2956: Python and Pethen (פתן) Jan 24, 2025

The ancient Greek πύθων (Pythōn) and the Hebrew פתן (pethen) both refer to serpents, the latter being a cobra, but their resemblance seems to be coincidental rather than etymological. Πύθων, the serpent slain by Apollo in Greek mythology, derives from either πυθώ (putho) meaning ‘caverns’ or ‘depths’ in reference to where monsters live, or the verb πύθειν (pýthein), meaning ‘to rot’. Python was also the original name of the famous mystical city of Delphi.

In contrast, פתן, which refers to a venomous snake in Hebrew, originates from Semitic roots linked to coiling or venom, with no connection to the Greek term. Other semitic languages use related, but different words in ancient languages, as well as in Arabic بَثَن (baṯan) for a type of viper, and definitely not a python.