Oleg Zabluda's blog
Thursday, August 30, 2012
 
Callisto, like all the nymphs of Artemis (=Diana), took a vow to remain a virgin.

Callisto, like all the nymphs of Artemis (=Diana), took a vow to remain a virgin. Zeus (=Jupiter) deflowered her, resulting in a son. His enraged wife (and sister) Hera, went berserk, as did Artemis. As always, Zeus' women were out of control,  so to save Calisto and her spawn, he turned them into a mother bear and her cub, then grabbed them by the tails, spun around (making their tails long, unlike all other bears) and threw then into the sky, creating Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.  [1]

Hera asked her brother Poseidon not to let them rest in the ocean during the day, that's why they are circumpolar.


Zeus also put Bootes (Волопас) with Canes Venatici to protect them.  

α Boötis is Arcturus (mag. −0.04)  fourth brightest star in the night sky, after Sirius (mag −1.5 ), Canopus (mag −0.9), and α Centauri (mag −0.3).

Arcturus (Αρκτοῦρος) means "Bear Guardian" in Greek,  from arctos (ἄρκτος) "bear" + ouros (οὖρος), "guardian".

Don't confuse with a fictional Latin "ArcticUrsus" from Arctic (from Latin arcticus, meaning North, from Greek arktos [constellation] of Bear +  Ursus (Latin for Bear). As you see, it would be a wrong language, and the words are all backwards.

arctos - bear  | arctic - north
ouros - guard | ursus -bear

Clear as day.

Russian for "bear" is "medved" from Мёд (honey) + ведать (eat).

What we call "Polar Bear" in English, and "White Bear" in Russian, is called in Latin "Ursus Maritimus" (Sea Bear).  Brown Bear in Latin is (Ursus arctos i.e. Northern Bear). Grizzly is a subspecies of it, called in Latin (Ursus arctos horribilis i.e. Horrible Northern Bear).

[1] Little/Big Dipper are not constellations, but asterisms (like Summer Triangle).

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