The publication of this book about theonymes and etymologies in Plutarch's works is a great contribution to our knowledge of Plutarch in particular and for the history of ancient religions in general. The study of etymologies of ancient gods according to Plutarch is the gateway for a much broader investigation that considers not only the linguistic operations carried out by Plutarch, but also his philosophical and religious ideas in relation to the complex intellectual and social background of Imperial Rome in the early first century bc. In this sense P. exhibits a solid use of theoretical frames for linguistics, religion and philosophy, and combines all this with an insightful reading of Plutarch's text. P. makes clear the double aim of his work: to oppose arguments against the prejudices about ancient etymologies and to reassess Plutarch's complex labour in connection with this intellectual practice.

The first chapter, ‘Etymologia Graeca’, has two sections: a general overview of the history of Greek etymologies and a study of etymologies in Plato's Cratylus. The first part is indeed very short and leaves out some central etymological studies in antiquity, like Homer's wordplays (we may think about the pre-eminence of the Homeric text in Plutarch's works). The Cratylus part is, doubtlessly, of great importance in approaching Plutarch's conceptions about language: according to Plutarch, etymologies light up our knowledge about gods; consequently, in his examination of names he follows the methodology applied in the Cratylus, which takes into account linguistic analysis but also the semantics involved, as they show the true nature of the gods.

The second chapter, ‘Al centro del mondo. Plutarco e gli dèi greci’, is divided into two sections. The first part displays theoretical considerations about Plutarch's work on etymologies. P. maintains that Plutarch's thoughts regarding etymologies move between Platonic and Stoic ideas, according to which human logos is a reflection of the divine intellect; therefore, the name itself contains the key to understanding its sense and true essence. P. also analyses how changes in time and space produce changes in language and it is the philosopher who is capable of exploring the truth behind these changes. The second section is a detailed study of Greek theonymes: Hades, Hera, Persephone, Ares, Aphrodite, the Dioscuri, Apollo Thourios, Satyrus, Hestia, the Muses, Apollo and Dionysus. Here the reader will find an exhaustive analysis of all the etymologies offered by Plutarch in the Lives and in the Moralia, with a full description of his methodology. P. divides the analysis into three parts: non Plutarchean etymologies (cases in which Plutarch deals with allegorical interpretation, but not always agrees with it); anthropological, historical and anecdotic etymologies (an aetiological and erudite enquiry with the objective of reconstructing the Greek past preserved in myths and legends); and scientific, rhetorical, philosophical and theological etymologies (where Plutarch emphasises the possibility of contact between the divinity behind the name and the human nature that examines that name).

The third chapter, ‘Mondi paralleli. I Greci e le altre culture’, deals with Barbarian and Roman theonymes, where P. stresses Plutarch's Hellenocentric perspective on the subject. In the case of Barbarian names, Plutarch analyses Charian Zeus, the god of the Jews and Egyptian gods and their myths. P. concludes that, for Plutarch, Barbarian names are symbols that go back to another (divine) dimension, and the Greek language is the best hermeneutic way to understand their hidden sense. Egyptian names are particularly interesting, because their study shows a close relation between Greek and Egyptian culture. In his essay On Isis and Osiris Plutarch claims that many Egyptian words (particularly theonymes) have their origin in Greek: ‘Osiris’, for example, comes from ‘holy’ (hosion) and ‘sacred’ (hieros) (Plut. De Is. 61). The explanation given by Plutarch of this phenomenon is that Greek people migrated and then spread their language and culture in foreign lands (in opposition to the Herodotean hypothesis of the Egyptian origin of the names of Greek gods). The analysis of Roman names exhibits a different issue: Plutarch's connection with his social environment. Plutarch is a prominent Greek writer living in the Roman Empire, and his works (especially Parallel Lives, but also many treatises in the Moralia) are intended to explore the construction of his own cultural identity in opposition to others (Roman in particular). P. understands the examination of Latin etymologies within this frame. Plutarch negotiates a complex relationship between Greek and Roman worlds: Latin etymologies of gods prove the cultural influence of Greeks over their conquerors, because Romans owe to Greece their civilisation, their culture and their religion (including names, of course). The study of Roman etymologies in the Vitae is concentrated on Romulus and Numa (Rumina, Conso, Quirinus, Tacita and Jupiter Pheretrius are the terms considered). P. observes that Plutarch has no theological interest in Roman theonymes, but a cultural and anthropological one: etymologies shed light on Roman values and traditions and, after all, make us know the true Roman character. In the Roman Questions Plutarch explores the etymologies of Genita Mana, Carmenta, Juno, Liber and Horta, where P. finds, besides Plutarch's anthropological interest, a clear attempt to compare Greek and Roman civilisations through etymology. Once more, the Graeca interpretatio provides strength and truthfulness to Plutarch's analysis of foreign words.

The book will be useful, on the one hand, to scholars specialised in Plutarch, since here they will find a contribution to central Plutarchean themes (like history, identity or religion), but in the light of the particular perspective of etymological analysis. On the other hand, classicists in general will find much of interest in P.’s investigation, especially with the aid of the final indexes of names and loci citati. The bibliographical references are adequate and numerous but not overwhelming, which facilitates the reading.