Favomancy
Encyclopedia
Favomancy is a form of divination that used to be practised by seers in Russia
, in particular, among the Ubykh
. The practice involves throwing beans on the ground and interpreting the patterns in which the beans fall; it is therefore a type of cleromancy
. Russian methods of favomancy may still exist; however, since the departure of the Ubykhs from the Caucasus in 1864, details of exactly how Ubykh soothsayers interpreted the patterns formed by the beans are lost.
faba "bean" and formed by analogy with the names of similar divination
methods such as alectromancy. The Ubykh
term for a favomancer simply means "bean-thrower", and later became a synonym for all soothsayer
s and seers in general.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, in particular, among the Ubykh
Ubykh people
The Ubykh are a group who spoke the Northwest Caucasian Ubykh language, until other local languages displaced it and its last speaker died in 1992....
. The practice involves throwing beans on the ground and interpreting the patterns in which the beans fall; it is therefore a type of cleromancy
Cleromancy
Cleromancy is a form of divination using sortition, casting of lots, or casting bones or stones, in which an outcome is determined by means that normally would be considered random, such as the rolling of dice, but are sometimes believed to reveal the will of God, or other supernatural entities.-In...
. Russian methods of favomancy may still exist; however, since the departure of the Ubykhs from the Caucasus in 1864, details of exactly how Ubykh soothsayers interpreted the patterns formed by the beans are lost.
Etymology
Favomancy comes from the LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
faba "bean" and formed by analogy with the names of similar divination
Divination
Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...
methods such as alectromancy. The Ubykh
Ubykh language
Ubykh or Ubyx is an extinct language of the Northwestern Caucasian group, spoken by the Ubykh people...
term for a favomancer simply means "bean-thrower", and later became a synonym for all soothsayer
Fortune-telling
Fortune-telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. The scope of fortune-telling is in principle identical with the practice of divination...
s and seers in general.