against enchantments.
    • 1637, John Milton, A Mask presented at Ludlow Castle, 1634, lines 638-641:
      He called it Hæmony, and gave it me,
      And bad me keep it as of sovran use
      ’Gainst all inchantments, mildew, blast, or damp,
      Or ghastly furies apparition.
    • 1809, Henry John Todd, The Poetical Works of John Milton, page 342:
      It is not agreed whether Milton’s Hæmony is a real or poetical plant.
    • 1970, Sacvan Bercovitch, “Milton's ‘Haemony’: Knowledge and Belief”, in Huntington Library Quarterly, page 351:
      In a recent study of Thyris' magical herb in Comus, John M. Steadman concludes that “haemony means knowledge” from Greek haimon “skillful.”
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:haemony.

References
  1. Hæmony in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  2. Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933.

Anagrams
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