In the Roman Catholic Church, January 6th, known as the Epiphany and also called the “twelfth day of Christmas”; celebrates the visit of the three Magi to the newly born baby Jesus.
The word magi initially referred to a class of ancient Zoroastrian astrologer-priests who once lived in the Persian Empire and belonged to the sacred caste of the Medes.
Magi is the plural of the single form magus, which word derives from the Old Persian maguš, denoting a member of the above mentioned Persian priest class.
One of the earliest writings come from Herodotus, from 450 BC, where he defines a Magos as a member of one of the five social classes of the Medes, and one who could interpret dreams.
With the spread of Hellenism, the term magos started to be used as an adjective, referring to magical abilities.
Today, the word is most commonly used in Christian circles to denote the Three Wise Men (Magi) who, based on the Gospel of Matthew, came from the East to Jerusalem, following the Star of Bethlehem, to worship the Infant Jesus and gift him with gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
The traditional names of the Magi in the West are Caspar (Gaspar), Melchior, and Balthasar (Balthazar).
The word magi entered the English language from Latin around 1100, with one of the first written references coming from The Ormulum – a twelfth-century work of biblical exegesis, which beyond its biblical knowledge, serves as a great example of the development of the early Middle English after the Norman Conquest.
Some translations of the Bible, such as the King James Version and the New Revised Standard Version, render magos as “Wise Men.”
And the common term Wise Men firstly appeared in print at the end of the 14th century, in William Langland’s allegorical narrative poem The Vision of William concerning Piers the Plowman, also known as Piers Plowman and considered to be one of the greatest works of English literature of the Middle Ages: “Wise men at that time were called Masters & lettered men Magi.”
The singular form of the word – magus, appeared considerably later, in the late 14th century, when it was borrowed from Old French, with the first written record coming from Geoffrey Chaucer’s House of Fame: “Ther saugh I Hermes Ballenus, Limote, and eke Symon Magus.” Simon Magus, also known as Simon the Sorcerer or Simon the Magician, was a baptised Samaritan magus.
The visit of the Magi is today commemorated in nativity scenes and Christmas carols, and the Three Wise Men are seen as personifications of both generosity and dedication.
