Poena

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In Greek mythology, Poena or Poine (Ancient Greek : Ποινή, romanized: Poinḗ, lit. 'recompense, punishment') is the spirit of punishment [1] and the attendant of punishment to Nemesis, [2] the goddess of divine retribution. Some depictions are of a single being, and some depictions are of multiple beings—in the plural, the name is Poenai (Ποιναί); the Poenai are akin to the Erinyes. [3] Her Roman equivalent may have been Ultio.[ citation needed ]

The Greek word ποινή (poinḗ) means "a recompense or a punishment". From this word is derived the Latin word poena meaning "pain, punishment, penalty", which in turn gave rise to English words such as subpoena and pain. [4]

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References

  1. Atsma, Aaron. "Poine". Theoi Project. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  2. Irwin, Patrick. "Nemesis". University of Oxford. Archived from the original on 2010-10-02. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  3. A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, Poena PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  4. Harper, Douglas. "Penal - Etymology". Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2013-04-08.