Ammonite

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Ammonite \Am"mon*ite\, n. [L. cornu Ammonis born of Ammon; L.
     Ammon, Gr. ? an appellation of Jupiter, as represented with
     the horns of a ram. It was originally the name of an.
     Egyptian god, Amun.] (Paleon.)
     A fossil cephalopod shell related to the nautilus. There are
     many genera and species, and all are extinct, the typical


     forms having existed only in the Mesozoic age, when they were
     exceedingly numerous. They differ from the nautili in having
     the margins of the septa very much lobed or plaited, and the
     siphuncle dorsal. Also called {serpent stone}, {snake stone},
     and {cornu Ammonis}.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  ammonoid \ammonoid\ n.
     1. one of the coiled chambered fossil shells of extinct
        mollusks; same as {ammonite}.
  
     Syn: ammonite
          [WordNet 1.5]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  ammonite
       n : one of the coiled chambered fossil shells of extinct
           mollusks [syn: {ammonoid}]

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Ammonite
     the usual name of the descendants of Ammon, the son of Lot (Gen.
     19:38). From the very beginning (Deut. 2:16-20) of their history
     till they are lost sight of (Judg. 5:2), this tribe is closely
     associated with the Moabites (Judg. 10:11; 2 Chr. 20:1; Zeph.
     2:8). Both of these tribes hired Balaam to curse Israel (Deut.
     23:4). The Ammonites were probably more of a predatory tribe,
     moving from place to place, while the Moabites were more
     settled. They inhabited the country east of the Jordan and north
     of Moab and the Dead Sea, from which they had expelled the
     Zamzummims or Zuzims (Deut. 2:20; Gen. 14:5). They are known as
     the Beni-ammi (Gen. 19:38), Ammi or Ammon being worshipped as
     their chief god. They were of Semitic origin, and closely
     related to the Hebrews in blood and language. They showed no
     kindness to the Israelites when passing through their territory,
     and therefore they were prohibited from "entering the
     congregation of the Lord to the tenth generation" (Deut. 23:3).
     They afterwards became hostile to Israel (Judg. 3:13). Jephthah
     waged war against them, and "took twenty cities with a very
     great slaughter" (Judg. 11:33). They were again signally
     defeated by Saul (1 Sam. 11:11). David also defeated them and
     their allies the Syrians (2 Sam. 10:6-14), and took their chief
     city, Rabbah, with much spoil (2 Sam. 10:14; 12:26-31). The
     subsequent events of their history are noted in 2 Chr. 20:25;
     26:8; Jer. 49:1; Ezek. 25:3, 6. One of Solomon's wives was
     Naamah, an Ammonite. She was the mother of Rehoboam (1 Kings
     14:31; 2 Chr. 12:13).
     
       The prophets predicted fearful judgments against the Ammonites
     because of their hostility to Israel (Zeph. 2:8; Jer. 49:1-6;
     Ezek. 25:1-5, 10; Amos 1:13-15).
     
       The national idol worshipped by this people was Molech or
     Milcom, at whose altar they offered human sacrifices (1 Kings
     11:5, 7). The high places built for this idol by Solomon, at the
     instigation of his Ammonitish wives, were not destroyed till the
     time of Josiah (2 Kings 23:13).