chthon- +

Referring to, or pertaining to the deities, spirits, and other beings dwelling in the underworld: Hades, also called Pluto or "the Giver of Wealth", is chthonian, and said to be the god of the underworld in Ancient Greek religion.

1. Relating to the geological underworld as described in Greek mythology: In the story “The Underground Palace of Pluto” the giants Typhon, Briareus, Enceladus and their brothers were buried alive under Mount Aetna, where they still try to get loose from their chthonic abode, as indicated by the earthquakes that cause the island to tremble and to vibrate.
2. A reference to a life in or beneath the surface of the earth: Part of the basement of Don's house had a tunnel leading into the rock caverns in the mountainside where it was believed that chthonic spirits led a mischievous existence.
3. Etymology: from Greek khthonios, "in the earth"; from khthon, "the earth, solid surface of the earth" (mostly poetic). © ALL rights are reserved.

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1. A living quarter in or beneath the surface of the earth: A chthonism can be exemplified by the abode of an unidentified nematode that was discovered in a gold mine in South Africa at a depth of more than 14 kilometers.
2. A mythological world view: Chthonism is specifically used in religious philosophy and in ethnology. It indicates that there is a paternal heaven and a maternal Earth.

A history or written description of soils: In Nancy's geology class, the teacher showed them a chthonograph depicting all types and explanations of earth from different parts of the world.

The written history or description of soils: Jack was very interested in the treatise on various kinds of soils in the library and found the chthonography his teacher recommended.

The distribution of diseases in a geographical sense: In medical school, Alice took a class in chthononosology and learned about all kinds of disorders and illnesses, and how and where they spread throughout the world.

In pathology, the consumption of earth; Evidently there are some people in southern United States and in West India who suffer from the impulse to eat dirt and this urge or desire is termed chthonophagia.

Chthonophagia is a rarely used term for "geophagia" or "geophagy".

Referring to the earth; of the earth: Bob was interested in creating a chthonous dwelling to live in, all built of clay, soil, and some rocks.

Referring tp something or someone originating in a geographical area other than that in which it was found: An old heterochthonous coin from Spain was found in Grace's garden where she lived in Toronto.

The study of the geographical origins of diseases and their distribution; geomedicine: Nosochthonography is the science concerned with the influence of climatic and environmental conditions on health and disease.

Referring to a rock that is intermediate in character between autochthonous (native to the soil, aboriginal, indigenous) and allochthonous deposits and rock formations (not native to a particular habitat): Alice's biology teacher told her that the stone she had found in her garden showed parautochthonous features of having its origin in that area, but also of being foreign to the area where she lived. . .

A reference to coal derived from wood that had floated on water, had washed ashore, or had been in a sunken forest: In Clive's book, he read about pelagochthonous fragments of timber that had been used for a fire.