From the book
The Orphic Collection, Volume I: The Hymns
Attributed to Orpheus · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordΦῦλον groups beings together as a kind, race or collective.
- In the Orphic HymnsThe “great tribe” of beasts under Aphrodite’s love-charms is expressed by the singular πολὺ φῦλον despite its many members (LV.14).
- TranslationThe translation’s repeated “tribe” usefully preserves the collective idea, but can sound narrower and more exclusively human than the Greek contexts warrant.
- A place to readSavage groups are the object of Herakles’ action.
- English renderings
- kind, race, company of creatures
Meaning
Φῦλον groups beings together as a kind, race or collective. Its scope is determined locally: the word does not come with a fixed classification of humans, animals and divine powers. The singular can already be collective, while the plural allows several groups or a broad multitude.
Use in the book
The “great tribe” of beasts under Aphrodite’s love-charms is expressed by the singular πολὺ φῦλον despite its many members (LV.14). Herakles, by contrast, drives off savage φῦλα for mortals (XII.7). The adjective “savage” supplies the threatening character; the noun itself does not necessarily denote enemies. When the Erinyes watch the limitless groups of all mortals, the human reference is supplied by θνητῶν (LXIX.10).
Dawn’s hymn moves from every mortal and every creeping thing to “other tribes” (LXXVIII.10). The expression extends rejoicing across living kinds; the next line specifies four-footed, winged and marine creatures without enumerating individual species. Apollo’s “life-nourishing tribes” are less easily reduced to a list (XXXIV.19). They appear amid cosmic blending, distinctions and seasonal musical harmony. It is therefore better to retain a broad sense of groups or kinds in that passage than to invent a technical taxonomy not enumerated by the hymn.
Places to read
- Hymn XII · Line 7Savage groups are the object of Herakles’ action.
- Hymn XXXIV · Line 19Distinguishing kinds appears within cosmic and seasonal harmony.
- Hymn LV · Line 14A singular collective contains the many beasts.
- Hymn LXIX · Line 10The genitive explicitly identifies mortal groups.
- Hymn LXXVIII · Line 10Other kinds enlarge Dawn’s community of rejoicing.
Translation
The translation’s repeated “tribe” usefully preserves the collective idea, but can sound narrower and more exclusively human than the Greek contexts warrant. “Kind” or “race” may orient the reader better in animal and cosmic passages. Compare γένος without assuming that the two nouns enforce separate biological ranks.
Attested forms
φῦλα; φῦλον
Occurrence inventory
5 in total. XII.7; XXXIV.19; LV.14; LXIX.10; LXXVIII.10