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epitaph

 
Dictionary: ep·i·taph   (ĕp'ĭ-tăf') pronunciation
 
Epitaph

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n.
  1. An inscription on a tombstone in memory of the one buried there.
  2. A brief literary piece commemorating a deceased person.

[Middle English, from Old French epitaphe, from Latin epitaphium, from Greek epitaphion, from neuter of epitaphios, funerary : epi-, epi- + taphos, tomb.]

epitaphic ep'i·taph'ic adj.
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Literary Dictionary: epitaph
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epitaph, a form of words in prose or verse suited for inscription on a tomb–although many facetious verses composed as epitaphs have not actually been inflicted on their victims' graves. Epitaphs may take the form of appeals from the dead to passers‐by, or of descriptions of the dead person's merits. Many ancient Greek epitaphs survive in the Greek Anthology (c.920 CE), and both Johnson and Wordsworth wrote essays on the epitaph as an art.

adjective: epitaphic.

See also lapidary.
 

Inscription in verse or prose on a tomb, or, by extension, anything written as if to be inscribed on a tomb. Probably the earliest surviving epitaphs are those written on ancient Egyptian sarcophagi and coffins. Ancient Greek examples are often of literary interest. In Elizabethan times epitaphs began to assume a more literary character. Many of the best known are literary memorials (often deliberately witty) not intended for a tomb.

For more information on epitaph, visit Britannica.com.

 

Inscription on a funerary monument, tombstone, etc.

 
Dictionary of Dance: Epitaph
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Ballet in one act with choreography by van Dantzig, music by Ligeti, and design by van Schayk. Premiered 26 June 1969 by Dutch National Ballet at Stadsschouwburg, Amsterdam, with G. Wijnoogst, van Schayk, and C. Geldorp. This setting of Ligeti's Atmosphères and Volumina deals with failures of communication in modern urban society. It has been revived for Munich Ballet (1972).

 
epitaph, strictly, an inscription on a tomb; by extension, a statement, usually in verse, commemorating the dead. The earliest such inscriptions are those found on Egyptian sarcophagi. In England epitaphs did not begin to assume a literary character until the time of Elizabeth I. Ben Jonson, John Milton, Alexander Pope, and Samuel Johnson were considered masters of the art. The epitaph on Ben Jonson's own tomb in Westminster Abbey was splendidly brief: “O rare Ben Jonson!” Epitaphs are often humorous. It is not known whether the epitaph printed below is amusing by design or by accident: Here lie I Martin Elginbrodde: Have mercy on my soul, Lord God, As I wad do, were I Lord God, And ye were Martin Elginbrodde.


 
Poetry Glossary: Epitaph
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A brief poem or statement in memory of someone who is deceased, used as -- or suitable for -- a tombstone inscription; a commemorative lamentation.

 
Devil's Dictionary: epitaph
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A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce


n.

An inscription on a tomb, showing that virtues acquired by death have a retroactive effect. Following is a touching example:

    Here lie the bones of Parson Platt,
    Wise, pious, humble and all that,
    Who showed us life as all should live it;
    Let that be said -- and God forgive it!


 
Word Tutor: epitaph
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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Words carved on a tomb in memory of the person buried there.

pronunciation And were an epitaph to be my story I'd have a short one ready for my own. I would have written of me on my stone: I had a lover's quarrel with the world. — Robert Frost.

 
Quotes By: Epitaph
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Quotes:

"Here lies one believe it if you can, who thought an attorney, was a honest man."

"Here lies an Atheist: All Dressed Up and No Place to Go."

"Remember man as you walk by, as you are now so once was I, as I am now, so you will be, so prepare for death and follow me."

 
Quotes About: Epitaphs
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Quotes:

"When I die, my epitaph should read: She Paid the Bills. That's the story of my private life." - Gloria Swanson

"At last God caught his eye." - Harry Secombe

"If men could see the epitaphs their friends write they would believe they had gotten into the wrong grave." - American Proverb

"The most touching epitaph I ever encountered was on the tombstone of the printer of Edinburgh. It said simply: He kept down the cost and set the type right." - Gregory Nunn

"In lapidary inscriptions a man is not upon oath." - Samuel Johnson

"Oh, write of me, not Died in bitter pains, but Emigrated to another star!" - Helen Hunt Jackson

See more famous quotes about Epitaphs

 
Wikipedia: Epitaph
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An epitaph (from Greek: ἐπιτάφιος epi-taphios "at,over-tomb" — literally: "on the gravestone"[1]) is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial. An epitaph may be in verse; poets have been known to compose their own epitaphs prior to their death, as W.B. Yeats did.

Most epitaphs are brief records of the family, and perhaps the career, of the deceased, often with an expression of love or respect - "beloved father of ..." - but others are more ambitious. From the Renaissance to the 19th century in Western culture, epitaphs for notable people became increasingly lengthy and pompous descriptions of their family origins, career, virtues and immediate family, often in Latin. However, the Laudatio Turiae, the longest known Ancient Roman epitaph exceeds almost all of these at 180 lines; it celebrates the virtues of a wife, probably of a consul.

Some are quotes from holy texts, or aphorisms. An approach of many successful epitaphs is to 'speak' to the reader and warn them about their own mortality. A wry trick of others is to request the reader to get off their resting place, as often it would require the reader to stand on the ground above the coffin to read the inscription. Some record achievements, (e.g. past politicians note the years of their terms of office) but nearly all (excepting those including the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where this is impossible) note name, year or date of birth and date of death. Many list family and their relation to them; such as Father / Mother / Son / Daughter etc of.

Contents

Notable epitaphs

Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by
that here, obedient to their law, we lie.

Simonides's epigram at Thermopylae

I am ready to meet my Maker.
Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.

Winston Churchill[2]

To save your world you asked this man to die:
Would this man, could he see you now, ask why?

— Epitaph for the Unknown Soldier, written by W. H. Auden[3]

AGAINST YOU I WILL FLING MYSELF,
UNVANQUISHED AND UNYIELDING, O DEATH!

Virginia Woolf [4]

"Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare, To dig the dust enclosed here. Blessed be the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones."

- William Shakespeare

See also

References

External links

Find more about Epitaph on Wikipedia's sister projects:
Definitions from Wiktionary

Textbooks from Wikibooks
Quotations from Wikiquote
Source texts from Wikisource
Images and media from Commons
News stories from Wikinews

Learning resources from Wikiversity

 
Translations: Epitaph
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - gravskrift, epitafium

Nederlands (Dutch)
grafschrift, epitaaf (gezegde ter herdenking van dode)

Français (French)
n. - épitaphe

Deutsch (German)
n. - Grabinschrift, Epitaph

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - επιτάφιος (λόγος), επιτύμβια επιγραφή

Italiano (Italian)
epitaffio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - epitáfio (m)

Русский (Russian)
эпитафия, некролог

Español (Spanish)
n. - epitafio, inscripción sepulcral

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - gravskrift

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
墓志铭, 碑文

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 墓誌銘, 碑文

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 비문

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 墓碑銘, 碑文

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) نقش على ضريح‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮כתובת (על מצבה)‬


 
 
Learn More
epitaphic
Swanson, Gloria (Quotes By)
tombstone (in archaeology)

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Literary Dictionary. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms. Copyright © Chris Baldick 2001, 2004. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Architecture and Landscaping. A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Copyright © 1999, 2006 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Dictionary of Dance. The Oxford Dictionary of Dance. Copyright © 2000, 2004 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
Poetry Glossary. Copyright © 2007, ILOVEPOETRY, Inc, All Rights Reserved.  Read more
Devil's Dictionary. Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce, 1911  Read more
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