E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Filome’na.
Longfellow calls Florence Nightingale St. Filomena, not only because Filomena resembles the Latin word for a nightingale, but also because this saint, in Sabatelli’s picture, is represented as hovering over a group of sick and maimed, healed by her intercession. (See THAUMATURGUS.)
