chthonian
[thoh-nee-uh n]
- of or relating to the deities, spirits, and other beings dwelling under the earth.
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Also chthon·ic [thon-ik] /ˈθɒn ɪk/.
Origin of chthonian
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
primitivehomegrowndomesticendemicaboriginalautochthonouscongenitalinbredinherentinheritedinnatenaturaloriginalconnatechthonicunacquiredExamples from the Web for chthonic
Historical Examples
She was also "a queen over death and the dead," a chthonic characteristic.
The World of HomerAndrew Lang
In Classical Greece chthonic worship and hero worship seem on the whole to be more prominent than that of the gods.
The Heroic AgeH. Munro Chadwick
chthonian
chthonic (ˈθɒnɪk)
- of or relating to the underworld
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Word Origin
C19: from Greek khthonios in or under the earth, from khthōn earth
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for chthonic
adj.
1882, with suffix -ic, from Greek khthonios "of the earth, in the earth," from khthon "the earth, solid surface of the earth" (mostly poetic) from PIE root *dhghem- (cf. Greek khamai "on the ground," first element in chameleon; also Latin humus "earth, soil," humilis "low;" Lithuanian žeme, Old Church Slavonic zemlja "earth;" Sanskrit ksam- "earth" (opposed to "sky"); Old Irish du, genitive don "place," earlier "earth").
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chthonian
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper