"'To modify what the old cacique said about Spaniards in Heaven, if there are nationalists in hell, I'm not sure if I want to go there.'" (p. 62)
I googled "cacique" and found my way to the story of Hatuey. The following passage is copied from the linked Wikipedia article:
Before he was burned, a priest asked Hatuey if he would accept Jesus and go to heaven. Las Casas recalled the reaction of the chief:
- [Hatuey], thinking a little, asked the religious man if Spaniards went to heaven. The religious man answered yes... The chief then said without further thought that he did not want to go there but to hell so as not to be where they were and where he would not see such cruel people. This is the name and honor that God and our faith have earned.[5]
8 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
I googled the word "cacique" and was interested to discover it originally meant "to keep house." So a powerful chieftain was one who had a house? And that in turn reminded me of how the Egyptian title "Pharaoh" meant "great house" in the original language of Egypt. So "great house" became a royal title because of the king living in his palace.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
And the Japanese say "Lord of the House," which became a title of the Buddha.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Because anyone who owned his house in Japan was lord of his house. Reminds me of how we still use terms like "landlord" or "landlady," for persons who rented out rooms or apartments from their property.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
And I think it also referred to feudal-style lords.
Paul.
"Lord" and "Lady" in English derive etymologically from terms meaning "Bread-winner" and "Bread-divider/dispenser". That is, male and female head of household.
This is a common pattern in many times and places. In proto-Indo-European, the equivalents were *potis, meaning "head of the household", "lord", "master", with a female equivalent *potnih.
Kaor, Paul and Mr. Stirling!
Paul: Maybe, perhaps for knights holding a single manor.
Mr. Stirling: And I often see God and various men addressed as "lord" in the Old Testament. It makes me wonder what was the early, literal meaning of "lord" in Hebrew.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean: the word you're thinking of is "Adonai" -- literally, "My Lord". Adon in turn is a West Semitic word for lord, master.... deriving ultimately from a word for "father".
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
So originally "lord" meant not the Indo/European "Bread winner" but "father and master." Which seems to denote a more intimate relationship with one's lord than "bread winner" would suggest.
Ad astra! Sean
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