unexpected epithets of artemis: artemis kordaka
from what i've read, pausinias is our ancient source for artemis kordaka:
"... a surname of artemis in elis, derived from an indecent dance called ko/rdac, which the companions of pelops are said to have performed in honour of the goddess after a victory which they had won." (source: william smith's dictionary...)
according to this source (george mason university), the epithet was connected to artemis for an important reason:
"the dance of greek comedy - kordax - begins in the cult of artemis."
artemis kordaka is our primary instance of "indecent dancing" being performed in artemis' honor, but it is not the only one:
"... indecent dancing as part of ritual behavior is attested in a number of cults of artemis, especially in that of artemis kordaka in elis." (from "becoming classical artemis..." by olga albert zolotnikova)
more on the dance, which i've seen spelled a few ways in english, mainly kordax or cordax. this was a dance that was performed during greek comedies:
"the licentious dance of the ancient greek comedy. to perform it off the stage was regarded as a sign of intoxication or profligacy." (source: penn)
"in greek comedies, they danced the very popular kordax, a mask dance of uninhibited lasciviousness." (source: britannica)
"the cordax (ancient greek: κόρδαξ), was a provocative, licentious, and often obscene mask dance of ancient greek comedy. in his play the clouds, aristophanes complains that other playwrights of his time try to hide the feebleness of their plays by bringing an old woman onto the stage to dance the cordax." (source: LSJ)
"upon a foundation of very old fertility schemata such as violent whirling, stamping, kicking, leaping, swaying of the hips, and shaking of the fleshy parts of the body - schemata common to fertility dances among peoples in all parts of the world and in all epochs and attested for the greek kordax." (source: by lillian b. lawler)
according to that last source, artemis was sometimes worshipped as a partial fish deity, and this dance could have been viewed as a "fish dance".
there is an interesting feature to these dances that i must note, although i am not sure if this is part of the ritualized dancin or only in its comedic forms:
"these dances were performed by men, sometimes dressed in womens clothing. when danced by women, they used to wear phalluses in front of them." (source: phallephoria)
"aristophanes also mentions two other features which link the
' vulgar comedy ' to the peloponnesian mime — the kordax andt he leathern phallus worn by the actors... the dance itself is linked with the peloponnesian cult of artemis, the ancient goddess of fertility." (source: the origin of attic comedy)
the faux phalluses could be a reference to her role as a fertility deity and the dance as a celebration of fertility. there is an interesting element of gender-nonconformity as well.
artemis was not the only olympian deity to be worshipped through the kordaka:
[lucian] considers that... [the] kordaka were parts of dionysian or bacchanal ceremonies. (source: panr journal)
from these pieces of information, i can make a few inferences
the kordaka symbolized letting go of all internal restraints. letting go of structure, letting yourself be free. this kind of transcendental ecstasy, achieved through dance, is tied to artemis - through this epithet and other aspects of hers - and even more obviously to dionysos.
the kordaka was one of several "indecent" dances performed in the name of artemis, to honor her uninhibited spirit. there is reason to believe this particular "indecent" dance originated at the sites of her worship.
the kordaka was also performed to 'celebrate victory', which relates to artemis' more bloodthirsty nature.
finally, this dance potentially has a connection to her role as a goddess of fertility, an earlier role of artemis that became less prominent as she was worshipped as a virgin.
