Vocabulary in The Aeneid

Dutiful toward the gods, one's family, and one's homeland — not merely religious in a modern sense, but fulfilling every sacred obligation owed to gods, ancestors, and community.

Decreed by destiny or the gods to happen inevitably; what the Fates have fixed and no mortal or divine power can ultimately prevent.

Sheltered inlets of water where ships can anchor safely; used here in the ancient sense of a refuge from storms at sea.

A sign or omen, especially one read from the behavior of birds or other natural phenomena, believed to reveal the will of the gods.

The household gods of a Roman family, small sacred images carried from Troy by Aeneas representing the divine protectors of home and hearth.

The spirit or ghost of a dead person as it exists in the Underworld — a pale, insubstantial image of the living person.

An apparition or ghostly double of a person, appearing as a vision, often as a warning or omen.

A heap of wood on which a dead body is placed and burned as part of funeral rites; the standard ancient method of cremation.

Liquid offerings — wine, oil, or milk — poured out onto the ground or an altar as an act of worship or honor to the gods or the dead.

A sign or warning, usually alarming, that something momentous or terrible is about to happen; an omen sent by the gods.

A monstrous creature from myth with a woman's face and a bird's body, associated with snatching and fouling; the Harpies plague Aeneas's men during his wanderings.

Avenging spirits of the Underworld who pursue and torment those guilty of terrible crimes, especially crimes against family members.

Failing in sacred duty to gods, family, or community; violating the obligations that piety demands — the opposite of the virtue Aeneas embodies.

Relating to ritual purification; a lustral rite or water is used in ceremonies to cleanse a person or place of pollution or sin.

Belonging to Elysium, the blessed region of the Underworld where virtuous souls enjoy a peaceful afterlife; used to describe a place of perfect happiness.

The deepest, darkest pit of the Underworld, where the most wicked souls are imprisoned and punished for eternity.

The transmigration or reincarnation of souls — the belief that after a period in the Underworld, souls drink from the river of forgetfulness and are reborn into new bodies.

The river of forgetfulness in the Underworld; souls drink its waters before reincarnation so they forget their previous lives.

A person who claims to foretell the future, typically by interpreting omens, dreams, or the entrails of sacrificed animals.

Relating to Latium and its native peoples; used throughout to describe the indigenous Italian tribes and their customs, as distinct from the Trojan newcomers.

Violent, uncontrollable rage or madness — used in the epic to describe the destructive passion that drives war and stands opposed to the order Aeneas is fated to establish.

The divine shield or protective power of a god, especially Jupiter or Minerva; to act under someone's aegis means to act under their divine protection and authority.

Armor, weapons, and valuables stripped from a defeated enemy on the battlefield and displayed as trophies of victory.

A person who kneels or prostrates themselves before another to beg for mercy, protection, or a favor — a formal act with strong religious and social force in the ancient world.

A tomb or monument erected in honor of a person whose body is buried elsewhere or has not been recovered; a memorial without remains.