Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 1.djvu/592

Rh ANIMISM 526 ANIMISM ragamuffin. This name, a|)plied to St. Paul by his sceptical listeners of Athens, has become, through a mistranslation, "word-sower" in our Bibles (Acts, x-ii, IS). NiGHT-K.WEN', the equivalent in Ps. ci (Hebr., cii), 7, of the Hebrew word translated Lev., xi, 17, by screecli-owl, seems to mean the blue thrush (p'etroci/neta cyanea), a well-known solitary bird of the coiintiy, which is fond of sitting alone on a roof or a rock. Rhinoceros, Num., xxiii, 22, stands for Hebrew, re' cm. and should consequently be rendered by aurochs. Ringtail. — So D.V., Deut., xiv, 13, translates ra'ah, possibly substituted by a scribe's error for da'ah, and very likely meaning the black kite (milvus tnigrans). Satyr. — So is the Hebrew sair rendered Is., xiii, 21, and xxxiv, 14, by R.V. (D.V.: "hairy one"). The same word in Lev., x^^i, 7, and II Par., xi, 15, is translated "devils" in all Enghsh Bibles. Hair usually signifies the he-goat. In the latter passages this sense is clearly inapplicable; it seems hardly applicable in the former. The writers of Leviticus, and II Paralipomenon possibly intended some representation of the same description as the goat- headed figures of the Egyptian Pantheon. Concern- ing the sa'!r mentioned in Isaias, no satisfactory explanation has as yet been given. Scarlet. — See Cochineal (sup.). Sciniph. — See Gnat (sup.). Scorpion. — Vei-y common in all hot, dry, stony places; is taken as an emblem of the wicked. Sea-Gull. — Its different kinds are probably signified by the word translated larus. See Cuckoo (sup.). Seal. — See Badger (sup.). Se.-Monster, Lam., iv, _ 3, probably means such animals as the whale, porpoise, dugong. etc. Serpent. — A generic term whereby all ophidia are designated; ten names of different species of snakes are given in the Bible. Shrew. — So doesD.V. translate the Hebr. 'Snaqah, which how- ever means rather some kind of lizard, probably the gecko. Siren, Is., xiii, 22, a translation for Hebrew tan, which indicates an animal dwelling in ruins, and may generally be rendered by jackal. No other resemblance than a verbal one should be sought between this Idn and the fabulous being, famous by its allurements, called Siren by the ancient poets. Snail should be read instead of wax, Ps., Ivii (Hebr., Iviii) 9, to translate the Hebrew, sMbeliil. Unlike the snails of northern climates which hibernate, those of Palestine sleep in summer. The Psalmist alludes "to the fact that very commonly, when they have secured themselves in some chink of the rocks for their summer sleep, they are still exposed to the sun rays, which gradually evaporate and dry up the whole of the body, till the animal is shrivelled to a thread, and, as it were, melted away" (Tristram). Sparrow. — The Hebrew word fippor, found over forty titnes, is a general name for all small passerine birds, of which there exist about a hundred and fifty species in the Holy Land. Spider. — An insect Hving by millions in Palestine, where several hundred species have been distinguished. Its web affords a most popular illustration for frail and ephemeral under- takings (Job, viii, 14; Is., lix, 5); in three passages, however, the translators seem to have wrongly written spider for moth [Ps. xxxviii (Hebr., xxxix), 12], sigh [Ps. Ixxxix (xc), 9], and pieces (Os., viii, 6). Stork. — The Hebrew word hfi.fulhah. erroneously rendered "heron" by the Doiiay translators, Lev., xi, 19, alludes to the well-known affection of the stork for its young. Several passages have reference to this bird, its periodical migrations (Jcr., viii, 7), its nesting in fir-trees, its black pinions stretcliing from its white body (Zach., v, 9; D.V., kite; but the stork, hSattlhah, is mentionecl in the Hebrew text). Two kinds, the white and the black stork, live in Pale.stinc during the winter. Swallow. — • Two words are so rendered: deror, "the swift flyer", which means the diinmey swallow and other species akin to it [Ps. Ixxxiii (Hebr., Ixxxiv), 4; D.V., turtle; Prov., xxvi, 2; D.V., .sparrow], whereas s(2.; orsJ? may be translated by "swift", this bird being probably intended in Is., xxxviii. 14, and Jer., viii, 7. Swan. — Mentioned only in the list of unclean birds (Lev., xi, 18; Deut., xiv, 16). The swan having always been very rare in Syria, there was little need of forbidding to eat its flesh; by the Hebrew tin- shfmeth, some other bird might possibly l)e designated. Swine. — The most abhorred of all animals among the Jews; hence the swineherd's was the most de- grading employment (Luke, xv, 15; cf. Matt., viii, 32). Swine are very seldom kept in Palestine. Tiger, Job, iv, 11 (Hebr., l&yish), should be "lion". Turtle. — See Dove (sup.). Unicorn. — See Aurochs (sup.). Urchin, Soph., ii, 14. See Ericius (sup.). Viper. — See Asp (sup.). Vulture. — So does D.V. render the Hebrew, 'dyyah, Lev., xi, 14; Deut., xiv, 13; Job, xxviii, 7. As has been suggested above, the text of Job at least, seems to allude to the kite rather than to the vulture. Several kinds of vultures are nevertheless referred to in the Bible; so, for instance, the bearded vulture (gyptelus barbatus), called griffon in the D.V.; the grilTon-vulture (gyps julvus), the Egyptian vulture (neophron percnopterus), etc. In the biblical parlance vultures are oftentimes termed eagles. Watermen. — See Porphtoion (sup.). Weasel, Lev., xi, 29, must be regarded as a general name, probably designating, besides the weasel proper, the polecat and ichneumon, all very common in the Holy Land. Whale (Gen., i, 21). — TAnnhn would perhaps be better translated generally " .sea- monster"; porpoises and dugongs were certainly known to the Hebrews. Wolf. — Frequently men- tioned in the Scriptures as a special foe to flocks (Ecclus., xiii, 21; Matt., vii, 15), and an emljlem of treachery, ferocity, and bloodtliirstiness. Wolves usually prowl at night around the sheepfolds, anil, though fewer in numbers than jackals, are much more harmful. The tribe of Benjamin, owing to its warhke character, was compared to a wolf. Worm. — In English the translation for two Hebrew words: rimmah [Exod., xvi, 24; Is., xiv, 11; (Job, vii, 5, A.V.)]; and toW (Exod., xvi, 20, etc.); these two Hebrew words are general; the former designates particularly all living organisms generated and swarming in decaying or rotten substances; the latter includes not only worms, but also such insects as caterpillars, centipedes, etc. Carpenter, Scripture Natural History (London, 182S); Harris, Natural History of the Bible (ed. Conder, Loniloii, 1833-34); Wood, Animals of the Bible (London, 18S31: Thi.s- TRAM, Natural History of the Bible (London, 1883); 7'hr Fauna and Flora of Palestine (London, 1SS9); 7V»- .liiimul Cnnlnm in the Bible, in Aiils to the Student uf lfi< J'i!<U fl MriMon, IS'tsi; Hart, The Animals Mentioned in Ih' /' ' '^ I 1-n, isnsi; .KGnT, Bible Plants and Animals ^ '^'^■'n, Is^'.i, I'.oinvur, Hierozoicon (London, 1663, 1712); I;, i^i % m i i m n, llil.lisriic N aluralgcschichte (Leipzig, 1820); Sciiegc and W nmiMii.i.KR, Biblische .rchaologie (Freiburg, 1887); Culthera, Fauna biblica (P-ilerrao, 1880); Hagen, Lex. bibl. (Paris, 1905), I; Dietionaries of the Bible. Charles L. Souvay. Animism (Lat., Anima, Soul) is the doctrine or theory of the .soul. In current language the term has a twofold signification: I. Philosophical — the doctrine that the soul is the principle of life in man and in other living things. As applied to man it embodies the essence of spiritualistic as opposed to Materialistic philosophy. II. Ethnological — a theory proposed in recent years to account for the origin and dcA-elopment of religion. As such it is known as the Soul or Ghost-theory of religion. Philosophical. — For the application of the theory of animism to living things in general, see Like. So far as it is specially concerned with man, animism aims at a true knowledge of inan's nature and dignity by estaljlishing the existence