An epithet (from Greek: ἐπίθετον epitheton, neuter of ἐπίθετος epithetos, "attributed, added") is a byname, or a descriptive term (word or phrase), accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage.
It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, divinities, objects, and binomial nomenclature.
It can also be a descriptive title: for example, Pallas Athena, Alfred the Great, Suleiman the Magnificent or Władysław I the Elbow-high.
This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original article was at Epithet. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. |