DIONYSUS / BACCHUS
The god of wine
Greek: Dionys… (Διόνυσ…) / Roman: Bacch… (Βακχ…)
Name refers to “orgy” (Greek: orgia [οργια])
(More On This Subject)
http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Bacchanalia, 1911 Edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Bacchanalia”:
BACCHANALIA, the Lat. name for the wild and mystic festivals of Bacchus (Dionysus). They were introduced into Rome from lower Italy by way of Etruria, and held in secret, attended by women only, on three days in the year in the grove of Simila (Stimula, Semele; Ovid, Fasti, vi. 503), near the Aventine hill. Subsequently, admission to the rites were extended to men and celebrations took place five times a month. The evil reputation of these festivals, at which the grossest debaucheries took place, and all kinds of crimes and political conspiracies were supposed to be planned, led in 186 B.C. to a decree of the senate - the so-called Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus, inscribed on a bronze tablet discovered in Calabria (1640), now at Vienna - by which the Bacchanalia were prohibited throughout the whole of Italy, except in certain special cases, in which the senate reserved the right of allowing them, subject to certain restrictions. But, in spite of the severe punishment inflicted upon those who were found to be implicated in the criminal practices disclosed by state investigation, the Bacchanalia were not stamped out, at any rate in the south of Italy, for a very long time (Livy xxxix. 8-19, 41; xl. 19).
http://users.panafonet.gr/ekar/cult.html, Dionyssos,Dithyrambous,Worship,Cult,Orgies,Wine,Fertility:
In Thrace, Dionyssos was considered to be the god of fertility and he was worshiped with orgies and ceremonies not compatible with the greek tradition. … After the 6th century BC the cult of Dionyssos had conquered the whole of Greece. The elements of extasis and mysticism, that can easily be observed in dionyssiac orgiastic ritual celebrations are not of greek provenance. … During the rituals and the orgies Dionyssos was called back from the dead by his followers.
Dictionary of Mysticism and the Occult, Drury, 1985, p. 23, “Bacchanals”:
P. 64, “Dionysia”:
Pp. 201-202, “Orgy”:
Webster’s Dictionary of Proper Names, 1970, p. 53, “Bacchanalia”:
Microsoft Encarta Dictionary (paperback), 2002, p. 624, “orgy”:
Larousse Greek and Roman Mythology, English translation 1980, p. 48:
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English, 1964, p. 855:
Dictionary of Mythology Folklore and Symbols, Jobes, 1961, Vol. 1, p. 170:
Dictionary of Mythology Folklore and Symbols, Jobes, 1961, Vol. 1, p. 449, “Dionysia”:
What Life Was Like at the Dawn of Democracy: Classical Athens 525-322 BC, Time-Life Books, 1997, no page number, “Dionysos and His Followers”:
Benét’s Reader’s Encyclopedia, 1996, p. 70:
http://www.internationalsommelier.com/articles/oct2001.pdf, International Sommelier Guild, “Bacchus the Rascal: A Bacchanalian History of Wine seen through 4,000 Years of Art”
Who was Bacchus before he was promoted to god of wine? What aromatic compound in wine stimulates the libido? … It is a vibrant, humorous as well as erotic presentation, as any Bacchanalian history should be!
http://www.talariaenterprises.com/product_lists/greek_wall.html, Greco-Roman Wall Reliefs - Page 1, “Bacchantes / Maenads Dancing Frieze Wall Relief”:
The Bacchantes or Maenads (women followers) frenzied with wine who rushed through woods and mountains swept away in a fierce ecstasy. They celebrated his orgies with drunkenness, nakedness, singing and sacramental feasting.
Webster’s Universal Dictionary of the English Language (unabridged), 1909, p. 128:
The New American Desk Encyclopedia, 1997, p. 116, “BACCHUS”:
P. 387, “DIONYSUS”:
For “licentious” definition only:
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language (Unabridged), 1986, p. 1767, “pornograph…”:
The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, 1966, p. 632:
A Patristic Greek Lexicon, Lampe, Oxford, 1961, p. 282, “βακχεία”:
(“Patristic”: “Of or relating to the fathers of the early Christian church or their writings.”)
Oxford Greek-English Learner’s Dictionary, Stavropoulos, 1988, p. 630, “οργια…” (orgia: Greek for orgy):
Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary, 1993, p. 47, “bacch…”:
P. 544, “orgy”:
http://www.wordreference.com/definition/orgy, orgy:
orgy
secret rite in the cults of ancient Greek or Roman deities involving singing and dancing and drinking and sexual activity
Encarta World English Dictionary, 1999, p. 1275:
Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins, 1977, p. 422:
Effeminate:
Dictionary of Classical Mythology: Symbols, Attributes & Associations, Bell, 1982, p. 276:
A Smaller Classical Dictionary, 1934, p. 196:
A Classical Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography, Mythology and Geography, Smith, 1852, pp. 264-265:
What Life Was Like at the Dawn of Democracy: Classical Athens 525-322 BC, Time-Life Books, 1997, p. 134, “Glossary” | “Dionysos”:
Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Literature and Antiquities, Peck, 1965, pp. 520-521, “Dionysia”:
They can’t get me here. I’m safe here in 2005. Te-he-he-he-he.
Old Dictionaries:
Encyclopædia Britannica, 1771, vol. 1, p. 512, “BACCHANALIA”:
Translated from Elizabethan English:
Those who were initiated into the celebration of the feasts, represented, some Silenus, others Pan, others satyrs; and in this manner appeared in public night and day, counterfeiting drunkenness, dancing obscenely, committing all kinds of licentiousness and debauchery, and running over the mountains and forests, with horrible shrieks and howlings, crying out, lo Bacche. Livy informs us, that during the Bacchanalian feasts at Rome, such shocking disorders were practiced under the cover of the night, and those who where initiated were bound to conceal them with an oath, attended with horrid imprecations, that the senate suppressed them first in Rome, and afterwards throughout all Italy.
Vol. 2, p. 443, “DIONYSIA”:
Translated from Elizabethan English:
DIONYSIA, in Greek antiquity, solemnities in honor of Bacchus, sometimes called by the general name of orgia; and by the Romans bacchanalia, and liberalia. See Bacchanalia.
Dictionarium Linguae Latinae et Anglicanae (Dictionary Language Latin and English), Thomas Thomas, 1587, no page numbers, “Bacch-”:
Translation of highlighted words are: “lecherie” (lechery), “sensualitie” (sensuality), “dissolutelie” (dissolutely), “filthie” (filthy), “unchast” (unchaste).
http://www.answers.com/lechery, lechery:
Excessive indulgence in sexual activity; lewdness.
http://www.answers.com/dissolute, dissolute:
Lacking moral restraint; indulging in sensual pleasures or vices.
http://www.answers.com/chaste, chaste:
1. Morally pure in thought or conduct; decent and modest.
2. a. Not having experienced sexual intercourse; virginal.
b. Abstaining from unlawful sexual intercourse.
c. Abstaining from all sexual intercourse; celibate.
“Orgia”:
Bibliotheca Classica; or, A Classical Dictionary, containing A full Account of all the Proper Names, Lemprière, 1788, (no page numbers):
“Bacchus”:
“Dionysia”:
Bibliotheca Eliotae (Latin-English dictionary), Sir Thomas Elyot, 1548 (“M. D. XLVIII”), no page numbers, “Bacchanalia”:
Translated from Elizabethan English:
Bacchanalia … feasts of the paynims (pagans/gentiles), which they did celebrate with all abominations of lechery.
http://www.abctales.com/node/201983, “orgy”:
orgy - 1561, orgies (pl.) "secret rites in the worship of certain Gk. and Roman gods," especially Dionysus, from M.Fr. orgies, from L. orgia, from Gk. orgia (pl.) "secret rites," from PIE *worg-, and thus related to Gk. ergon "work." The singular, orgy, was first used in Eng. 1665 for the extended sense of "any licentious revelry." Orgiastic is first attested 1698, from Gk. orgiastikos, from orgiastes "one who celebrates orgies," from orgiazein "to celebrate orgies," from orgia.
A Pronouncing Dictionary of the English Language, John Burn, 1786, p. 194:
A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1806, p. 209:
A Critical Pronouncing Dictionary and Expositor of the English Language, John Walker, 1791:
Linguae Britannicae Vera Pronunciatio: Or, a New English Dictionary, James Buchanan, 1757, (no page numbers):
http://www.orionsarm.com/eg/d/Di.html, , “Dionysan Erotocracy”:
Subversive hedonic movvement that developed on Dionysos from the 16th and 17th centuries onwards. Emphasised erotic love, desire and pleasure as the guiding principles.
To continue:
http://www.bestprices.com/cgi-bin/vlink/013131142297IE.html?id=oBq6W3FX, The Wicker Man, “Description for The Wicker Man DVD”:
Howie begins to realize that the town might, in fact, be a strange pagan cult, one given to unbridled sexuality and possible human sacrifice. … eerie film paints a disturbing portrait of an almost prehistoric, multi-deity worshipping society given to bizarre rituals and Bacchanalian excess.
Random House Word Menu, 1992, p. 614, “Parties and Partying”:
http://www.godchecker.com/pantheon/greek-mythology.php?deity=DIONYSUS, The Gods of Greek Mythology, “Greek Mythology : DIONYSUS”:
DIONYSUS: God of Sex, Wine and Intoxication. But not necessarily in that order. … With the BACCHAE Backup Band recruiting the gang from his former Mad MAENADS, he made a big attempt to be more user-friendly. The orgy-making was a popular as ever, but by now, with all the debauchery and gluttony
Lempriere’s Classical Dictionary, 1898, p. 99, “Bacchantes | Bacchiădæ”:
P. 100, “Bacchus”:
Lempriere’s Classical Dictionary, 1853, p. 84, “Bacchantes”:
“Bacchus”:
P. 149, “Dionysia”:
http://home.neopets.com/templates/homepage.phtml?pet_name=lupe_541119, Belifs of the Moonlight Howl:
Name:Bacchus
Gender:Male
Family:Unknown
About Bacchus:He is the god of Wine and ecstasy.
The Dictionary of Psychology, Corsini, 1999, p. 280:
Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Literature and Antiquities, Peck, 1965, p. 183:
Short Dictionary of Classical Word Origins, Wedeck, 1957, pp. 10-11:
Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, 1981, p. 68:
Classics Illustrated Dictionary, Fuchs, 1974, p. 64:
The Greek Anthology and Other Ancient Greek Epigrams, 1973, p. 402:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1989, “Bacchanal”:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1989, “Bacchanalia”:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1989, “Bacchanalization”:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1989, “Bacchic”:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1933:
The Oxford English Dictionary, 1933:
http://www.romans-latin.net/gods.htm, The Roman Gods, “Bacchus (God of wine); In the Greek Mythology Dionysus”:
The name Bacchus came into use in ancient Greece during the 5th century bc. It refers to the loud cries with which he was worshiped at the Bacchanalia, frenetic celebrations in his honor. These events, which supposedly originated in spring nature festivals, became occasions for licentiousness and intoxication, at which the celebrants danced, drank, and generally debauched themselves. The Bacchanalia became more and more extreme and were prohibited by the Roman Senate in 186 bc.
The Oxford Guide to Classical Mythology in the Arts, 1300–1900s, Reid, 1993, Vol. 1, p. 258:
The Modern Thesaurus of Synonyms: Formally The Comprehensive Word Guide, Lewis, 1965, pp. 94-95, “201. MERRYMAKING”:
Myths and Legends of the World, Wickersham, 2000, Vol. 2, p. 30:
http://analyzer.depaul.edu/see_project/orbits/bacchus.htm, Bacchus:
Bacchus was honored in various festivals, such as the Bacchanalia, characterized by drink and debauchery.
Oxford Greek-English Learner’s Dictionary, Stavropoulos, 1988, p. 154, “Βακχ… (Bacch…)”:
Langenscheidt’s Standard Greek Dictionary, Magazis, 1990, p. 705 (Greek-English), “οργιάζω | όργιο”:
Pocket English Dictionary: English-Modern Greek, Modern Greek-English, Efstathiadis Group, 1999, p. 376, “όργιο”:
Harpers’ Latin Dictionary, Lewis / Short, 1879, p. 218:
…
Oxford Latin Dictionary, Glare, 1982, p. 223:
“inceste” means “unchaste,” “lewd,” etc. The entire sentence says verbatim: “quae which sacris sacred Bacchānālium Bacchānālium inceste unchaste/lewd usae used fuerant they had been.”
http://www.uni-mannheim.de/mateo/camenaref/hofmann/o/books/o_1129.html, Orgia:
Idem Aen. l. 4. v. 301.
—— Qualis commotis excita sacris
Thyas, ubi auditô stimulant Trieterica Bacchô
Orgia, nocturnusque vocat clamore Cithaeron.
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0055:book=4:card=296, P. Vergilius Maro, Aeneid: J. B. Greenough, Ed. [Latin], [Verg. A. 4.300-304]:
Saevit inops animi, totamque incensa per urbem
bacchatur, qualis commotis excita sacris
Thyias, ubi audito stimulant trieterica Baccho
orgia, nocturnusque vocat clamore Cithaeron.
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text.jsp?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0054:book=4:card=296,
P. Vergilius Maro, Aeneid;
Theodore C. Williams, Ed. [English translation], [Verg. A. 4.300-304]:
Distractedly she raved, and passion-tossed roamed through her city, like a Maenad roused by the wild rout of Bacchus, when are heard the third year's orgies, and the midnight scream to cold Cithaeron calls the frenzied crew.
http://www.uni-mannheim.de/mateo/camenaref/hofmann/o/books/o_1129.html, Orgia:
Statius l. 1. Achilleidos v. 593.
Lucus Agenorei sublimis ad Orgia
Bacchi
Stabat. —— ——
Idem l. 2. v. 137.
—— Quid si Bacchea
ferentes
Orgia, Palladias aut circumvideris aras?
Claudian. in 4. Consulat. Honorii v. 604.
—— Dubitâssent Orgia Bacchi
Cui furerent. —— ——
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Home & Office Edition, 1998, p. 369, “orgy”:
The Random House Dictionary of the English Language: College Edition, 1968, p. 937, “orgiastic | orgy”:
Random House Webster’s College Dictionary, 1991, p. 953, “orgiastic | orgy”:
The Random House Dictionary of the English Language (Unabridged), 1987, p. 1365, “orgiastic | orgy”:
http://www.wordinfo.info/words/index/info/view_unit/2856/?letter=O&spage=5, orgy, orgies (Greek > Latin orgia (pl), secret rites):
orgy (s), orgies (pl)
1. Secret rites, especially those connected with the worship of
Dionysus or Bacchus.
2. An occasion of feasting or revelry; especially, one characterized by
excessive drinking and indiscriminate sexual activity.
3. Any act of excessive or frenzied indulgence; binge, splurge, spree, fling.
4. An occasion of excessive indulgence in any activity, attitude, condition,
etc.; an excessive or extravagant display of something. Frequently used with of.
Secret rites in the worship of certain Greek and Roman gods, especially those of Dionysus and Bacchus, celebrated with wild dancing, drinking, etc.; borrowed from Middle French orgies, learned borrowing from Latin orgia, and borrowed directly from Greek orgia, plural, secret rites.
The figurative sense of wild excess (as in an orgy of blood) is first found in 1883.
Dictionary of Etymology
Other
examples of the figurative sense of wild excess:
1. The protest degenerated into an orgy of looting and shooting.
2. When he got his first salary check, he indulged in an orgy of
spending.
Random House Webster’s College Dictionary, 1999, p. 931:
http://www.answers.com/topic/orgy-3, “orgy”:
an orgy is a sexual activity in which four or more participants are present and involved in sexual activity with each other. … See also Bacchanalia
The Modern Encyclopedia, 1933, p. 865:
The International Cyclopaedia, 1898, Vol. XI, p. 66:
The New International Encyclopaedia, 1922, Vol. XVII, p. 568:
Webster’s New World Dictionary of American English, Macmillan, 1994, p. 954:
http://www.kl.oakland.edu/kraemer/edcm/b.html, An Etymological Dictionary of Classical Mythology:
bacchanal n
[L, fr. Bacchus, god of wine] : orgy
http://www.kl.oakland.edu/kraemer/edcm/d.html, An Etymological Dictionary of Classical Mythology:
Dionysian adj
[L dionysiacus, fr. Gk dionysiakos, fr. Dionysos, Greek god of wine] : being of a frenzied or orgiastic character
http://www.amystical1.com/romangodsgoddesses.htm, Roman Gods & Goddesses, “Bacchus”:
(E.g., they tore apart Pentheus who was their enemy.)
The Mythology of All Races, Vol. 1: Greek and Roman, Fox, 1964, pp. 215 & 218, “The Greater Gods – Dionysos”:
A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, Klein, 1967, Vol. II, p. 1094:
An American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1828 (reprinted 1970), Vol. II, p. 27:
Thorndike-Barnhart Comprehensive Desk Dictionary, 1958, Vol. 2, p. 552:
Bibliotheca Classica; or, A Classical Dictionary, containing A full Account of all the Proper Names, Lemprière, 1788, (no page numbers):
Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome, Adkins, 1994, p. 281, “Festivals | List of Festivals”:
Place-Names in Classical Mythology: Greece, Bell, 1989, p. 283, “Thrace”:
Encyclopedia of Greco-Roman Mythology, Mike Dixon-Kennedy, 1998, p. 63:
Greek & Roman Mythology, Translated by Elizabeth Burr, 1994, p. 74, “Cotys":
The Encyclopedia of the Classical World, 1965, p. 32:
P. 148:
Longmans English Larousse, 1968, p. 84:
Concise Dictionary of Greek Literature, Mantinband, 1962, p. 133:
“Tearing an animal to pieces” is the same thing we do today, when we eat meat.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Dionysia:
Dionysia - an orgiastic festival in ancient Greece in honor of Dionysus (= Bacchus)
http://www.cdroots.com/ly-giullari.html, I Giuillari Di Piazza: Earth, Sun and Moon:
The second piece is a Carnival dance from Montemarano, which dates back to the Roman pagan celebration in honor of BACCUS, the god of wine, when everything was allowed, even orgies.
http://www.achehtimes.com/wordwealth/a-z/b/bacchanal.htm, bacchanal:
Bacchanalia
Bac·cha·na·li·a 
, n., pl. -li·a,
-li·as. 1. (sometimes used with a pl. v.) a festival
in honor of Bacchus. Cf. Dionysia; 2. (l.c.) a drunken
feast; orgy.
[1625–35; < L equiv. to Bacch(us) + -ān(us) -AN + -ālia, neut. pl. of -ĀLIS -AL1; prob. modeled on volcānālia. See SATURNALIA]
—bac'cha·na'li·an, adj., n.
—bac'cha·na'li·an·ism, n.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipd/A0330498.html, Dictionary:
Bac•cha•na•li•a
Pronunciation: (bak"u-nā'lē-u,
-nāl'yu), [key]
—n.,
—pl. -li•a, -li•as.
1. (sometimes used with a pl. v.) a festival in honor of Bacchus.
Cf. Dionysia.
2. (l.c.) a drunken feast; orgy.
English-Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language, Woodhouse, 1932, p. 579:
Bernstein’s Reverse Dictionary, 1975, p. 122, “orgy”:
Bernstein’s Reverse Dictionary, 1988, p. 172, “orgiastic” & “orgy”:
The World Book Dictionary, Barnhart, 1969, Vol. 2, p. 1450, “orgy”:
http://www.arts.usyd.edu.au/departs/classical/image_myth/week_eleven.htm, Myths of Resurrection - Dionysos and Orpheus:
(i) features/associations of Dionysos (Bacchus) - theatre, wine,vitality, orgiastic worship, emotions, the irrational, ecstasy andmysticism. Maenad/Bacchae/Bacchants as followers - orgia, omophagy, kind of ritual communion. Satyrs and sileni as attendants. Myths of Dionysos' coming from outside, eg. Euripides Bacchae.
http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/med/my-imo3.htm, Creative Power in Orphic Myths:
In Plato's period the Dionysian ecstasies had degenerated to such an extent that the "sacred drink" of milk and honey had been replaced by wine, and orgies resulted.
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Alexander*/3.html, Plutarch, The Parallel Lives: The Life of Alexander:
But concerning
these matters there is another story to this effect: all the women of these parts were addicted to the Orphic rites and the
orgies of Dionysus from very ancient times (being called Klodones and
Mimallones1) and imitated in many ways the practices of the Edonian
women and the Thracian women about Mount Haemus, 
from
whom, as it would seem, the word "threskeuein"
came to be applied to the celebration of extravagant and superstitious
ceremonies. … 1Macedonian names for Bacchantes.
A Greek and English Lexicon, Wright, 1861, p. 97:
The New York Times Everyday Reader’s Dictionary of Misunderstood, Misused, and Mispronounced Words, Urdang, 1985, p. 19, “bacchanal”:
P. 87, “Dionysian”:
An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, Skeat, 1983, p. 415, “ORGIES”:
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 1992, p. 525:
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Home & Office Edition, 1998, p. 36, “bacch…”:
The New Comprehensive A-Z Crossword Dictionary, Schaffer, 1995, p. 78, “bacch…”:
Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary, 2001, p. 47, “bacch…”:
P. 58, “bacchanal”:
Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary, 2001, p. 472:
Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus in Dictionary Form, 1999, p. 569, “orgy”:
New Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language: Modern Desk Edition, 1976, p. 38, “Bacchanalia”:
Webster’s New World Dictionary of the English Language: Concise Edition, 1959, p. 53:
Webster’s New World Dictionary of the American Language: Modern Desk Edition, 1979, p. 35:
Encarta World English Dictionary, 1999, p. 122, “bacch…”:
Random House Webster’s College Dictionary, 1991, p. 100:
P. 379:
Divry’s English-Greek and Greek-English Desk Dictionary, 1996, p. 450 (Greek-English), “βακχ… (Bacch…)”:
The Pocket Oxford Greek Dictionary, Pring, 1995, p. 34 (Greek-English), “βακχ… (bacch…)”:
NTC’s New College Greek and English Dictionary, Nathanail, 1990, p. 258 (English-Greek), “Bacchanalian”:
“οργια…” means “orgy….”
An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon, Liddell & Scott, Oxford, 1997 (first edition 1889), p. 145:
A Greek-English Lexicon with a Revised Supplement (unabridged), Liddell & Scott, Oxford, 1996 (first edition 1843), p. 303, “Βακχ-εία”:
Kontopoulos Greek-English Dictionary, 1889, p. 365, “Οργια”:
A Smaller Latin-English Dictionary, William Smith, 1879, p. 400, “orgĭa”:
A Smaller Latin-English Dictionary, William Smith, 1879, p. 67, “bacchānal”:
Latin Dictionary, Alastair Wilson, Teach Yourself Books, 1965, p. 16 (Latin-English):
P. 84 (Latin-English), “orgĭa”:
The New College Latin & English Dictionary, Traupman, 1966, p. 28 (Latin-English), “Bacch…”:
The New College Latin & English Dictionary, Traupman, 1966, p. 208 (Latin-English), “orgĭ·a”:
Langenscheidt’s Universal Latin Dictionary, Costa / Herberg, no date, p. 157 (Latin-English), “orgia”:
Collins Latin Gem Dictionary, Kidd, 1957, p. 228 (Latin-English), “o´rgi/a”:
The Oxford Latin Minidictionary, Morwood, 1995, p. 32 (Latin-English), “Bacchānālia”:
