botanomancy

botanomancy

English

Alternative forms

  • batanomancy
  • botinomancy
  • botomancy
  • botonomancy

Etymology

Etymology tree
English botany
Ancient Greek μάντις (mántis)
Ancient Greek -εύς (-eús)
Ancient Greek -εύομαι (-eúomai)
Ancient Greek μᾰντεύομαι (mănteúomai)
Proto-Indo-European *-h₂
Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂
Proto-Indo-European *-i-eh₂
Proto-Hellenic *-íā
Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā)
Ancient Greek μᾰντείᾱ (mănteíā)der.
Latin -mantīabor.
English -mancy
English botanomancy

    From botany + -mancy.

    Noun

    botanomancy (uncountable)

    1. Divination by plants. A form of pyromancy in which tree branches and/or leaves are burnt.
    2. Tea-leaf reading, or tasseomancy.

    Quotations

    "Diuination generally was done by diuers means...or by Hearbes, Botinomancy, the witches magicke." -- Vives in J. Healey Saint Augustine of the Citie of God, 1610
    "By Botomancy, for the nonce I have a few Leaves in reserve." -- Urquhart translating Rabelais Gargantua & Pantagruel iii. xxv., 1660
    "A method of divination by means of burning the branches of vervein and briar, upon which were carved the questions of the practitioner." -- L. Spence Encyc. Occult, 1920
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