I'm dubious on the Greek mythology part, for example. Equating "Pan" with the Greek word for "all" (as in Pangaea) is folk etymology, and Zeus-worship is pretty darn old (the name goes back to Proto-Indo-European, after all, and was probably syncretized with storm-related deities worshipped in that area before).
Which is not to say that every conjecture in the paper is correct. But it's fascinating reading.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting read. Thank you for posting!
ReplyDeleteI'm dubious on the Greek mythology part, for example. Equating "Pan" with the Greek word for "all" (as in Pangaea) is folk etymology, and Zeus-worship is pretty darn old (the name goes back to Proto-Indo-European, after all, and was probably syncretized with storm-related deities worshipped in that area before).
ReplyDelete(Oops, I should have linked to this page about Pan.)
ReplyDeleteIt reminded me of this nice little movie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_Exports
ReplyDeleteShould be taught in primary schools, if only for the hilarious indignation that's bound to follow.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the conjecturing about Pan was one area that didn't seem right.
ReplyDeleteThis movie about Santa may get more attention than the paper.
ReplyDelete