Omen

omen, sign or augury believed to foreshadow the future. Almost any occurrence can be interpreted as an omen. The typical omen was a natural phenomenon, such as a meteor, an eclipse, or the flight of birds. Among the Greeks and Romans the interpretation of omens was a major part of religious life and required trained priests, such as the Roman augur, to explain the meaning of the signs. Belief in omens still survives in superstitions concerning such things as black cats, nightmares, unlucky days, and breaking mirrors.

---

omen

Observed phenomenon that is interpreted as signifying good or bad fortune. The many and varied omens that the ancients noted included lightning, cloud movements, the flights of birds, and the paths of sacred animals. Each type of omen was gauged according to specific meaningful characteristics, such as the kinds of bird in flight or the direction of flight in relation to the observer.

---

Omen

See also Prophecy.

Amasis’

ring discarded ring turns up predicting Polycrates’ death. [Gk. Hist.: Benét, 28]

handwriting on the wall

Daniel interprets supernatural sign as Belshazzar’s doom. [O.T.: Daniel 5:25–28]

huma

oriental bird; every head over which its shadow passes was believed destined to wear a crown. [Ind. Myth.: Brewer Dictionary, 472]

Ides of March

15 March; prophesied as fateful for Caesar. [Br. Lit.: Julius Caesar]

merrow

Irish mermaid; her appearance signifies coming storms. [Irish Folklore: Briggs, 290–294]

Mother Carey’s chickens

stormy petrels; believed by sailors to be harbingers of storms. [Marine Folklore: Wheeler, 251]

raven

often presages death or catastrophe. [Animal Folklore: Jobes, 213]

waff

wraith whose appearance portends death. [Br. Folklore: Briggs, 425]

white-winged crow

bird of evil omen. [Chinese Folklore: Jobes, 388]

Wotan’s ravens

of misfortune, usually fatal. [Ger. Opera: Wagner, Götterdämmerung, Westerman, 245]