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Kalamos

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Son of Meander in Greek mythology

For other uses, seeKalamos (disambiguation).

Kalamos (Ancient Greek:Κάλαμος,lit. 'reed,reed pen';Latin:Calamus) is aGreek mythological figure. He is son ofMaiandros, the god of theMaeander river.

Mythology

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A story inNonnus'sDionysiaca tells about the love of two youths, Kalamos andKarpos. Karpos drowned in theMeander river while the two were competing in a swimming contest. In his grief, Kalamos allowed himself to drown also. He was then transformed into a water reed, whose rustling in the wind was interpreted as a sigh of lamentation.^[1] The acorus calamusare water reed which has a fragrant scent (more commonly known as Sweet Flag) is named after Calamus and this myth.^[2]

Walt Whitman's "Calamus" poems inLeaves of Grass may have been inspired by this story.^{[citation needed]}

Etymology of the word Kalamos

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Similar words can be found inSanskrit (कलमkalama, meaning "reed" and "pen" as well as a type of rice),Hebrew (kulmus, meaningquill) andLatin (calamus) as well as the ancient Greek Κάλαμος (Kalamos). TheArabic word قلمqalam (meaning "pen" or "reed pen") is likely to have been borrowed from one of these languages in antiquity.^{[citation needed]} TheSwahili wordkalamu ("pen") comes from the Arabicqalam.^{[citation needed]}

The Greeks also used the term for various wind instruments, especially but not necessarilyreed instruments, including theaulos, or the pluralkalamoi for thesyrinx.^[3]

From the Latincalamus come a number of modern English words:

calamus (akaSweet Flag), a wetland reed
calamari, meaning "squid", via the Latincalamarium, "ink horn" or "pen case", as reeds were then used as writing implements
calumet, aFrench,colonial-era word often used for aNative American ceremonial pipe
shawm, a medievaloboe-like instrument (whose sound is produced by a vibrating reed mouthpiece)
chalumeau register, the lower notes of aclarinet's range (another reed instrument)

References

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^Nonnos,Dionysiaca, translated by le Comte de Marcellus in 1856. Eglinton 1964: 474.
^"The Reeds Along the River Meander – Plant Spirit Life". Retrieved2024-03-20.
^"Kalamos".Grove Music Online (8th ed.).Oxford University Press. 2001.ISBN 978-1-56159-263-0.(subscription,Wikilibrary access, orUK public library membership required)

Bibliography

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Nonnus of Panopolis,Dionysiaca translated by William Henry Denham Rouse (1863-1950), from the Loeb Classical Library, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1940.Online version at the Topos Text Project.
Nonnus of Panopolis,Dionysiaca. 3 Vols. W.H.D. Rouse. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1940-1942.Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.