ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου
emprosthios pous tēs Megalēs Arktou

Greek noun

Last edited: 2025-03-31
Primary meaning front foot of the Great Bear
Literal translation front foot of the Great Bear
Variants
ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου emprosthios pous tēs Megalēs Arktou
Edited by
front foot of the Great Bear animal part

Οὗτος δὲ ὁ κύκλος ἐν τῇ καθ’ ἡμᾶς οἰκουμένῃ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἐμπροσθίου ποδὸς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου περιγράφεται.

‘This circle (i.e., the arctic circle) is delineated in the inhabited region among us by the front foot of the Great Bear.’

— Geminus 5.3

Genre: astronomy
Date: 1st century BCE

Geminus. 1975. Géminos, Introduction aux Phénomènes, ed. G. Aujac. Paris: Les Belles Lettres. 21

The circle is delineated by the forefoot of Μεγάλη Ἄρκτος (Megalē Arktos), hence it is named the arctic circle after it.
Cite this entry
APA (7th)
Peeters, T. (2025). ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου (Lemma #5450). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/
Chicago (Author-Date)
Peeters, T. (2025). ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου (Lemma #5450). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/
MLA (9th)
Peeters, T. (2025). ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου (Lemma #5450). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/
Harvard
Peeters, T. (2025) ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου (Lemma #5450), The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. Available at: https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/ (Accessed: December 1, 2025).
BibTeX 
@misc{zodiac5450,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2025-12-01]},
	author = {Peeters, Thomas},
	year = {2025},
	title = {ἐμπρόσθιος πούς τῆς Μεγάλης Ἄρκτου ({Lemma} #5450)},
	url = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/},
	howpublished = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/5450/},
}