What is "peplum"

Peplum \Pep"lum\, n.; pl. E. -lumus, L. -la. [L.] A peplos. Hence: An overskirt hanging like an ancient peplos; also, a short fitted skirt attached to a waist or coat.

n. 1 A peplos, an Ancient Greek garment formed of a tubular piece of cloth, which is folded back upon itself halfway down, until the top of the tube is worn around the waist, and the bottom covers the legs down to the ankles; the open top is then worn over the shoulders, and draped, in folds, down to the waist; compare the Roman ''palla''. 2 A veil.

1. n. a flared ruffle attached to the waistline of a dress or jacket or blouse

2. a garment worn by women in ancient Greece; cloth caught at the shoulders and draped in folds to the waist [syn: peplos, peplus]

3. [also: pepla (pl)]

The peplum film (pepla plural), also known as sword-and-sandal, is a genre of largely Italian-made historical or Biblical epics (costume dramas) that dominated the Italian film industry from 1958 to 1965, eventually being replaced in 1965 by the Spaghetti Western. They can be immediately differentiated from the competing Hollywood product by their use of dubbing. The pepla attempted to emulate the big-budget Hollywood historical epics of the time, such as Spartacus, Samson and Delilah and The Ten Commandments.

The terms " peplum" (referring to the tunic-style Greek and Roman garment often worn by characters in the films) and "sword-and-sandal" were used in a condescending way by film critics. Later, the terms were embraced by fans of the films, similar to the terms "spaghetti western" or "shoot-'em-ups". Italian director Vittorio Cottafavi called the genre "Neo-Mythology".

Peplum originates in the Greek word for 'tunic' and may refer to one of the following:

• Peplum (film genre), genre of Greco-Roman era costume adventure films, mostly made in Italy, also known as "Sword and Sandal"
• Peplos, a kind of women's garment in ancient Greece
• Veil
• Short overskirt that is usually attached to a fitted jacket, blouse or dress

Péplum is a novel in French by the Belgian author Amélie Nothomb. It was first published in 1996 by Éditions Albin Michel.

This futuristic novel is presented as an autobiography. A young writer named A.N. is brought to the hospital for a minor operation. Upon waking up she finds herself in an unknown room, very different from her hospital room. She then meets Celsius, a mysterious scientist, who explains that between her surgery and the time she woke up 585 years have passed and it is now 2580. A dialogue takes place between the young novelist and the scientist from the future, and they discuss numerous topics, such as the scarcity of energy resources, political systems, the classical authors, as well as philosophy and "the great war of the twenty-second century" .

Category:1996 novels Category:Belgian speculative fiction novels Category:French-language novels