son of Atreus ( Ἀτρείδης Atreídēs: also transliterated Atrīdēs).shepherd of the people ( ποιμήν λαῶν poimḗn laôn).the day of return ( νόστιμον ἦμαρ, nóstimon êmar - nostalgia also comes from nóstos).of the golden distaff with ( χρυσηλάκατος, khrusēlákatos).In these examples, the epithet can be contradictory to the past state of the subject: in Odyssey VI.74, for instance, Nausicaa takes her 'radiant clothing', ἐσθῆτα φαεινήν, to be washed since it is dirty, it is unlikely to be radiant. Special epithets, such as patronymics, are used exclusively for particular subjects and distinguish them from others, while generic epithets are used of many subjects and speak less to their individual characters. They specify the existential nature of a noun that is to say, Achilles is not called 'swift-footed' only when he runs it is a marker of a quality that does not change. In contrast to the more general term 'epithet' ( ἐπίθετον), which is used in poetic contexts, for the ancient Greek religion, the epiclesis ( epíklēsis ( ἐπίκλησις literally 'calling upon')) was used as the surname that was associated with a deity during religious invocations.Įpithets alter the meaning of each noun to which they are attached. In other words, they descend from a fragment of poetic diction (reconstructable as Proto-Indo-European *ḱléwos ń̥dʰgʷʰitom) which was handed down in parallel over many centuries, in continually diverging forms, by generations of singers whose ultimate ancestors shared an archetypal repertoire of poetic formulae and narrative themes. These two phrases were, in terms of historical linguistics, equivalent in phonology, accentuation, and quantity (syllable length). For example, the phrase for 'everlasting glory' or 'undying fame' can be found in the Homeric Greek as κλέος ἄφθιτον / kléos áphthiton and Vedic Sanskrit as श्रवो अक्षितम् / śrávo ákṣitam. įormulae in epic poetry from various Indo-European traditions may be traced to a common tradition. Epithets are used because of the constraints of the dactylic hexameter (i.e., it is convenient to have a stockpile of metrically fitting phrases to add to a name) and because of the oral transmission of the poems they are mnemonic aids to the singer and the audience alike.

A characteristic of Homer's style is the use of epithets, as in 'rosy-fingered' Dawn or 'swift-footed' Achilles.

Warlike individual characteristics