God all over the world

[a href=\'http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=polytheistic\' target=\'_blank\']Dictionary.com says...[/a]

Speaking in a chemistry-related manner:

[!--QuoteBegin-Mattocks+--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Mattocks)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Och.  Toda' we be discussin' tha namin' of many organic compounds.  There be qui' a few prefixs, aye?  An' each of 'em means a specific number of carbon molecules.  Och.  Beeeen, Allan, ye be stayin' for Reach?  Meredith sucks.  Och.[/quote]

So a polytheistic religion is any with multiple gods.

A bitheistic religion is any with just two. A tritheistic religion...

And so forth.

Och.
 
So why is it monogamism, bigamism and polygamism, to give but one example?
 
Bigamism is a subset of polygamism. A specific form of polygamism, if you prefer. So is trigamism, tetragamism, septagamism, octagamism, nonagamism, dodecagamism...
 
No, "poly" is Greek for "many". "Bi" is two, not many. "Tri" is arguably many. Tri, tetra, penta, sexta, hepta etc. would be subsets of "poly".

Mono, bi, poly would be properly translated as "One, two, many", which is a common term in both English and German (and I am sure in many other western) languages.
 
LC, for the sake of not losing this argument, I have looked into the matter. My reference is [a href=\'http://perseus.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0011&layout=&loc=800\' target=\'_blank\']this[/a] website (since it is a pain to browse, I have linked to the exact location I will talk about).

Using my own translation of the Greek play of which you see the Greek original in the link*, I have found a passage that uses the word "many" (viele). I have checked an English translation of the play, which reads differently. My literal translation of the German line into English would be

Of many few (...)

German:

Von vielen wenige (...)

The English translation I refered to:

Of all their numbers few (...)

The Greek original:

pauroi ge pollôn (...)

Pauroi is the plural of pauros meaning little, small.
Ge means at least, at any rate.
pollôn is genitive plural of polus. Polus, according to the translation tool of the website, has only one meaning: Many. The site linked to is a site that incorporates the works of many scholars from around the world and features professional translations with commentaries on the works and the translations themselves. Needless to say I trust it.
However, I have queried another medium, this time the Greek textbook my parents used in school. There is an appendix of Greek terms in it, and it also lists the word "polus", translating it with merely "viele"-"many". Knowing school textbooks on ancient languages, they would not omit the meaning of "more than one" (i.e. "mehr als eines").
I think I do not need to explain the relation of "polus" and "poly".
I would have liked to have a third reliable source, but I do not have access to any at the moment.

As a final step, I have decided to verify that "many" does not mean "more than one".
[a href=\'http://www.dictionary.com\' target=\'_blank\']Dictionary.com[/a] defines "many" as:

1. Being one of a large indefinite number; numerous: many a child; many another day.
2. Amounting to or consisting of a large indefinite number: many friends.

n. (used with a pl. verb)

1. A large indefinite number: A good many of the workers had the flu.
2. The majority of the people; the masses: “The many fail, the one succeeds” (Tennyson).

Even that would not put me entirely happy, since we are dealing with an online reference. So, I checked a physical dictionary: Webster's Third New International Dictionary, the largest readily available English Language reference in this part of the world. It defines "many" as:
"consisting of or amounting to a large but indefinite number; not few". There are a number of other definitions, but they all sum down to this, and I think it is in the sense of all that I do not cite them.
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few".

So, I believe I have made my point clear that "poly" means "many", but not "more than one". Q.E.D.


* To avoid confusionation: What I am refering to is Aischylos (Aeschylus), The Persians, line 800, first three words.
 
Great research, Perun. But [a href=\'http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=poly-\' target=\'_blank\']a simple search for "poly-"[/a] o www.dictionary.com reveals:

poly-
pref.
1. More than one*; many; much: polyatomic.
2. More than usual; excessive; abnormal: polydipsia.
3. Polymer; polymeric: polyethylene.

Oxford's English seconds this, as does Webster-Merriam.


*bold added by author of post.
 
Perun, you are correct in that many languages have forms which distinguish between one, two, and many. You are also probably correct about the technically proper usage of the prefix "poly". Those points are not in dispute, as far as I am concerned.

However, as I posted above, I'm using "poly" according to typical modern usage. And typically nowadays, "poly" simply means "more than one".

On a side note: it's nice to see us arguing about something real and substantial for a change. Let's leave all this god nonsense to the silly people who believe in fairy tales. As mature adults, we have more important things to talk about... like abusing Greek prefixes, what I'm getting for Christmas, and how NBC is fucking up my life by moving one of the few TV shows I watch ("My Name Is Earl") to Thursday nights, where it will conflict with my band practices.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-SinisterMinisterX+Dec 20 2005, 09:09 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(SinisterMinisterX @ Dec 20 2005, 09:09 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]You are also probably correct about the technically proper usage of the prefix "poly".
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Hey- we were technical all along. That's what this subtantial discussion was about [!--emo&:P--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/tongue.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'tongue.gif\' /][!--endemo--]


Next up:

Democracy- a fraud in the sense of the word?
Conservative- what does it really mean?

[!--emo&:P--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/tongue.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'tongue.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
 
[!--QuoteBegin-SinisterMinisterX+Dec 20 2005, 07:09 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(SinisterMinisterX @ Dec 20 2005, 07:09 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]On a side note: it's nice to see us arguing about something real and substantial for a change. Let's leave all this god nonsense to the silly people who believe in fairy tales. As mature adults, we have more important things to talk about... like abusing Greek prefixes, what I'm getting for Christmas, and how NBC is fucking up my life by moving one of the few TV shows I watch ("My Name Is Earl") to Thursday nights, where it will conflict with my band practices.
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Well, what are you getting for Christmas, Mr X? And those bastards. What time? Does it conflict with CSI?
 
[!--QuoteBegin-LooseCannon+Dec 20 2005, 08:14 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(LooseCannon @ Dec 20 2005, 08:14 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Well, what are you getting for Christmas, Mr X?  And those bastards.  What time?  Does it conflict with CSI?
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Civ 4 and a biography of Stonewall Jackson.

I don't recall what time it's moving to. Nor do I watch CSI, so I have no idea about conflict there. But they better fix this mess, 'cos if I don't get my weekly dose of Nadine Velazquez then someone's gonna get smacked.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-Perun+Dec 20 2005, 05:12 AM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(Perun @ Dec 20 2005, 05:12 AM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Next up:
Conservative- what does it really mean?
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A person with a very small penis and an even smaller brain, or the socio-political beliefs of such a loser.

[span style=\'font-size:8pt;line-height:100%\'](Yes, I'm including women here. Conservative "women" like Ann Coulter have small penises. And conservative "men" like it that way.)[/span]
 
Is Ann Coulter really as stupid as she sounds? Did they actively seek out the least educated blonde in the United States to put on CNN? Or is it an act? I honestly have trouble believing she can be as stupid as she sounds.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-LooseCannon+Dec 20 2005, 06:11 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(LooseCannon @ Dec 20 2005, 06:11 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Is Ann Coulter really as stupid as she sounds?  Did they actively seek out the least educated blonde in the United States to put on CNN?  Or is it an act?  I honestly have trouble believing she can be as stupid as she sounds.
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As a moderator, I always delete double posts. However, since LC's post was very good, I was saddened to delete the clone. So I'm quoting it here. I encourage all future respondents to this thread to do the same. No matter what you have to say, start off by quoting LC's post about Ann Coulter.
 
[!--QuoteBegin-LooseCannon+Dec 20 2005, 06:11 PM--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(LooseCannon @ Dec 20 2005, 06:11 PM)[/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--QuoteEBegin--]Is Ann Coulter really as stupid as she sounds?  Did they actively seek out the least educated blonde in the United States to put on CNN?  Or is it an act?  I honestly have trouble believing she can be as stupid as she sounds.
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Yes, you did double-post. And you forgot to quote the above. Somewhere in the world, poor starving children are weeping because you were so careless. [!--emo&:P--][img src=\'style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/tongue.gif\' border=\'0\' style=\'vertical-align:middle\' alt=\'tongue.gif\' /][!--endemo--]
 
Reading this page of the topic I noticed I didn't read one serious words about God, only some quotes from students that must learn a lot about this subject and polytimes I saw the word 'poly'. Now I think we should pick up the topic 'God'.
 
Fine, I will revive the on-topic discussion by presenting my personal view on the topic of God.

I do not believe in God. I have never, and I doubt I ever will. The question why I don't believe in him/her/it is a good one, and I can't really explain. It is just impossible for me to accept that there is a supernatural/superhuman authority that will not present itself to me. If were to accept such an authority, I need to be able to grasp it, to sense its entity. And, quite honestly, if God does not present himself to me, I am not able to worship him or serve him.

I do not believe this God created all that is in existence. I believe the origin of the universe is beyond our mental capacities to understand (such as the concept of "nothing" that existed -or did not exist- before), and the origin of life can also not be comprehended -I do believe it was more than just a chemical reaction- but I believe there is a rational explanation to it, just perhaps one we can't understand. As for myself, I was created by my parents on a drunken night, and they explained I was made because they wanted another kid. Well, that's good enough for me.

The principle idea of Christian belief is disgusting to me. Every person is a sinner by birth, because Adam and Eve commited the original sin. Why should I be held responsible for what somebody did thousands of generations before me? I am not sin-free by the definition of Christian belief and most probably by any definition, but I want to take responsibility for my sins, not those of somebody else. I had that experience, it was a shitty experience, and I can't see why the great all-loving God would make it the centrepiece of my existence. I try to live a good life, I respect the people around me, I try my hardest to lead a virtuous and meaningful life. I do not always succeed. In fact, sometimes my life is too virtuous and sometimes it is too meaningless. Sometimes I do not manage to respect other people the way they deserve it, but many people have told me that I am exceptionally friendly, polite and helpful. I try to help my friends the best I can, but I can get annoyed rather easily. It remains important to me that I help the people around me. I do not get such attention and care in return very often, but if I do, I am grateful. If I don't, well, I don't care.

I have my own philosophy of life. The above is part of it. I posted another part of it in a thread here a while back. Some people tell me I'm a Buddhist. Some people tell me I'm a freak. I have no name for what I am other than the one that was given to me.
 
Well, I do believe in God because I don't like the idea of being a coincidence, though I often disagree with the catholic church, even, sometimes, I disagree with the bible itself, however, I'm afraid I have sensed God, like I posted before.

Perun: The way you live (trying to be kind with all the people, and all that you mentioned before), is the way I try to live, and that's how Jesus told humanity they should live. Actually I'm inviting you to give God a try, not the church or stuff like that, just give Him a try.
 
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