Explanation of “Elaphe” (pronounced elâfe), that our company and technology is aptly named with, goes back to ancient Greek. Several aspects contributed to naming our technology and motors “Elaphe” – very much in line with our holistic approach to basically everything.

Influencing factors are primarily associated with notions such as “continuous movement”, “rotation from yearning for something better”, “healing properties of a snake according to ancient mythology”, and the motor winding pattern, which is also found in nature.

Let us dive into more details and explain what is behind each of the notions.

There is a myth of the snake Ouroboros. This is a snake that is twisted into a circle and holds its own tail with its mouth. This symbol has several meanings. One is the constant movement, the rotation in a circle caused by the restlessness of a hungry snake that is biting itself, thus running away and toward itself in endless rotation. The symbolism is multi-layered, and it also symbolizes basic human activity, constant movement, which is the result of yearning for something better.

Snake Ouroboros

Elaphe (pronounced elâfe) is a name attributed to a non-venomous snake in ancient Greece. It was considered a symbol of healing in ancient mythology (the Aesculapian snakes). To this day, healing-related fields depict a snake wrapped around the Rod of Asclepius, as a symbol of medicine (such as doctors, pharmacies, etc.), which is in present day depicted (albeit through some historical misrepresentation) by the caduceus, the traditional staff of Hermes.

 

Why were snakes given such importance?

Well, according to lore, they live in the ground and store hidden treasures there. One of such treasures is our health. If we get sick, our health remains buried, we just need to find it again.  

In many European narratives, the snake still had this positive meaning. In later times, with large-spread adoption of Christianity, the snake got a negative connotation, because it helped seduce Adam and Eve to eat an apple from the tree of knowledge. In Asia, however, it is not so. In the countries with Buddhist tradition (also in China), the knowledge tree is also seen as positive, not negative. At this point, the European and Asian understanding is very different. We feel it is right to emphasise this positive aspect of knowledge, and in this connection, also the positive aspect of the snake, which, according to ancient imagery, makes this knowledge attainable because the snake brings from deep below the surface.

The game of the name?

This constant movement to improve and optimize, that the Ouroboros snake symbolizes, contributed to naming our motors “Elaphe”. Moreover, as the e-machine, found in Elaphe motors, has the shape of a ring, it resembles the Ouroboros snake depictions. Our company philosophy is to take inspiration from nature, and learn from thousands of years of evolutionary, holistic optimization. The winding shape and pattern of Elaphe’s patented technology can be spotted in nature, as a skin pattern of some reptiles in their infancy.

Combining the above with the healing symbolism that “Elaphe” carries (our motors at least partly contribute to solving ecological problems by reducing part count and removing unnecessary mechanical inefficiencies from a system, that is, they help heal the planet) has therefore led us to call our motors “elaphe”.