What does astragali mean?
Astragali is the plural of astragalus, a word with two distinct lives. Its oldest sense refers to the ankle bones of hoofed animals — especially sheep and goats — which served humanity for thousands of years as dice, gaming counters, and tools of divination long before cubical dice became widespread; archaeologists routinely find worn, polished astragali in sites from the Mediterranean to Central Asia. The second sense belongs to botany, where Astragalus names an enormous genus of flowering legumes, many familiar as milkvetches. The word carries a scholarly tone today, surfacing mainly in archaeology, classical studies, anatomy, and botanical writing rather than casual speech. Its enduring appeal lies in its deep historical resonance: few ordinary objects connect modern readers so directly to the games, rituals, and daily pastimes of the ancient world.
nounAstragali is the plural of astragalus, referring either to the ankle bones (taluses) used since antiquity as dice or gaming pieces, or to multiple plants of the genus Astragalus.
- The ankle bones (taluses) of animals, especially sheep or goats, used since antiquity as dice, gaming pieces, or objects of divination.
- Plural of the plant genus name Astragalus — members of a large group of flowering legumes, many known as milkvetches or locoweeds.
"Archaeologists uncovered a handful of polished astragali among the gaming pieces in the ancient Greek house."
"The tomb yielded bronze dice alongside a set of sheep's astragali worn smooth by centuries of play."
"Several species of Astragalus thrive in the arid grasslands, blooming in clusters of pale purple flowers."
As a noun borrowed from Latin, the standard plural retains the Latinate '-i' ending; 'astragaluses' is nonstandard.
"Each set of astragali was carved from the anklebones of a single animal."
Long before anyone rolled a pair of six-sided dice, people across the ancient world gambled and told fortunes with the ankle bones of sheep and goats — the astragali.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of astragali
Both senses trace back through Latin to the ancient Greek 'astragalos,' meaning a vertebra or knucklebone, which was itself applied to the ankle bones used in gaming. English adopted 'astragalus' via Latin, and the plural 'astragali' follows the Latin pattern. The botanical sense arose when naturalists gave the plant genus the same learned name; the architectural term 'astragal' for a small semicircular molding shares the same ancestry.
Related word forms
How astragali is actually used
Formal and largely scholarly in register; the term appears chiefly in archaeology, classics, anatomy, and botany rather than everyday conversation. In anatomical writing, 'astragali' serves as the plural of the talus bone. In gaming contexts it overlaps with 'knucklebones,' though that term more often refers to the game itself than the pieces.
Easily confused with astragali
Astragalus is the singular form (one ankle bone or one plant of the genus), while astragali is its plural.