Home › Glossary › Letter P

Pales

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Deity of shepherds, flocks, and pastoral life, honored during the Parilia festival in April.

Detailed Definition
Pales, possibly male or female, presided over rural purity and animal health. In poetry, especially Vergil’s Eclogues, Pales embodies the idealized countryside, rustic piety, and the annual renewal of pastoral community through fire and milk rituals.
Example
Example in poetry:
Pales, pastoral deity of shepherds and flocks, appears in bucolic verse: "Pales, accept our milk and lamb—guard our flocks from wolf and blight"; The Parilia festival (April 21) celebrates Rome’s birthday and Pales: "Pales’ fire purifies shepherd and sheep"; A rustic hymn: "Pales, make the pasture green and the ewes heavy"; Symbol of rural peace: "Pales’ flute soothes the hills"; In contrast to war: "While Mars rages, Pales tends the lamb."
Additional Notes
Pales was a pastoral deity of uncertain gender, honored by shepherds during the Parilia (April 21)—which also celebrated Rome’s birthday; rites involved leaping over fires and sprinkling flocks with ashes; poets like Virgil evoke Pales in bucolic verse; the deity embodies the rustic roots of Roman identity; understanding Pales is key to Roman pastoral poetry and the idealization of agrarian life as moral and foundational.
Also Known As
shepherd goddess livestock guardian pastoral deity
Skip to main content