What is "fountain of youth"

Fountain \Foun"tain\ (foun"t[i^]n), n. [F. fontaine, LL. fontana, fr. L. fons, fontis. See 2d Fount.]

1. A spring of water issuing from the earth.

2. An artificially produced jet or stream of water; also, the structure or works in which such a jet or stream rises or flows; a basin built and constantly supplied with pure water for drinking and other useful purposes, or for ornament.

3. A reservoir or chamber to contain a liquid which can be conducted or drawn off as needed for use; as, the ink fountain in a printing press, etc.

4. The source from which anything proceeds, or from which anything is supplied continuously; origin; source. Judea, the fountain of the gospel. --Fuller. Author of all being, Fountain of light, thyself invisible. --Milton. Air fountain. See under Air. Fountain heead, primary source; original; first principle. --Young. Fountain inkstand, an inkstand having a continual supply of ink, as from elevated reservoir. Fountain lamp, a lamp fed with oil from an elevated reservoir. Fountain pen, a pen with a reservoir in the handle which furnishes a supply of ink. Fountain pump.

   1. A structure for a fountain, having the form of a pump.

   2. A portable garden pump which throws a jet, for watering plants, etc.

      Fountain shell (Zo["o]l.), the large West Indian conch shell ( Strombus gigas).

      Fountain of youth, a mythical fountain whose waters were fabled to have the property of renewing youth.

n. (context idiomatic English) Anything reputed to have the power to restore health and vitality or to restore a youthful appearance.

The Fountain of Youth is a spring that supposedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks or bathes in its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted across the world for thousands of years, appearing in writings by Herodotus (5th century BCE), the Alexander romance (3rd century CE), and the stories of Prester John (early Crusades, 11th/12th centuries CE). Stories of similar waters were also evidently prominent among the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean during the Age of Exploration (early 16th century), who spoke of the restorative powers of the water in the mythical land of Bimini.

The legend became particularly prominent in the 16th century, when it was attached to the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, first Governor of Puerto Rico. According to an apocryphal combination of New World and Eurasian elements, Ponce de León was searching for the Fountain of Youth when he traveled to what is now Florida in 1513, but this is a myth. The legend says that Ponce de León was told by Native Americans that the Fountain of Youth was in Bimini and it could restore youth to anyone.

The Fountain of Youth is a legendary spring said to restore youth.

Fountain of Youth can also refer to:

• The Fountain of Youth (film), a 1958 short film directed by Orson Welles
• Don's Fountain of Youth, a 1953 short film directed by Jack Hannah
• The Fountain of Youth (fairy tale), a Japanese fairy tale
• " Fountain of Youth", an episode of the British comedy TV series The Mighty Boosh
• Fountain of Youth Stakes, a Thoroughbred race held in Florida
• The Fountain of Youth (Cranach), a painting by Lucas Cranach the Elder.