Sign-In
Cart
THE 88 CONSTELLATIONS - Greek Myth and Arabic Star Names: A guide to the figures in the sky, the stories the Greeks told about them, and the names the
Paperback
Currently unavailable to order
Please enter your email and a message will be sent to you when this product becomes available on our website.
Publisher: Independently Published
Pages: 230
Weight: 0.89
Height: 0.48 Width: 7.00 Depth: 10.00
Language: English
Look up on a clear night and you are reading two languages at once.
The figures are Greek. Orion the hunter, Cassiopeia chained to her throne, the bear that Zeus placed among the stars to hide her from a jealous wife. But the individual stars mostly answer to Arabic. Betelgeuse, Aldebaran, Altair, Rigel, Deneb, Fomalhaut - these names crossed from Baghdad into Latin Europe in the twelfth century, were copied by scribes who did not speak the language, and arrived slightly broken.
Betelgeuse is the best example. It should mean the hand of al-Jawzāʾ, but a copyist misread a single Arabic letter, one dot in the wrong place, and Europe spent four hundred years inventing explanations for the mistake.
This book gives you all 88 constellations, one at a time.
For each you get its name and what it means, a finder panel with right ascension and declination, the months it is best seen, the latitudes it is visible from, and which constellations sit beside it. Then the Greek myth, retold in full. Then the star names, traced back to their roots - Arabic mostly, but also Greek, Latin, Persian, Sumerian, Sanskrit and Chinese - with 429 of them decoded across the book.
Inside:
- All 88 constellations, with a star chart of every figure
- Three full sky maps: the whole sky, the northern heavens, the southern heavens
- 429 star names traced to their origins and meanings
- The great myth cycles explained: Perseus, Heracles, Orion, the Argonauts
- Zeus in the sky, and why so many constellations are his doing
- How the Arabic names reached Europe, and how they got mangled on the way
No telescope needed, and no prior knowledge assumed. Read it in an armchair or take it outside.
Also from
Ansari, S. G.
Explorer L'Univers avec ESASky: Guide pratique d'un portail d'exploration du ciel multi-missions
Ansari, S. G.
Paperback
Also in
Astronomy & Space
Machine Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm: Spiritual Freedom and the Re-Animation of Matter
Lafitte, Luke
Paperback
Feynman's Lost Lecture: The Motion of Planets Around the Sun [With CDROM]
Goodstein, David L.
Paperback
The Self-Actualizing Cosmos: The Akasha Revolution in Science and Human Consciousness
Laszlo, Ervin
Paperback
The Edge of Space-Time: Particles, Poetry, and the Cosmic Dream Boogie
Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda
Hardcover
Lost in Space: 5,000 Facts for Navigating the Universe
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Hardcover
Just Visiting This Planet, Revised and Updated for the Twenty-First Century: Further Scientific Adventures of Merlin from Omniscia
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Hardcover
Astronomy 101, 2nd Edition: From Gravitational Waves and Merging Black Holes to New Exoplanets and Asteroid Samples, Key Theories, Discoveries, and Fa
Petersen, Carolyn Collins
Hardcover
Open Space: From Earth to Eternity--The Global Race to Explore and Conquer the Cosmos
Ariosto, David
Hardcover
Ancient Astrology in Theory and Practice: A Manual of Traditional Techniques, Volume I: Assessing Planetary Condition
George, Demetra
Paperback
A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through?
Weinersmith, Zach
Weinersmith, Kelly
Paperback
A Brief Tour of Higher Consciousness: A Cosmic Book on the Mechanics of Creation
Bentov, Itzhak
Paperback
Classical Mythology of the Constellations: Timeless Tales of the Starry Night Sky
Giesecke, Annette
Hardcover
Ojibwe Sky Star Map - Constellation Guidebook: An Introduction to Ojibwe Star Knowledge
Wilson, William Peter
Gawboy, Carl
Lee, Annette Sharon
Paperback
Chasing the Northern Lights: Everything You Need to Know to See Nature's Greatest Light Show
Dk Travel
Hardcover
The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-Of-The-Century America
Baron, David
Hardcover
Bringing Columbia Home: The Untold Story of a Lost Space Shuttle and Her Crew
Ward, Jonathan H.
Leinbach, Michael D.
Paperback
The Shortest History of Our Universe: The Unlikely Journey from the Big Bang to Us
Baker, David
Paperback
Take Me to Your Leader: Perspectives on Your First Alien Encounter (Large Print Edition)
Tyson, Neil DeGrasse
Hardcover
Our Moon: How Earth's Celestial Companion Transformed the Planet, Guided Evolution, and Made Us Who We Are
Boyle, Rebecca
Paperback
Earthrise: Inside Artemis II, the Groundbreaking Human Mission Into Deep Space
Larsen, John
Hansen, Jeremy
Hardcover
Night Sky Guide 2026: North America's Skies Month by Month from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
Mortillaro, Nicole
Paperback
Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean: An Environmental History of Our Place in the Solar System
deGroot, Dagomar
Hardcover
The New Guys: The Historic Class of Astronauts That Broke Barriers and Changed the Face of Space Travel
Bagby, Meredith
Paperback
Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars: The Story of the First American Woman to Command a Space Mission
Collins, Eileen M., USAF (Retired)
Ward, Jonathan H.
Hardcover
How to Read Nature: Awaken Your Senses to the Outdoors You've Never Noticed
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
Life After Life: The Bestselling Original Investigation That Revealed Near-Death Experiences
Moody, Raymond
Paperback
Dakota/Lakota Star Map Constellation Guidebook: An Introduction to D(L)akota Star Knowledge
Rock, Jim
O'Rourke, Charlene
Lee, Annette Sharon
Paperback
The Six: The Extraordinary Story of the Grit and Daring of America's First Women Astronauts
Grush, Loren
Paperback
The Ultraview Effect: What We Can Learn from Astronauts about Awe, Humility, and Exploring the Unknown
Weibel, Deana L.
Hardcover
Smithsonian Atlas of Space: A Map to the Universe from the Big Bang to the Future
Launius, Roger D.
Hardcover
The Natural Navigator: The Rediscovered Art of Letting Nature Be Your Guide
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
The Grand Cosmic Story: An Illustrated Timeline 13.8 Billion Years and Beyond
Garlick, Mark A.
Lomberg, Jon
Siegel, Ethan
Hardcover
The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory
Greene, Brian
Paperback
Cloudy with a Chance of Starships: How the Drake Equation Reveals the Odds of Life in the Cosmos
Rasmussen, Seven
Hardcover
Do Your Ears Pop in Space? and 500 Other Surprising Questions about Space Travel
Mullane, R. Mike
Paperback
National Geographic Stargazer's Atlas: The Ultimate Guide to the Night Sky
National Geographic
Trefil, James
Wei-Haas, Maya
Hardcover
A Brief Welcome to the Universe: A Pocket-Sized Tour
Gott, J. Richard
Strauss, Michael A.
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Paperback
Welcome to the Universe: An Astrophysical Tour
Gott, J. Richard
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Strauss, Michael A.
Hardcover
Time Travel in Einstein's Universe: The Physical Possibilities of Travel Through Time
Gott, J. Richard
Paperback
To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Hardcover
A Jesuit's Guide to the Stars: Exploring Wonder, Beauty, and Science
Consolmagno, Guy J., Sj
Paperback
There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness: And Other Thoughts on Physics, Philosophy and the World
Rovelli, Carlo
Paperback
Back to Earth: What Life in Space Taught Me about Our Home Planet--And Our Mission to Protect It
Stott, Nicole
Hardcover
Unseen Universe: Space as You've Never Seen It Before from the James Webb Space Telescope
Harper, Caroline
Hardcover
The Pale Blue Data Point: An Earth-Based Perspective on the Search for Alien Life
Willis, Jon
Hardcover
Night Sky Guide 2027: North America's Skies Month by Month from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
Mortillaro, Nicole
Paperback
The Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: The Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science
Schneider, Michael S.
Paperback
The Natural Navigator, Tenth Anniversary Edition: The Rediscovered Art of Letting Nature Be Your Guide
Gooley, Tristan
Paperback
Webb's Universe: The Space Telescope Images That Reveal Our Cosmic History
Aderin-Pocock, Maggie
Hardcover
Hamlet's Mill: An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmissions Through Myth
Von Dechend, Hertha
de Santillana, Giorgio
Paperback
Cosmic Queries: Startalk's Guide to Who We Are, How We Got Here, and Where We're Going
Tyson, Neil DeGrasse
Hardcover
Painting the Cosmos: How Art and Science Intersect to Reveal the Secrets of the Universe
Imara, Nia
Paperback
The Martians: The True Story of an Alien Craze That Captured Turn-Of-The-Century America
Baron, David
Paperback
Rocket Men: The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
Kurson, Robert
Paperback
To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery
Walker, Lindsey Nyx
Tyson, Neil Degrasse
Paperback
The Universe Story: From the Primordial Flaring Forth to the Ecozoic Era--A Celebration of the Unfol
Swimme, Brian
Paperback
Reentry: Spacex, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets That Launched a Second Space Age
Berger, Eric
Hardcover
The Random Universe: How Models and Probability Help Us Make Sense of the Cosmos
Jaffe, Andrew H.
Hardcover
Spirits Dancing: The Night Sky, Indigenous Knowledge, and Living Connections to the Cosmos
Lee, Annette S.
Novitsky, Travis
Paperback
The Backyard Stargazer's Bible: Discover Constellations, Galaxies, Nebulae, Meteorites, and More
Ridpath, Ian
McIntyre, Mary
Federman, Rachel
Hardcover
Pillars of Creation: How the James Webb Telescope Unlocked the Secrets of the Cosmos
Panek, Richard
Hardcover
Photographic Atlas of the Moon: A Comprehensive Guide for the Amateur Astronomer
Reeves, Robert
Hardcover
Constellations: The Story of Space Told Through the 88 Known Star Patterns in the Night Sky
Schilling, Govert
Hardcover
The 4 Percent Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Race to Discover the Rest of Reality
Panek, Richard
Paperback
The Complete Book of Spacecraft: Rockets, Shuttles, Satellites, and Space Stations
Sivolella, Davide
Gorn, Michael H.
Hardcover
The Extraterrestrial Species Almanac: The Ultimate Guide to Greys, Reptilians, Hybrids, and Nordics
Campobasso, Craig
Paperback
Until the End of Time: Mind, Matter, and Our Search for Meaning in an Evolving Universe
Greene, Brian
Paperback