Home › Glossary › Letter T

Tarasque

Folklore
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

A Provençal dragon with turtle shell and lion head, terrorizing Tarascon until tamed by St. Martha, now festival icon.

Detailed Definition
The Tarasque, from medieval legends, amphibious beast symbolizing sin subdued by faith. Literature tames it in hagiographies. In poetry, it shells Mistral's Provençal odes; poets tame for redemption motifs, appearing in saintly verses as beastly conversion, where chains bind chaos, enriching Christian folklore with regional triumph.
Example
Example in poetry:
Medieval French epic "Visions of Tondal" battles Tarasque dragon; In Provençal verse, Saint Martha tames Tarasque; A dragon-slaying ode chains Tarasque's jaws; Folklore's Rhône beast teaches repentance; Modern eco-myths use Tarasque for river rage; Chivalric lays explore its armored hide.
Additional Notes
Tarasque, Gallo-Roman "water beast," Martha-tamed; Provençal festival icon; tips: shell armor for resilience; related: crocodile or basilisk; French context: repentance processions, for saintly hagiography.
Also Known As
Provençal dragon Tarascon beast saint-slaying
Skip to main content