Equuleus Pâré asb (#), Korré Asb Fr.: Petit Cheval The Foal. A small, faint constellation in the northern hemisphere, lying between → Delphinus and → Pegasus, at 21h 10m right ascension, 5° north declination. Its brightest star, Kitalpha, has a visual magnitude of 3.9. Abbreviation: Equ; Genitive: Equulei. L. Equuleus "little horse," diminutive of equus "horse," from PIE base *ekwos "horse" (cf. Pers. asb; Av. aspa- "horse;" Skt. áśva-; Gk. hippos; O.E. eoh; Arm. ēš). The origin of Equuleus is not clear. It is not mentioned in any classical Gk. or Roman myths. The first mention of the constellation was in Ptolemy's catalog, where it is referred to as Hippou Protome "the bust or upper part of an animal figure." Some mythologists have associated Equuleus with the foal Celeris, the brother of the winged horse Pegasus, given to Castor by Mercury. Pâré asb "part of a horse," from
pâré "piece, part, portion, fragment" (Mid.Pers. pârag
"piece, part, portion; gift, offering, bribe;" Av. pāra- "debt," from
par- "to remunerate, equalize; to condemn;"
PIE *per- "to sell, hand over, distribute; to assign;" cf. L. pars
"part, piece, side, share," portio "share, portion;" Gk. peprotai
"it has been granted;" Skt. purti- "reward;" Hitt. pars-, parsiya-
"to break, crumble") + asb "horse," Mid.Pers. asb;
O.Pers. asa- "horse;" Av. aspa-
"horse," aspā- "mare," āsu.aspa- "unbound horse;"
Skt. áśvā- "mare;" cognate with L. equus, as above. |