For all the members of the SGA
1980–1987
Have you any idea
What we’re like to fight against?
Our sort make their dinner
Off sharp swords
We swallow blazing torches
For a savoury snack!
Then, by way of dessert,
They bring us, not nuts, but broken arrows, and splintered spear shafts.
For pillows we have our shields and breastplates,
Arrows and slings lie under our feet, and for wreaths we wear catapults
Mnesimachus, Philip
GLOSSARY
Airyanãm
(Avestan) – Noble, heroic.
Aspis
(Classical Greek) – A large round shield, deeply dished, commonly carried by Greek (but not Macedonian)
hoplites
.
Baqca
(Siberian) – Shaman, mage, dream-shaper.
Chiton
(Classical Greek) – A garment like a tunic, made from a single piece of fabric folded in half and pinned down the side, then pinned again at the neck and shoulders and belted above the hips. A men’s
chiton
might be worn long or short. Worn very short, or made of a small piece of cloth, it was sometimes called a
chitoniskos
. Our guess is that most
chitons
were made from a piece of cloth roughly 60 x 90 inches, and then belted or roped to fit, long or short. Pins, pleating, and belting could be simple or elaborate. Most of these garments would, in Greece, have been made of wool. In the East, linen might have been preferred.
Chlamys
(Classical Greek) – A garment like a cloak, made from a single piece of fabric woven tightly and perhaps even boiled. The
chlamys
was usually pinned at the neck and worn as a cloak, but could also be thrown over the shoulder and pinned under the right or left arm and worn as a garment. Free men are sometimes shown naked with a
chlamys
, but rarely shown in a
chiton
without a
chlamys
– the
chlamys
, not the
chiton
, was the essential garment, or so it appears. Men and women both wear the
chlamys
, although differently. Again, a 60 x 90 inch piece of cloth seems to drape correctly and have the right lines and length.
Daimon
(Classical Greek) – Spirit.
Ephebe
(Classical Greek) – A new
hoplite
; a young man just training to join the forces of his city.
Epilektoi
(Classical Greek) – The chosen men of the city or of the
phalanx
; elite soldiers.
Eudaimia
(Classical Greek) – Well-being. Literally, ‘well-spirited’. See
daimon
, above.
Gamelia
(Classical Greek) – A Greek holiday.
Gorytos
(Classical Greek and possibly Scythian) – The open-topped quiver carried by the Scythians, often highly decorated.
Hetaera
(Classical Greek) – A female companion. Usually a courtesan.
Hetaeroi
(Classical Greek) – Literally, male companions. In Alexander’s army, the Royal Companions, or Guard Cavalry.
Himation
(Classical Greek) – A heavy garment consisting of a single piece of cloth at least 120 x 60 inches, draped over the body and one shoulder, worn by both men and women.
Hipparch
(Classical Greek) – The commander of the cavalry.
Hippeis
(Classical Greek) – Militarily, the cavalry of a Greek army. Generally, the cavalry class, synonymous with ‘knights’. Usually the richest men in a city.
Hoplite
(Classical Greek) – A Greek soldier, the heavy infantry who carry an
aspis
and fight in the
phalanx
. They represent the middle class of free men in most cities, and while sometimes they seem like medieval knights in their outlook, they are also like town militia, and made up of craftsmen and small farmers. In the early Classical period, a man with as little as twelve acres under cultivation could be expected to own the
aspis
and serve as a
hoplite
.
Hoplomachos
(Classical Greek) – A man who taught fighting in armour.
Hypaspitoi
(Classical Greek) – In the archaic, a squire, or possibly a servant, who fought ‘under the shield’. A shield bearer. In the army of Alexander, an elite corps of infantry – Alexander’s bodyguard.
Hyperetes
(Classical Greek) – The
Hipparch
’s trumpeter, servant, or supporter. Perhaps a sort of non-commissioned officer.
Kithara
(Classical Greek) – A musical instrument like a lyre.
Kline
(Classical Greek) – A couch or bed on which Hellenic men and women took meals and perhaps slept as well.
Kopis
(Classical Greek) – A bent, bladed knife or sword, rather like a modern Ghurka knife. They appear commonly in Greek art, and even some small eating knives were apparently made to this pattern.
Machaira
(Classical Greek) – any knife or sword. Sometimes used for the heavy Greek cavalry sword, longer and stronger than the short infantry sword. It was meant to give a longer reach on horseback, and not useful in the
phalanx
.
Pezhetaeroi
(Classical Greek) – The ‘Foot Companions’ of Philip and Alexander – the
phalangites
of the infantry
taxeis
.
Parasang
(Classical Greek from Persian) – About thirty
stades