Pleiades

Latin > French (Gaffiot 2016)

Plēĭădes¹³ (Plīă-), um, f. (Πληϊάδες et Πλειάδες), les Pléiades [sept filles d’Atlas et de Pléioné, changées en une constellation] : Virg. G. 1, 138 ; Stat. S. 1, 3, 95 || orage, tempête : Val. Flacc. 4, 268 || sing. Plēĭăs et Plīăs Ov. M. 1, 670 ; F. 3, 105.

Wikipedia EN

The Pleiades (/ˈpliː.ədiːz, ˈpleɪ-, ˈplaɪ-/), also known as The Seven Sisters, Messier 45, and other names by different cultures, is an asterism and an open star cluster containing middle-aged, hot B-type stars in the north-west of the constellation Taurus. At a distance of about 444 light years, it is among the nearest star clusters to Earth. It is the nearest Messier object to Earth, and is the most obvious cluster to the naked eye in the night sky.

The name of the Pleiades comes from Ancient Greek, Πλειάδες. It probably derives from plein ("to sail") because of the cluster's importance in delimiting the sailing season in the Mediterranean Sea: "the season of navigation began with their heliacal rising". However, in mythology the name was used for the Pleiades, seven divine sisters, the name supposedly deriving from that of their mother Pleione and effectively meaning "daughters of Pleione". In reality, the name of the star cluster almost certainly came first, and Pleione was invented to explain it.