promachos

English

Etymology

Ancient Greek πρόμαχος (prómakhos)

Noun

promachos (plural promachoi)

1. A deity who fights in front of, or champions, some person or state.
2. (historical, military) In Ancient Greece and during the Byzantine era, a soldier who fought in the first rank of the phalanx. An obsolete English literal translation of such a promachos is a 'forefighter'.