Onychomancy Glossary

New to nail reading? Here are some common words you may encounter in your onychomancy and palmistry studies!

Apollo​

The Greek/Roman sun god and ruler of the ring finger 

Chiromancy​

The divination of the hands; another word for palmistry 

Fractal

A shape or pattern that appears the same no matter how much it is magnified 

Hyponychium​

Also called the quick; the boundary where the nail bed ends and the free edge begins 

Jupiter​

The Ancient Roman god, the 5th planet from the sun, and ruler of the index  finger 

Lunula​

The half-moon of the nail near the cuticle and part of the root or matrix of  the nail 

Mars​

The Ancient Roman god of war, the 4th planet from the sun, and ruler of the thumbs 

Matrix​

The root of the nail 

Mercury​

The Ancient Roman messenger god, the 1st planet from the sun, and ruler of  the pinkies 

Onychomancy​

The divination of the nails; also referred to in my book as nail reading 

Prana​

The concept of breath, spirit, and energy in Hinduism 

Reflexology

The massage of various meridian points in the hands, feet, and other  extremities to stimulate body parts along the shared meridians 

Quick​

See ​Hyponychium 

Saturn​

Ancient Roman god of time, 7th planet from the sun, and ruler of the middle  fingers 

Venus​

Ancient Roman goddess of love, 3rd planet from the sun. No finger rulership,  but the Mounds of Venus are the fleshy part of the base of the thumb in the palm. 

Want to learn more about divination of nails and manicures?

Check out this blog post which is perfect for beginners, and check out my book when you’re ready to go deeper!

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