Larva

Larva
(LAR-va)
Variations: LAMIA, Lemures, Lemurs, Umbrae
In ancient Roman mythology there was a type of vampiric spirit known as a larva. It was created when a person died in some violent fashion or while bearing a burden of guilt. The larvae (the plural form of the word) were the evil, feminine version of the Lares, the protective, male ancestral spirits that safeguarded families and their homes. Larvae ("hungry ghosts") attack nightly, frightening and tormenting the living. They cause erotic and explicit dreams that generate nocturnal emissions, which they carry back to their nests, incubate like an egg, and hatch out horrific monsters.
The ancient Romans celebrated the Feast of the Lemuria on May 9, 11, and 13. The Vestal Virgins made offerings of black beans and of a sacred SALT made into cakes. The food was offered to the larvae at midnight in the hopes that they would accept the gifts and leave their family alone. Loud noises were made throughout the celebration, oftentimes scaring the larvae away before the offerings were made. During this festival all other temples were closed, no legal action could be taken, marriages were forbidden to take place, and voting was not allowed.
Source: Bulfinch, Bulfinch's Greek and Roman Mythology, 9; Leach, Funk and Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, 196, 605; Steuding, Greek and Roman Mythology, 145

Encyclopedia of vampire mythology . 2014.

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  • larvă — LÁRVĂ, larve, s.f. Stadiu în dezvoltarea individuală a unor animale la ieşirea din ou, deosebit prin formă şi mod de viaţă de stadiul adult. – Din fr. larve. Trimis de LauraGellner, 17.05.2004. Sursa: DEX 98  LÁRVĂ s. 1. (zool.) (pop.) plod.… …   Dicționar Român

  • LARVA — Ml GRANS, «блуждающая личинка», обозначение кожной б ни, характеризующейся появлением ползучего красноватого валика, передвигающегося по коже и дающего различные фигуры хода. Синонимами L. т. являются обозначения: creeping disease,… …   Большая медицинская энциклопедия

  • Larva — Album par Eivør Pálsdóttir Pays  Féroé, iles !Îles Féroé Sortie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • larva — [lär′və] n. pl. larvae [lär′vē΄] or larvas [L, ghost, specter, akin to lar, household spirit: see LARES] the early, free living, immature form of any animal that changes structurally when it becomes an adult, usually by a complex metamorphosis… …   English World dictionary

  • Larva — Lar va (l[aum]r v[.a]), n.; pl. L. {Larv[ae]} (l[aum]r v[ae]), E. {Larvas} (l[aum]r v[.a]z). [L. larva ghost, specter, mask.] 1. (Zo[ o]l.) Any young insect from the time that it hatches from the egg until it becomes a pupa, or chrysalis. During… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • larva — s.f. [dal lat. larva fantasma, maschera ]. 1. (etnol.) [secondo alcune credenze, anima errabonda, e appena visibile, di un defunto] ▶◀ fantasma, lemure, ombra, spettro, spirito. 2. (fig.) a. [creazione della fantasia: questa che abbiamo è… …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • larva — 1650s, a ghost, specter, from L. larva (pl. larvae), earlier larua ghost, also mask; applied in biological sense 1768 by Linnaeus because immature forms of insects mask the adult forms. On the double sense of the Latin word, Carlo Ginzburg, among …   Etymology dictionary

  • larva — sustantivo femenino 1. Fase del desarrollo de algunos animales en la que ya han abandonado el huevo y se nutren por sí mismos, pero no han alcanzado todavía la fase adulta: Los insectos, los anfibios y algunos peces pasan por etapas de larva …   Diccionario Salamanca de la Lengua Española

  • larva — (Del lat. larva, fantasma). 1. f. Zool. Animal en estado de desarrollo, cuando ha abandonado las cubiertas del huevo y es capaz de nutrirse por sí mismo, pero aún no ha adquirido la forma y la organización propia de los adultos de su especie. 2.… …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • larva — larva. См. личинка. (Источник: «Англо русский толковый словарь генетических терминов». Арефьев В.А., Лисовенко Л.А., Москва: Изд во ВНИРО, 1995 г.) …   Молекулярная биология и генетика. Толковый словарь.

  • larva — Forma inmadura de un animal, que sufre una metamorfosis antes de alcanzar el estado adulto. Diccionario Mosby Medicina, Enfermería y Ciencias de la Salud, Ediciones Hancourt, S.A. 1999 …   Diccionario médico

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