An archaic or shortened form of 'griffon' or 'gryphon,' a legendary creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.
Shortened form of 'griffon' or 'gryphon,' which comes from Old French 'griffon' and Latin 'gryphus,' ultimately from Greek 'gryps' meaning 'curved' or 'hooked,' referring to the curved beak.
Medieval writers shortened 'gryphon' to 'gryph' partly out of laziness but also because scribes saved parchment—a luxury so precious that abbreviating even mythical creatures mattered.
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