Etymology (Meaning of Words)/Curse of Lilith

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Expert: Ted Nesbitt - 4/20/2007


Question
Hi,

 Just ran across this reference in a book and can find no direct reference to it on the Internet or in any of the phrase books we own.

 Do you know what this curse could be?

Thanks for your time but, please, don't translate into Latin for me. ;) (Ya, I'm also one the 'experts' around here and have run into some similar things.)


Answer
Don:

This is not an etymological question, but I have an interest in mythology, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  I have been through MANY volumes of mythology and religion and various dictionaries.  What I find very peculiar is that I cannot find a derivation for the NAME.  "Lilith" is not mentioned in "The Oxford English Dictionary," "Webster's Third International Unabridged Dictionary," or "The Random House Unabridged Dictionary."

Adam and Eve ARE in all three.  [The Hebrew name for Adam is spelled Adham, in case you want a little trivia.]

I gather that you know the story of Adam and Lilith and what happened when she refused to play a passive sexual role.  So, I won't go into all that.

There are TWO leading contenders for the CURSE:

1.  Lilith was condemned to live forever.  She could never die and neither could her children -- all of them "succubi."  In this respect, they are related to vampires.  Adam and Eve, however, were mortal.  Thus, many consider Lilith's curse to be that she [and her offspring] were condemned to wander the world throughout eternity.  God punished Lilith by cursing her with a very UNpleasant immortality.

2.  Lilith's curse is also called the "female curse," and its medical name is menstruation.  I'm not going any further with this explanation.

Here are a few websites that go into great detail about Lilith, her curse, Adam, and Eve.  Enjoy the reading -- I found it fascinating.

Ted Nesbitt

<http://www.lilithgallery.com/library/>

<http://www.zip.com.au/~mmqc/hitmil/lilith.html>

<http://www.gnosis.org/lilith.htm>

<http://www.autonomatrix.org/guild/corpus/lilith_1.htm>

THIS LAST ONE IS THE "MUSEUM OF MENSTRUATION."  I GUESS THERE IS A MUSEUM FOR EVERYTHING!

<http://www.mum.org/>  

Etymology (Meaning of Words)

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Ted Nesbitt

Expertise

I have an interest in the meanings of words and phrases, as well as how and when they became part of the English language. I enjoy researching idioms, colloquialisms, dialects, and obscurities of all kinds. I prefer short questions on a particular subject, and I will not accept lengthy research projects or term papers. NOTE: ALLEXPERTS CLAIMS THAT I TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LATIN AND FROM LATIN TO ENGLISH. I DO NOT. ALLEXPERTS REFUSES TO DELETE THE LATIN-TO-ENGLISH SERVICE -- ONE THAT I DO NOT PROVIDE. TRUST ME ON THIS: ALLEXPERTS IS WRONG. I DO NOT TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LANGUAGE. LOOK FOR A LANGUAGE EXPERT INSTEAD. ETYMOLOGY AND TRANSLATING SERVICES ARE ENTIRELY DIFFERENT. ALLEXPERTS SHOULD KNOW THAT. ALLEXPERTS DOES NOT KNOW THAT. I HAVE TRIED FOR MANY YEARS TO GET THEM TO CHANGE. THEY WILL NOT. SORRY, BUT I DO NOT TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LATIN.

Experience

I am the bibliographic instruction and reference librarian at a public
college. My master's thesis concerns William Faulkner's tragic novels. I formerly taught advanced placement English at two schools in the Philadelphia area.
I have been a member of the grammar and writing section of Allexperts
for more than a year.



Education/Credentials
Masters degrees in English, philosophy, and library science.

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