by Tessa Candle
dilatory: slow, lagging, 42
faie: magical like a fairy, 257
filial duty: duties of children to their parents, 57
forthwith: immediately, 21
foxed: drunk, 11
Friuli: in Georgian times it was a region in Venetia, and is now in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of modern Italy; it skirts the Alps, borders Austria, Slovenia and the Adriatic Sea, has historically been trampled over and claimed by multiple empires. It has its own dialect.
Herr Gott: Lord God, 203
inarticulable: not describable or possible to communicate by verbal means, 165
injunction: an authoritative order not to do something, 39
kaval flute: an end-blown flute traditionally played (among other places) throughout the Balkans. The kaval also has a traditional association with mountain shepherds., 191;
locus: location or focal point, 59
loquacity: talkativeness, 23
malevolent: intending evil, 42
mollified: appeased, soothed, 260
nonesuch: a paragon, a stellar example, a person without equal, 130
Novum Testamentum: Latin New Testament, 80
oenology: the study of wine and wine-making, 33
Orpheus: A character in Greek and Thracian mythology, who was renowned for his ability to soothe, persuade and lull with his beautiful music. His principal role in mythology is in the myth of Eurydice in Hades, which is a cautionary don’t look back tale. Orpheus is also central to the Orphic mystery cults, in which subterranean elements play a role and which may be linked to the mystery cults of Dionysus. In one account of his death, Orpheus was torn to shred by maenads, and when they washed the blood off their hands in the river, it sunk underground., 227
ostentatious: overly fancy or showy almost to the point of pretense, 37
penumbral: the adjectival form of the noun penumbra, which means the second darkest part of a shadow, which sits next to the darkest part (the umbra), 8
perfunctory: routine, indifferent, demonstrating a bare minimum of concern or attention, 32
portcullis: fortified gate, like one might find on a castle keep, 111
presaged: foretold, 57
pro forma: for good form, 46
protuberant: jutting out prominently, 243
purvey: area or subject of one's control, privilege, authority or expertise, 39
putative: alleged, ostensible, supposed, 99
Quisma ve kiz. Quis ut Deus in monte: This is slightly mad, confused multi-lingual word play, (also with multiple allusions). It means, roughly, Fate and girl. Who is like God on the mountain? 196
repine: be sad and downcast, 24
repudiate: renounce, disavow, deny, 215
Saint Jude: reputed to be the patron saint of lost causes, 123
Say no more, 'The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge: Jeremiah 29; 31; 12. These are passages in the Old Testament which are reckoned to speak of the breaking of generational curses. The idea is that children will no longer pay the price for the wrong-doing of their parents or their ancestors., 232
scapegrace: unscrupulous scoundrel, 154
Shassuru: womb goddess; another name for Ninhursag 207
soporific: sleep-inducing, 93
syncretic: combining elements or ideas from different systems of belief, especially religions., 240
tutelage: instruction, teaching, 265
verdigris: the green substance formed when copper, brass or bronze becomes weathered and corroded, 51
viticulture: the growing of grapes, 33