Interesting fact!

Beginning in the 6th century BCE, Greek philosophers began to seek natural explanations for "life, the universe, and everything." Like their counterparts in China and India (and some cross-influence is likely, especially between Greece and India), they came to see the body as an extension of the universe, subject to the same natural laws. In the Greek view, the body was composed of four humors—blood, phlegm, yellow bile (choler), and black bile—and, once again, disorders of the body resulted from imbalance among humors.

		(Fire) Yellow Bile (Liver)
	Hot			Dry
(Air) Blood (Heart)					(Earth) Black Bile (Spleen)
	Wet			Cold
		(Water) Phlegm (Brain)
Greek physicians believed that the body was composed of four humors; illness occurred when the humors were out of balance. The great physician Hippocrates added further detail to this theory.

The four humors were often used to describe the personalities of people, as illustrated here.

Hippocrates, the great Greek physician from the 5th century BCE, was the first to detail this understanding of the human body and disease. The 2d century CE Greek physician Galen elaborated further the nature of this relationship. He classified the temperaments according to the predominance of the particular humors. To this day the categories sanguine (sturdy, cheerful, and confident), phlegmatic (slow and stolid), choleric (hot-tempered), and melancholic are still in common descriptive usage. Attribution of health and illness to the four humors remained basic to European medicine at least until the 17th century.

Now we know how traditional medicine views the relationship between diseases and the human body.

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Most common medical terms used today are derived from Latin or Greek. After all, the Greeks were the founders of modern medicine. Examples of medical terminology used today based on the Greek language are:

• The word semantics is derived from the Greek semantikos, meaning “significant.”

• Coccyx comes from the Greek word for “cuckoo” -- it resembles a cuckoo’s beak.

• Remember: myo (muscle) is not to be confused with myelo (bone marrow).

• Diaphoresis comes from the Greek dia meaning “through” and phoreo meaning “I carry.” Translated, it means “the carrying through of perspiration.”

• Glaucoma: Greek glaukos means “blue-grey,” and oma means “a condition.” In glaucoma, gray color replaces the black pupil.

• Both Latin and Greek play a role in the roots of the word for heart, cardium. This word stems from the Greek word kardia.

• Adenoid comes from the Greek aden, meaning “gland,” and cidos, meaning “like.” The term was once used for the prostate gland.

• Pancreas is so named because of its fleshy appearance. Greek pan means “all,” and krea means “flesh.”

• Endocrine: Take endo and add it to the Greek krinein, which means “to separate.”

• Paraplegia: The Greek para means “beside,” and plegia means “paralysis.”

• The Greek word pyelos means “tub-shaped vessel,” which describes the shape of the kidney.

• Venereal is derived from Venus, the goddess of love. It was thought in ancient times to be one of the misfortunes of love.

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Although not commonly used nowadays, here are some useful Latin medical expressions.  

Abscessus - Abscess Adstante febri (Ads. febr.) - While fever is present Aeger - Sick Ante cibum (AC) - Before meals Ante prandium (AP) - Before a meal Apoplexia - Apoplexy, Stroke Aqua pura (Aq. pur.) - Pure water (filtered, not distilled) Baccalaureus Medicinae (BM) - Bachelor of Medicine Balneum tepidum (BT) - A tepid bath Bis in die (bid.) - Twice a day Capiatur (Capr.) - Let it be taken Colica - Colic Collutorium (Collut.) - A mouth-wash Collyrium (Collyr.) - An eye-lotion Constipatio - Constipation Convulsio - Convulsions Coup - Stroke Cras mane (CM) - Tomorrow morning Cras mane sumendus (CMS) - To be taken tomorrow morning Cras nocte (CN) - Tomorrow night Crastinus (Crast.) - For tomorrow Cura te ipsum - Physician, heal thyself! Cyathus aqua (C. aq.) - A glass of water Da, signa (DS) - Give and sign Deaurentur pilulae (Deaur. pil.) - Let the pills be gilt Debilitas - Debility, Illness, Weakness Debita spissitudine (D, spiss.) - With a proper consistence Decessus - Died, Death Decubitus (Decub.) - Lying down Deglutiatur (Deglut.) - Let it be swallowed Delirium tremens - Alcoholic distress; delusions and trembling Dementia a potu - Insanity from drinking Dentur tales doses (DTD) - Let such doses be given Detur (Det.) - Let it be given Detur in duplo (D. in dup.) - Let twice as much be given Detur, signetur - Let it be given and signed Dextro lateri (Dext. lat.) - To the right side Dicbus alternis (Dicb, altern.) - Every other day Die sequente (D. seq.) - On the following day Diluculo (Diluc.) - At break of day Directione prop ria (DP) - With a proper direction Divide in partes aequales (D. in px) - Divide into equal parts Dosi pedetentim crescente (DPC) - The dose gradually increasing Dysenteria - Dysentery Eadem (Ead.) - The same Ecclampsia - Convulsions Electuarium (Elect.) - An electuary Epilepsia - Epilepsy Evacuatio (Evac.) - A motion Ex aqua (Ex aq.) - In water Exhaustio - Exhaustion Exhibeatur (Exhib.) - Let it be exhibited Extemplo (Estempl.) - To at once, immediately Extractum (Ext.) - An extract Feber (Febris) - Fever Febri durunte (Feb. dur.) - During the fever Febris Africana - African Fever Febris Angina - Angina Febris Flava - Yellow Fever Febris Militarius - War Fever Febris Nervosa - Nervous Fever Febris Petechialis - Spotted Fever Febris Remittens - Remittent Fever Febris Rubra - Scarlet Fever Febris Scorbutica - Scorbutic Fever Febris Verminosa - Verminous Fever Fiat lege artis (FLA) - Let it be made according to rule Fiat mistura (FM., ft. mist.) - Let a mixture be made Fiat pilula (Ft. pil.) - Let a pill be made Filtrum (Filtr.) - A filter Frustillatim (Frust.) - Little by little Frustum (Frust.) - A little bit Gutturi applicandus (Guttur. appl.) - To be applied to the throat Hebdomada (Hebdom.) - For a week Hora somni (HS) - At bedtime (At the hour of sleep) Horae unius spatio (Hor. un. spat.) - At the expiration of one hour Horis intermediis (Hor, interm.) - In the intermediate hours In dies (In d.) - From day to day In partes aequales (In p. aeq.) - Into equal parts Infectio - Infection Inflammatio - Inflammation Infunde (Infund.) - Pour in Injectio (Inj.) - An injection Injiciatur enema (Inj. enem.) - Let an enema be administered Inspissare (Insp.) - To thicken Lateri dolcnti (Lat. dol.) - To the affected side Linfricandus - To be rubbed in Linimentum parti affectre infricandum (Lin. p. a. infr.) - The liniment to be rubbed on the affected part Luce prima (Luc. p.) - Early in the morning, dawn Mane et vespere (M. et. v.) - Morning and evening Mane primo (MP) - Early in the morning Marasmus - Weakness Medicinae Doctor (MD) - Doctor of Medicine Morbus - Disease More dicto utendus (MDU) - To be used as directed More dictor (M. Dict.) - As directed More solito (MS) - In the usual manner Mors - Death Natus Mortuus - Stillborn Nihil per os (NPO) - Nothing by mouth Obitus - Death, Died Omni bidou (Omn. bid.) - Every two days Partitis vicibus (Part. vic.) - In divided doses Per deliquium (PD) - By deliquescence Per os (PO) - Through the mouth; By mouth Per rectum (PR) - Through the rectum Peracta operatione emetic (or, emetica) (Peract. op. emet.) - When the operation of the emetic is finished Pestis - Plague Placebo - I will please (Medical expression for remedies with no medical effect, which improve one's medical condition only because one believes they do) Post cibum (PC) - After meals Post jentaculum (Post jentac.) - After breakfast Post prandium (Post prand.) - After dinner Primum est non nocere - First of all, do no harm (Hippocrates; The maxim has become an ethical guiding principle in medical profession) Pro dosi (PD) - For a dose Pro potu sumendus (Pro pot. s.) - To be taken as a drink Pro ratione aetatis (Pro. rat. wt.) - According to age Pro re nata (PRN) - As needed: As the occasion arises Proxima luce (Prox. luc.) - On the next day Quantitas duplex (Q. dx.) - A double quantity Quantum libet (QL) - As much as pleases (As much as you wish) Quantum sufficit (QS) - As much as suffices Quaque die (QD) - Every day Quaque hora (QH) - Every hour Quaque mane (QM) - Every morning Quaque nocte (QN) - Every night Quater die (QD) - Four times a day Quater in die (QID) - Take four times a day Quoque alternis die (QAD) - Every other day Redactus in pulverem (R. in pulv.) - Reduced to powder Redigatur in pulverem (Redig. in pulv.) - Let it be reduced to powder Rememdium - Cure, remedy, nostrum, medicine Sanguisugae sex (Sanguisug. vj.) - Six leeches Sequenti luce (Seq. luc.) - The following day Sermihora (Semih.) - Half an hour Sesquihora (Sesquih.) - An hour and a half Si vires permittant (Si vir. perm.) - If the strength permit Signa, signetur, signentur (Sig.) - Let it be signed, sign Signetur (Sig.) or (S/) - Let it be labeled Singulis aurosis (Sing. auror.) - Every morning Singulis horae quadrantibus (Sing. hor. quad.) - Every quarter of an hour Solve, dissolve (Solv.) - Soluble tablets Spasmus - Cramps Spiritus vini rectificatus (SVR) - Rectified spirit Spiritus vini tenuior (SVT) - Proof spirit Statim (stat) - Immediately Statu effervescentiae (Stat. eff.) - Whilst effervescing Stratum super stratum (SSS) - Layer upon layer Sub finem coctionis (Sub fin. coct.) - When sufficiently boiled down Ter in die (TID) - Thrice a day Tinctura (Tr.) - A tincture Tussi urgente (Tuss. urg.) - If the cough is troublesome Tussis - Cough Typhus - Typhoid fever Ubi pus, ibi evacua - Where there is pus, (there) evacuate it Variola - Smallpox Vermis - Worms

The Olympians

Greek mythology is one of the most fascinating chapters of history. It contains many things which are bound to leave you spellbound, ranging from their culture to the gods they worshipped:

Primordial deities

Olympians

Aquatic deities

Chthonic deities

Personified concepts

Other deities

Titans

The Twelve Titans:

Oceanus and Tethys,

Hyperion and Theia,

Coeus and Phoebe,

Cronus and Rhea,

Mnemosyne, Themis,

Crius, Iapetus

Children of Hyperion:

Eos, Helios, Selene

Daughters of Coeus:

Leto and Asteria

Sons of Iapetus:

Atlas, Prometheus,

Epimetheus, Menoetius

Sons of Crius:

Astraeus, Pallas,

Perses

The Olympians:

The Greek Mythology is vast and seems almost endless; so do the Greek God Names.

When referring to Gods, most of us think of the 12 Gods of the Olympus, but the truth is that the Greek Mythology is full of deities, semi-gods and other figures that supported the 12 Gods and have some kind of divine status or nuance.

Some of these Greek God Names and, thus, ancient names are still in use today, some others are pretty much forgotten or uncommon.

Greeks believed in many Gods, as they were polytheists, and they created numerous personas in their myths and legends, attributing to each one of them some particular characteristics.

• Aphrodite (Афродита) /ˌæfrəˈdaɪti/ - Goddess of love and beauty. Her son was Eros, the god of love. She is also believed to have kept a watchful eye over sailors.

• Apollo (Аполлон) /ə’poləʊ/ - Beautiful god of the light, medicine and music. Apollo represents order, harmony, and civilization

• Ares (Арес) - God of war. He had an affair with Aphrodite, and was father to many children.

• Artemis (Артемида) - Goddess moon, forest, childbirth and the hunt. Although she was associated with childbirth and children, Artemis was a virgin.

• Athena (Афина) - (Athene) Daughter of Zeus and goddess of wisdom and war and the patron goddess of Athens. Like Artemis, she was a virgin goddess too.

• Hades (Аид) - God of the Underworld.

• Hephaestus (Гефест) /hɨˈfiːstəs/ - God of fire and the forge. Mated to Aphrodite.

• Hera (Гера) /ˈhɪərə/ - Queen of the Gods, wife of Zeus, protector of marriage.

• Hermes (Гермес) /ˈhɝːmiːz/ - The messenger of the gods, god of business. He was a very smart child, inventing the lyre by using a tortoise's shell when he was only a newborn baby.

• Hestia (Гестия) - Goddess of home, symbolized by the hearth which holds the ever-burning flame.

• Poseidon (Посейдон) - God of the sea and earthquakes. As god of the seas Poseidon held great power, and could calm the waves or create terrible storms. He had an unreliable temper, and used his powers to generate fear and punishment on people as revenge.

• Zeus (Зевс) /zjuːs/) - King of the Gods, god of the sky, symbolized by the thunderbolt. As the ruler of the Olympian gods, Zeus held enormous power and almost absolute authority. His role was primarily to watch over the activities of the other gods, and make sure they weren't exceeding their powers.

Chthonic (from Greek χθόνιος - chthonios, "in, under, or beneath the earth", from χθών - chthōn "earth"; pertaining to the Earth; earthy; subterranean) designates, or pertains to, deities or spirits of the underworld, especially in relation to Greek religion.

Greek khthon is one of several words for "earth"; it typically refers to the interior of the soil, rather than the living surface of the land (as Gaia or Ge does) or the land as territory (as khora (χώρα) does). It evokes at once abundance and the grave.

Its pronunciation is somewhat awkward for English speakers; most dictionaries, such as the OED, state that the first two letters should be pronounced as [k], /ˈkθɒnɪk/. Note that the modern pronunciation of the Greek word "χθόνιος" is [xθonios], although the Classical Greek pronunciation would have been something similar to [kʰtʰonios].

• The Titans (Титаны), also known as the elder gods, ruled the earth before the Olympians overthrew them. The ruler of the Titans was Cronus (Хронос) who was dethroned by his son Zeus.

• Prometheus (Прометей) - He stole the sacred fire from Zeus and the gods.

• Atlas (Атлас) /'ætləs/ - Zeus punished him to forever bear the heavens upon his shoulders.

• Dione (Диона) - The mother of Aphrodite.

• Gaea (Гея) /ˈɡeɪ.ə/ - was the Earth goddess. She mated with her son Uranus and gave birth to the remaining Titans. Often misspelled "Ghea."

• Uranus (Уран) /ˈjʊərənəs, jʊˈreɪnəs/) - was the sky god and first ruler, the son of Ghea.

• Cronus (Хронос) - Son of Uranus. His wife was Rhea (his sister). He was the father of Zeus.

• Rhea (Рея) /ˈriə/; - was the wife of Cronus.

• Oceanus (Океан) - is the unending stream of water encircling the world.

• Mnemosyne (Мнемозина) /nɪˈmɒzɪni/ - was the goddess of memory and the inventor of words.

• Tethys (Тефида) - was the wife of Oceanus.

• Themis (Фемида) - was the god of justice and order.

• Iapetus (Япетус)- was the father of Epimetheus, Menoetius, Prometheus and Atlas.

• Coeus (Кой) - was the Titan of Intelligence.

• Phoebe (Феба) /ˈfiːbiː/ - the Titan of the Moon.

• Crius (Криус) - He represented the tremendous power of the sea.

• Hyperion (Гиперион) - means "he who goes before the sun."

• Thea (Тея) /θεά/ - Hyperion's wife and sister.

• Epimetheus (Эпиметиус) - means "afterthought" is the opposite of his brother Prometheus ("forethought").

• Metis (Метида) - was the first wife of Zeus. She ruled over all wisdom and knowledge.

• Asclepius (Асклепий, эскулап) - /æsˈkliːpiəs/, is the god of medicine and healing

Other gods: Dionysus, Eros, Demeter, Persephone, Hebe, Eris, Helius, Thanatos, Pan, The Muses, The Erinyes, The Fates, Nemesis, The Graces.

The Romans changed the Greek God names in order to fit their language. Since the Greek Gods and the Roman Gods are the same, it is worth mentioning who is who:

Roman/Greek

• Jupiter – Zeus (Dias)

• Juno  - Hera

• Neptune – Poseidon

• Minerva – Athena

• Mars – Ares

• Venus – Aphrodite

• Vulcan – Hephaestus

• Ceres – Demeter

• Vesta  - Hestia

• Apollo – Apollo

• Diana – Artemis

• Mercury – Hermes

• Pluto – Hades

• Porsephine – Persephone

• Bacchus – Dionysus

• Saturn – Cronus

• Cupid or Amor – Eros

• Discordia  -  Eris

• Faunus  - Pan

• Camenae – Muses

• Parcae – Moires (Destiny and Fate Goddesses)