Παρθένος
Parthenos

Greek noun

Last edited: 2024-10-21
Primary meaning Virgo
Literal translation maiden
Variants
Παρθένος Parthenos
Edited by

Virgo constellation

ζωϊδίων δέ ἑ κύκλον ἐπίκλησιν καλέουσιν· τῷ ἔνι Καρκίνος ἐστί, Λέων ἐπὶ τῷ, μετὰ δ’ αὐτὸν Παρθένος (...) ἐν τοῖς ἠέλιος φέρεται δυοκαίδεκα πᾶσιν πάντ’ ἐνιαυτὸν ἄγων, καί οἱ περὶ τοῦτον ἰόντι κύκλον ἀέξονται πᾶσαι ἐπικάρπιοι ὧραι.

‘They call it (sc. the ecliptic) by the name 'Circle of the figurines': in it is Cancer, after that there is Leo, after that is Virgo (...) In all twelve of them the Sun moves along as it passes each year, and as it goes around this circle, all the seasons wax fruitful.’

— Aratus, Phainomena 543–552

Genre: astronomy
Date: mid 3rd century BCE


Virgo zodiac sign

ὑπὸ δὲ τοὺς πόδας ἡ Παρθένος ἐστίν

‘Under the feet (sc. of the Bear-warden) is Virgo’

— Eudoxus apud Hipparchus 1.2.5

Genre: astronomy
Date: 4th century BCE

Ἔστι δὲ καὶ τὰ ιβʹ ζῴδια τάδε· Κριός, Ταῦρος, Δίδυμοι, Καρκίνος, Λέων, Παρθένος, Ζυγός, Σκορπίος, Τοξότης, Αἰγόκερως, Ὑδροχόος, Ἰχθύες.

‘And the 12 zodiac signs are these: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces.’

— Geminus 1.2

Genre: astrology
Date: 1st century BCE

Geminus. 1975. Géminos, Introduction aux Phénomènes, ed. G. Aujac. Paris: Les Belles Lettres. 1

Παρθένος οἶκος Ἑρμοῦ, θηλυκόν, πτερωτόν, ἀνθρωποειδές, τρυφῆρες, σχήματι Δίκης ἑστώς, δίσωμον, στειρῶδες, δουλελεύθερον, ἄγονον, κατωφερές, γεῶδες, κοινόν, ἡμίφωνον καὶ ἄφωνον, σωματικόν, ἀτελές, εὐμετάβολον, ἐργαστηριακόν, διφυές.

‘Virgo is a house of Mercury, a feminine (sign), winged, humanoid, delicate (or, voluptuous), standing in the form of Justice, two-bodied, barren, of freedmen, infertile, descending, of earth, common, semi-voiced and unvoiced, corporeal, incomplete, variable, of workmen, two-natured’

— Vettius Valens 1.2.49

Genre: astrological treatise
Date: 2nd century CE


maiden literal translation

Cite this entry
APA (7th)
Peeters, T., & Zellmann-Rohrer, M. (2024). Παρθένος (Lemma #95). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/

Chicago (Author-Date)
Peeters, T., & Zellmann-Rohrer, M. (2024). Παρθένος (Lemma #95). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/

MLA (9th)
Peeters, T., & Zellmann-Rohrer, M. (2024). Παρθένος (Lemma #95). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/

Harvard
Peeters, T. and Zellmann-Rohrer, M. (2024) Παρθένος (Lemma #95), The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. Available at: https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/ (Accessed: December 1, 2025).

BibTeX
@misc{zodiac95,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2025-12-01]},
	author = {Peeters, Thomas and Zellmann-Rohrer, Michael},
	year = {2024},
	title = {Παρθένος ({Lemma} #95)},
	url = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/},
	howpublished = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/95/},
}