Castor

English > Greek (Woodhouse)

Latin > English

Castor Castoris N M :: Castor; (twin to Pollux, brother to Helen); St Elmo's fire (pl.), corposant

Latin > English (Lewis & Short)

Castor: ŏris (acc. to some gramm. Castōris, Quint. 1, 5, 60), m., = Κάστωρ.
I The son of the Spartan king Tyndarus and Leda, brother of Helena and Pollux, with whom, as twin star (Gemini; hence even Castores, Plin. 10, 43, 60, § 121; 35, 4, 10, § 27; 7, 22, 22, § 86; and: alter Castor, Stat. S. 4, 6, 16), he served as a guide to mariners, Varr. L. L. 5, § 58; Cic. N. D. 2, 2, 6; 3, 18, 45; Hor. Ep. 2, 1, 5; id. Epod. 17, 42; 17, 43; id. C. 4, 5, 35: gaudet equis, id. S. 2, 1, 26; cf. id. C. 1, 12, 25, and Ov. M. 12, 401: ad Castoris (sc. aedem), on the forum, Cic. Mil. 33, 91; where pecuniary affairs were transacted, id. Quint. 4, 17; cf. Juv. 14, 260.—
II Derivv.
   A In oaths: ecastor and mecastor the old interj. e or the pron. acc. me, prefixed; cf.: equidem, edepol; mehercle, medius fiduis, etc., v. Corss. Ausspr. II. p. 856 sq., by Castor, an oath in very frequent use, especially by women, though not exclusively by them, as asserted by Gell. 11, 6, 1, and Charis. p. 183 P.; cf. Plaut. As. 5, 2, 46; 5, 2, 80; id. Cas. 5, 4, 13: ecastor, re experior, quanti facias uxorem tuam, id. Am. 1, 3, 10; 1, 3, 39; id. Cist. 4, 2, 61; id. Truc. 2, 5, 28; id. Poen. 1, 2, 71; id. Stich. 1, 3, 89; id. As. 1, 3, 36; id. Truc. 2, 2, 60; id. As. 3, 1, 30; id. Stich. 1, 3, 81: ecastor vero, id. Merc. 4, 1, 25: per ecastor scitus (i. e. perscitus ecastor) puer est natus Pamphilo, Ter. And. 3, 2, 6: nec nunc mecastor quid hero ego dicam queo comminisci, Plaut. Aul, 1, 1, 28; cf. id. Merc. 4, 1, 6; id. Cas. 2, 3, 30; id. Men. 4, 2, 50; id. Mil. 1, 1, 63; cf. also id. Stich. 1, 3, 86; id. Truc. 2, 2, 36; 2, 7, 30; 3, 2, 11; 4, 4, 9; 5, 1, 26: Sy. Salve, mecastor, Parmenio. Pa. Et tu, edepol, Syra, Ter. Hec. 1, 2, 8 Don. —
   B Ad Castŏris or Lŏcus Ca-stŏrum, nom. propr., a place in Upper Italy, between Cremona and Bedriacum, where stood a shrine of Castor and Pollux, Suet. Oth. 9; Tac. H. 2, 24.—
   C Castŏrĕus, a, um, adj. of Castor: manus, Sen. Hippol. 810.—
III A companion of Æneas, Verg. A. 10, 124.—
The grandson of king Deiotarus, Cic. Deiot. 1, 2, 10; 1, 2, 28 sq.—
Castor Tarcondarius, a chieftain of Gallogrœcia, ally of Pompey, Caes. B. C. 3, 4.—
Antonius Castor, an author on botany, Plin. 25, 17, 66, § 174; 25, 2, 5, § 9.

Latin > French (Gaffiot 2016)

(2) Castŏr,¹⁰ ŏris, m., Castor [fils de Léda, frère de Pollux : Cic. Nat. 2, 6 ; ad Castoris Cic. Mil. 91, au temple de Castor || Castŏres, um, m. pl., Castor et Pollux, les Dioscures : Plin. 7, 86 || locus Castorum Tac. H. 2, 24, localité d’Italie || Castŏrĕus, a, um, de Castor : Sen. Phædra 810.

Latin > German (Georges)

(2) Castōr², oris, Akk. orem u. bei Dichtern ora, m. (Κάστωρ; archaist. auch Genet. usw. mit langem o, also Castōris usw., s. Quint. 1, 5, 60: Genet. Castorus, Corp. inscr. Lat. 1, 197, 17; Kastorus, ibid. 1, 201, 1), der rossebändigende Heros, Sohn des spartan. Königs Tyndarus und der Leda, Bruder der Helena u. des Pollux (dah. oft Plur. Castores = Kastor u. Pollux, zB. Plin. 7, 86 u. ö. Tac. hist. 2, 24. Apul. met. 10, 31. Claud. in Rufin. 1, 108. Tert. de spect. 8. Arnob. 1, 36: Castores gemini, Pacat. pan. 39, 4; vgl. die unten angeführten Stellen), mit dem er als Zwillingsgestirn (Gemini; dah. selbst Castores, Plin. 10, 121, u. alter Castor, Stat. silv. 4, 6, 16) den Schiffern als Führer dient, Hor. ep. 2, 1, 5 u.a.; dah. auch ihr Bild als Abzeichen am Vorderdeck eines Schiffes, navis Alexandrina, cui erat insigne Castorum, Vulg. act. apost. 28, 11: oft verb. Castor et Pollux, Cic. de nat. deor. 2, 6; de div. 2, 75 u.a.: aedes Castoris, Cic. II. Verr. 1, 129 sqq.: templum Castoris, Schol. Iuven. 14, 260: aedes Castoris et Pollucis, Cic. de div. 1, 98. Suet. Cal. 22, 2: aedes Castorum, Capit. Maxim. 16, 1: ellipt., ad Castoris (verst. aedem), Cic. Mil. 91: u. ad Castoris quaerere, eine Schatzkammer am Tempel des Kastor, Cic. Quinct. 17: so auch ad vigilem ponendi Castora nummi, Iuven. 14, 260: als Ortsbezeichnung, locus Castorum, ein Ort in Oberitalien zwischen Kremona u. Bedriakum, wo ein Heiligtum des Kastor u. Pollux sich befand, Tac. hist. 2, 24: dass. locus, quem Castores vocant, Oros. 7, 8, 6: u. ad Castores, Suet. Oth. 9, 2. – Ihr Fest wurde in Rom am 28. Februar gefeiert, Ov. fast. 1, 705. – Die Römer (nicht bloß die röm. Frauen, wie Gell. 11, 6 behauptet) schwuren häufig u. zwar mit der durch vorgesetztes Demonstrativ e od. me gebildeten Form ēcastor od. mēcastor, »beim Kastor«, sehr häufig b. den Komik. – Dav. Castoreus, a, um, kastorisch, manus, Sen. Phaedr. (Hipp.) 818 (810).

Wikipedia EN

Castor and Pollux (or Polydeukes) are twin half-brothers in Greek and Roman mythology, known together as the Dioscuri.

Their mother was Leda, but they had different fathers; Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, while Pollux was the divine son of Zeus, who raped Leda in the guise of a swan. The pair are thus an example of heteropaternal superfecundation. Though accounts of their birth are varied, they are sometimes said to have been born from an egg, along with their twin sisters Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra.

In Latin the twins are also known as the Gemini (literally "twins") or Castores, as well as the Tyndaridae or Tyndarids. Pollux asked Zeus to let him share his own immortality with his twin to keep them together, and they were transformed into the constellation Gemini. The pair were regarded as the patrons of sailors, to whom they appeared as St. Elmo's fire. They were also associated with horsemanship, in keeping with their origin as the Indo-European horse twins.