Labyrinth (redirected from endolymphatic labyrinth)

labyrinth (lăb`ərĭnth), intricate building of chambers and passages, often constructed so as to perplex and confuse a person inside. In Egypt, Amenemhet III of the XII dynasty built himself a funeral temple in the form of a great labyrinth near Lake Moeris. More celebrated was a labyrinth in Crete built, according to Greek myth, by Daedalus to house the Minotaur (see Minos).

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labyrinth

 or maze

System of intricate passageways and blind alleys. Labyrinth was the name given by the ancient Greeks and Romans to buildings, entirely or partly underground, containing a number of chambers and passages that made egress difficult. From the European Renaissance on, labyrinths or mazes consisting of intricate paths separated by high hedges were a feature of formal gardens.

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labyrinth

1. 

a. any system of interconnecting cavities, esp those comprising the internal ear

b. another name for internal ear

2. Electronics an enclosure behind a high-performance loudspeaker, consisting of a series of air chambers designed to absorb unwanted sound waves

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labyrinth [′lab·ə‚rinth]

(anatomy)

Any body structure full of intricate cavities and canals.

The inner ear.

(engineering acoustics)

A loudspeaker enclosure having air chambers at the rear that absorb rearward-radiated acoustic energy, to prevent it from interfering with the desired forward-radiated energy.

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labyrinth

labyrinth, 2

1. A maze of twisting passageways.

2. In medieval cathedrals, the representation of such a maze inlaid in the floor.

3. A garden feature of convoluted paths outlined by hedges, usually above eye level; also called a maze.

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Labyrinth

maze at Knossos where Minotaur lived. [Gk. Myth.: Hall, 185]

See : Confusion

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Labyrinth

in anatomy, refers to (1) the membranous labyrinth, a basic part of the auditory and statokinetic organs in vertebrates and man, or the inner ear; and (2) the skeletal labyrinth, the cartilaginous or bony capsule in which the membranous labyrinth is located.

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Labyrinth

a term used by ancient authors, including Herodotus, Diodorus, and Strabo, to designate a structure with a complicated and intricate plan. The writers of antiquity tell of several labyrinths. The Cretan labyrinth, according to legend, was constructed by Daedalus for the Minotaur; the famous palace in Knossos is identified with it. The Egyptian labyrinth near al-Fayyum (in North Egypt), which possibly was built during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhet III (19th century B.C.), contained about 3,000 rooms. The construction of the Samoan labyrinth was decreed by the tyrant Polycrates (sixth century B.C.).The Italian labyrinth, which is in the city of Clusium (now Chiusi), was probably the tomb of the Etruscan king Porsena (sixth century B.C.).

In 17th- and 18th-century formal parks a labyrinth was a section with an intricate maze of narrow paths between high walls of clipped hedges.

Figuratively the term “labyrinth” means a complicated arrangement (for example, a labyrinth of streets) or an intricate situation that it is difficult to get out of (for example, a labyrinth of contradictions).

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Labyrinth

an air-breathing organ in bony fishes of the suborder Anabantoidei. It comprises several narrow bony plates (proliferations of the branchial arch). The labyrinth is located in an outgrowth of the upper section of the gill cavity and covered by a mucous membrane full of blood capillaries. Air taken in through the mouth hits the labyrinth. Venous blood enters the labyrinth by means of an afferent branchial vessel; after it is oxygenated the blood flows into the dorsal aorta and is spread throughout the body. The labyrinth enables the fish to remain out of the water for long periods of time.