The "three kings," the crowns, and the names Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar are all later Christian legend.
Imported citation, not independently checked: Matthew 2:1-12
religion · Shared topic · Revision 0
Who Were the Magi in the Nativity?
Who Were the Magi in the Nativity?
The current answer
A Median priestly caste, a Greek loanword for 'magic,' and a Gospel star: sorted from the late legend of three crowned kings.
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The chain is philologically secure: Old Persian maguš → Greek mágos → Latin magus → English mage, magician, and magic (Oxford English Dictionary, "magus, n.").
Imported citation, not independently checked: Oxford English Dictionary, magus
By the New Testament era the Greek word could be neutral ("Eastern wise men") or pejorative: Acts 8 and 13 use the same root for figures the text calls sorcerers.
Imported citation, not independently checked: Acts 8 and 13
The Magi were an Iranian priestly class, and Matthew uses their real name.
Imported citation, not independently checked: Herodotus, Histories 1.101, 1.132; Matthew 2:1-12, bedrock
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