--- In cybalist@..., "jdcroft" <jdcroft@...> wrote:
>
> Regarding the etymology of Amazons, I have seen that it has nothing
> to do with the a-mazo, the loss of the breast, but due to the Greek
> name for "girdle".
Yes, I think the suggestion was Gk. hama 'together, with' +
zone: 'girdle'. Iranian etymologies for 'Amazon' have also
been sugggested, but I can't remember any of them off hand.
The girdle connection seems possible because Ossetian girls
traditionally wore a tight-fitting corset until marriage,
supposedly to flatten the breasts and keep them small, which
was considered more attractive. Thus maybe "(still) with
corset" could have implied "maiden, virgin, unmarried", and
thus "(still) in military service" for a Sarmatian girl.
Although I'm struck by the similarity in breast-reducing
corsets and madness-inducing pointed hats as explanations,
so maybe I've just gone off the deep end here!
David