Here's an odd tidbit, recently turned up in Latin dictionary . . .
I was looking up something else, as so often is the case, when I saw a couple of entries.
"noveni -ae, a, nine each, nine at a time; poetic, nine."
Well sure, that makes perfect sense and hardly worth mentioning (November, etc.). However, the next one . . .
"Novensiles divi, gods whose worship had been introduced from foreign countries."
Wow. Since "Noven-" seems to be the prefix or root meaning nine, this
Latin word sure looks to me like "the nine gods" (as opposed to "the new (foreign) gods"). Then again, I don't know Latin. Anyway, let's say that this category "Novensiles divi" actually has only nine figures in it--quick, who would they be? All those mystery cults of exotic Eastern religions in ancient Rome spring to mind: Osirus, Cybelle . . . Mithras? Orpheus? Isis?
Just a random thought.
=mantis=