Βάκχος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Related to Latin bacca (“pearl, beard, olive-berry, berry”); both possibly derive from the name of a Thracian fertility god. Payne claims a derivation from Lydian 𐤡𐤠𐤨𐤦 (paki), the name of a Lydian god seen as equivalent to Dionysus.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /bákʰ.kʰos/ → /ˈβak.xos/ → /ˈvak.xos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /bákʰ.kʰos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈbak.kʰos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈβak.xos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈvak.xos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈvak.xos/

Proper noun

Βᾰ́κχος • (Bákkhos) m (genitive Βᾰ́κχου); second declension

1. Bacchus

Inflection

Second declension of ὁ Βᾰ́κχος; τοῦ Βᾰ́κχου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular
Nominative	ὁ Βᾰ́κχος ho Bákkhos
Genitive	τοῦ Βᾰ́κχου toû Bákkhou
Dative	τῷ Βᾰ́κχῳ tôi Bákkhōi
Accusative	τὸν Βᾰ́κχον tòn Bákkhon
Vocative	Βᾰ́κχε Bákkhe
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• βακχεία (bakkheía)
• Βακχεῖον (Bakkheîon)
• Βακχεῖος (Bakkheîos)
• Βακχεύειν (Bakkheúein)
• Βάκχευμα (Bákkheuma)
• Βακχεύσιμον (Bakkheúsimon)
• Βακχεύσιμος (Bakkheúsimos)
• Βάκχευσις (Bákkheusis)
• Βάκχη (Bákkhē)
• Βακχιάδαι (Bakkhiádai)
• Βακχιάζειν (Bakkhiázein)
• Βάκχιος (Bákkhios)

 

Descendants

• Greek: Βάκχος (Vákchos)
• → Latin: Bacchus
  • → English: Bacchus (learned)
  • → French: Bacchus (learned)
  • → Italian: Bacco, bacco (learned)
  • → Portuguese: Baco (learned)
  • → Spanish: Baco (learned)
• → Turkish: Bakkhos

References

• “Βάκχος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “Βάκχος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Βάκχος in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2024)
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited, page 1,003