Oinomancy

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The art of predicting future occurrences by studying the qualities of wine
2. A technique used for foresight that involves interpreting various aspects of wine
3. The practice of forecasting events by analyzing the characteristics and appearance of wine

Etymology: Oinomancy comes from Greek "oinos" meaning wine and "manteia" meaning divination, and the practice is documented in the ancient Greek world, where people read signs in wine as a form of prophecy. The Greek historian Herodotus records a related practice in which wine was poured out in libation and the signs were read from it, and the word itself is a straightforward compound of the two parts, built on the same pattern as "oracle" and "necromancy." The Greek element "-mancy," from "manteia," appears in many English words for forms of prophecy, such as "geomancy" (divination by earth) and "chiromancy" (divination by the hand). Oinomancy follows that pattern exactly, swapping in wine as the medium of reading.

Synonyms: wine divination