FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Fun Trivia
Home: Questions and Answers Forum
Answers to 100,000 Fascinating Questions
Welcome to FunTrivia's Question & Answer forum!

Search All Questions


Please cite any factual claims with citation links or references from authoritative sources. Editors continuously recheck submissions and claims.

Archived Questions

Goto Qn #


The Russian word Chernobyl translates into this English word found in the Bible's Revelations?

Question #55262. Asked by dejavucub4.
Last updated Nov 15 2019.

Related Trivia Topics: Religion   The Bible   English   Vocabulary  
Buck540
Answer has 28 votes
Buck540

Answer has 28 votes.
Revelation 8:10-11 reads, “And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.” Yes, many died from the water.
But what of the name—Wormwood? There are about 500,000 words in an unabridged dictionary. Wormwood is one of those words. It’s also the English translation of the Russian word, Chernobyl. If you were reading a Ukrainian Bible, the prophecy would say, “…and the name of the star is called Chernobyl.”

Feb 17 2005, 2:36 PM
fluffyjo
Answer has 2 votes
fluffyjo
23 year member
23 replies

Answer has 2 votes.
Wormwood is a plant found in the Middle East, known for it's bitter taste. The term is figurative for bitterness.

link https://heavenawaits.wordpress.com/wormwood-spirit-of-bitterness/


Response last updated by gtho4 on Nov 15 2019.
Feb 17 2005, 3:56 PM
TheAlphaWolf
Answer has 29 votes
Currently Best Answer
TheAlphaWolf

Answer has 29 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.

The city is named after the chornobyl' grass, or mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). The word itself is a combination of chornyi (÷îðíèé, black) and byllia (áèëëÿ, grass blades or stalks), hence it literally means black grass or black stalks.

Sometimes chornobyl is erroneously translated as simply "wormwood" (which most commonly refers to Artemisia absinthium), with consequent apocalyptic associations, probably originating from a New York Times article by Serge Schmemann, Chernobyl Fallout: Apocalyptic Tale, July 25, 1986. There, an unnamed "prominent Russian writer" was quoted as claiming the Ukrainian word for wormwood was chernobyl.

It fact, there are over 160 kinds of Artemisia, and the terminology is not generally accepted. Some sources refer to Artemisia vulgaris as "common wormwood", while other claim that "common wormwood" is Artemisia absinthium.

Wormwood is a different (but related) plant, Artemisia absinthium, Ïîëèí (Polyn). "Polyn" has no English equivalent, but corresponds to the botanical genus Artemisia. Botanically, mugwort is "Common Polyn" (Ukr. Ïîëèí çâè÷àéíèé); while wormwood is "Bitter Polyn" (Ukr. Ïîëèí ã³ðêèé).

Still more confusion comes from the fact that the word "wormwood" is used in the English text of the Apocalypsis, whose usage as the name of a plant not necessarily matches to that of the orginal.
link https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Chernobyl


Response last updated by gtho4 on Nov 15 2019.
Feb 18 2005, 7:09 PM
free email trivia FREE! Get a new mixed Fun Trivia quiz each day in your email. It's a fun way to start your day!


arrow Your Email Address:

Sign in or Create Free User ID to participate in the discussion

Related FunTrivia Quizzes

play quiz Bible add a word
(Bible Word Play)
play quiz My Word -- Common Sayings from the Bible -- #2
(Biblical Quotes)
play quiz My Word -- Common Sayings from the Bible -- #5
(Biblical Quotes)

Return to FunTrivia
"Ask FunTrivia" strives to offer the best answers possible to trivia questions. We ask our submitters to thoroughly research questions and provide sources where possible. Feel free to post corrections or additions. This is server B184.