Luceafar
Encyclopedia
Luceafăr in Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...

 is the name of the "morning star" (the planet Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

) which in Romanian folklore is associated with demons but is also linked to the Greek Titan Hyperion
Hyperion (mythology)
Hyperion was one of the twelve Titans of Ancient Greece, the sons and daughters of Gaia and Ouranos , which were later supplanted by the Olympians. He was the brother of Cronus. He was also the lord of light, and the Titan of the east...

. Mihai Eminescu
Mihai Eminescu
Mihai Eminescu was a Romantic poet, novelist and journalist, often regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet. Eminescu was an active member of the Junimea literary society and he worked as an editor for the newspaper Timpul , the official newspaper of the Conservative Party...

 wrote a poem called "Luceafărul
Luceafărul (poem)
Luceafărul is the name of a Romanian poem by Mihai Eminescu, published in 1883. It is generally considered his masterpiece. The title refers to the Romanian Luceafăr.-External Links:***...

" (The Morning Star) detailing some of the attributes that Romanian lore associated with the morning star.

The name Luceafăr is similar with the Latin Lucifer
Lucifer
Traditionally, Lucifer is a name that in English generally refers to the devil or Satan before being cast from Heaven, although this is not the original meaning of the term. In Latin, from which the English word is derived, Lucifer means "light-bearer"...

, "Light-bearer". In Romanian, it is related to the verb a luci (to shine) and the noun luciu, meaning shining.

Eminescu speaks about ochi lucii in Sus în curtea cea domnească (Up in that garden of lords/kings). He describes three types of eyes:
  • negru înfundat and mari: black, big and dark, a sunken, deep and nightly black, belonging to a person who is cruel and cold;
  • de foc: of fire, for young white (pal) beautiful girls with light coming out of their eyes;
  • lucii and multi: "lucious" and many, they love the light and stay on a white big table in a big room with many guests who speak kindly.


On the contrary, for the sun shining there is strălucire. Stră is from Latin, whereas extra is a composition element when something is ancient and far away.

There is also the verb a lumina which means illuminate or enlight (make the light come into a place, for example after opening a window when you can say that s-a luminat camera which means the room has been lit).

With this name:
  • Venus
    Venus
    Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

     in the morning:
    • Luceafărul-de-Dimineaţă
    • Luceafărul-de-Ziuă
    • Luceafărul-Porcilor
    • Luceafărul-Boului
  • Venus
    Venus
    Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

     late:
    • Luceafărul-de-Seară
    • Luceafărul-de-Noapte
    • Luceafărul-Ciobanilor
  • Star Vega
    Vega
    Vega is the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest star in the night sky and the second brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, after Arcturus...

     from Lira
    Lira
    Lira is the name of the monetary unit of a number of countries, as well as the former currency of Italy, Malta, San Marino and the Vatican City and Israel. The term originates from the value of a Troy pound of high purity silver. The libra was the basis of the monetary system of the Roman Empire...

    :
    • Luceafărul-cel-Mare-de-Miezul-Nopţii
    • Luceafărul-cel-Frumos
  • Star Aldebaran
    Aldebaran
    Aldebaran is a red giant star located about 65 light years away in the zodiac constellation of Taurus. With an average apparent magnitude of 0.87 it is the brightest star in the constellation and is one of the brightest stars in the nighttime sky...

     from Taurus
    Taurus (constellation)
    Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac. Its name is a Latin word meaning 'bull', and its astrological symbol is a stylized bull's head:...

    :
    • Luceafărul-Porcesc
    • Luceafărul-Porcar
  • Star Sirius
    Sirius
    Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. With a visual apparent magnitude of −1.46, it is almost twice as bright as Canopus, the next brightest star. The name "Sirius" is derived from the Ancient Greek: Seirios . The star has the Bayer designation Alpha Canis Majoris...

     from Canis Major
    Canis Major
    Canis Major is one of the 88 modern constellations, and was included in the 2nd-century astronomer Ptolemy's 48 constellations. Its name is Latin for 'greater dog', and is commonly represented as one of the dogs following Orion the hunter...

    :
    • Luceafărul-de-Ziuă
    • Luceafărul-din-Zori
  • Star(?) Hyperion:
    • Luceafărul-cel-Mare-de-Noapte

See also

  • Earendel, Anglo-Saxon personification of the Morning Star.
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