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[Facts] Etymology of Cabiria
Hello :)Can someone help me finding the etymology of the name Cabiria ? I know two movies featuring this name : Firstly "Cabiria" (1914), in which the story takes place 3 centuries BC between Italy and Numidia. And then "The Nights of Cabiria" (1957) by Fellini, about a waifish prostitute that wanders through Rome looking for love.I guess it's Latin.Thanks in advance,Andria.
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My Italian name dictionary, Santi e Fanti by Enzo La Stella T., says that Cabiria was invented for the 1914 film, and says it perhaps comes from the Semitic word kabir, "powerful", though that seems to be La Stella's guess.

This message was edited 11/5/2005, 12:41 PM

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Thank you Cleveland !
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I don't know anything about the use of CABIRIA as given name in ancient Rome; maybe others can find famous bearers of that name.
If it is Latin, it could be from "Cabiri", the name of one or several deities of Semitic-Greek origin, meaning "the big/great ones" ("die Großen"). This is what my Latin dictionary has (Menge/Güthling).
A Lexicon of Antiquity (Lexikon der Alten Welt, Düsseldorf 1990) says: Both its cult and name are non-Greek, probably Phrygian. The Greeks were obviously not able to interprete the name. The oldest proof is a play by Aishylos called "Kabeiroi".Hope this helps a bit.
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Thank you very much, Andy ! :)I'm going to do some search about these Great Ones.
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