daemon

views updated May 11 2018

daemon in ancient Greek belief, a divinity or supernatural being of a nature between gods and humans; an inner or attendant spirit or inspiring force. The word is recorded from the mid 16th century, and until the 19th century represented the common spelling of demon.

Daemon was the term used by Rudyard Kipling for his authorial inspiration. More recently, in the His Dark Materials (1996–2001) fantasy trilogy of Philip Pullman (1946– ), it is the name given to the animal form taken by the externalized spirit of a person.

The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable ELIZABETH KNOWLES

daemon(ic)

views updated May 23 2018

daemon(ic) see DEMON, DEMONIC.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

daemon

views updated Jun 08 2018

daemon A background program on UNIX systems that performs housekeeping and maintenance functions automatically.

A Dictionary of Computing JOHN DAINTITH

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