δεῦρο

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

δεῦρ’ (deûr’) — apocopic
δεῦρυ (deûru) — Aeolic
δεύρω (deúrō) — Homeric
δευρί (deurí), δεῦρε (deûre), δευρεί (deureí) — Attic

Etymology

Probably a combination of demonstrative Proto-Indo-European *de, whence also the enclitic -δε (-de, denoting motion towards), + Proto-Indo-European *ure, *uro (“where”), whence Lithuanian aurè, Avestan 𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬭𐬀 (auuara), Old Armenian ուր (ur), Umbrian 𐌖𐌓𐌖 (uru). A Mycenaean Greek cognate may exist in the first element, *𐀆𐀸𐀫 (de-we-ro), of 𐀆𐀸𐀫𐁁𐀒𐀨𐀂𐀊 (de-we-ro-a3-ko-ra-i-ja, “a part of the kingdom of Pylos”).^[1]

The expected proximal destination demonstrative reflex is ἐνθάδε (entháde), but it has become the proximal place one, leaving this word as the specifically destination one.

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /dêu̯.ro/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈdew.ro/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈðe.βro/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈðe.vro/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈðe.vro/

Adverb

δεῦρο • (deûro)

(of locations) hither
- 2022 May 18, Seumas Macdonald, chapter 5, in Linguae Graecae Per Se Illustrata‎^[1]:
  αἱ δὲ καλοῦσιν, λέγουσαι, «Δημήτριε, ἐλθὲ δεῦρο.»
  hai dè kaloûsin, légousai, «Dēmḗtrie, elthè deûro.»
  They call out, saying, "Demetrius, come hither."
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 1.153
  - Homer, Iliad 3.405
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 17.444
- 406 BCE, Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus 663
  - Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus 1165
  - Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus 1253
- 411 BCE, Aristophanes, Thesmophoriazusae 666
- 414 BCE, Aristophanes, The Birds 426
- 408 BCE, Euripides, The Phoenician Women 266
- 366 BCE – 348 BCE, Plato, Theaetetus 143a
1. (later) here
2. (rhetoric) up to this point of the argument
  - 385 BCE – 380 BCE, Plato, Symposium 217e
  - 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, Laws 814d
  - 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, The Statesman 292c
  - 129 CE – 216 CE, Galen, Collected Works 15.453
(of time) until now, hitherto
- 360 BCE, Plato, Timaeus 21δ
- 460 BCE – 395 BCE, Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War 3.64
- 1 CE – 100 CE, Onasander, Praef. 7
- 200 CE – 400 CE, Heliodorus of Emesa, Aethiopica 1.19
- 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, Laws 811c
- 431 BCE, Euripides, Medea 670
- 413 BCE, Euripides, Ion 56
- 425 BCE, Aristophanes, Lysistrata 1135
- 458 BCE, Aeschylus, The Eumenides 596

type	interrogative	indefinite	demonstrative			relative	indefinite relative	identity	other
type	interrogative	indefinite	(medial)	proximal	distal	relative	indefinite relative	identity	other
basic	τίς	τις, ἔνιοι	†ὁ, οὗτος	ὅδε	ἐκεῖνος	ὅς	ὅστις	ὁ αὐτός (αὑτός), ὁμός	ἕτερος, ἄλλος
dual	πότερος	πότερος, ποτερός				ὁπότερος
quality	ποῖος	ποιός	†τοῖος, τοιοῦτος	τοιόσδε		οἷος	ὁποῖος	ὅμοιος	ἑτεροῖος, ἀλλοῖος
quantity	πόσος	ποσός	†τόσος, τοσοῦτος	τοσόσδε		ὅσος	ὁπόσος
manner	πῶς	πως	†τώς, †ὥς, οὕτως	ὧδε		ὡς	ὅπως	ὁμῶς	ἑτέρως, ἄλλως
method, path, place	πῇ	πῃ	τῇ, ταύτῃ	τῇδε	ἐκείνῃ	ᾗ	ὅπῃ		ἄλλῃ
place	ποῦ, †πόθι	που, †ποθι	ἐνταῦθα	ἐνθάδε	ἐκεῖ, ἔνθα, †ἐκεῖθι	οὗ, ἔνθα, †ὅθι	ὅπου, †ὁπόθι	αὐτόθι, ὁμοῦ	ἄλλοθι
source	πόθεν	ποθεν, ἁμόθεν	†τόθεν, ἔνθεν, ἐντεῦθεν	ἐνθένδε	ἐκεῖθεν	ὅθεν	ὁπόθεν	†ὁμόθεν	ἄλλοθεν
destination	ποῖ, †πόσε	ποι	ἔνθα, ἐνταῦθα	ἐνθάδε, δεῦρο	ἐκεῖσε	οἷ	ὅποι, †ὁπόσε	αὐτόσε, ὁμόσε	ἄλλοσε
time	πότε, πῆμος	ποτέ, ποτε, τοτέ, ἐνίοτε	τότε, τῆμος	τημόσδε		ὅτε, ἦμος	ὁπότε, †ὁππῆμος	ἅμα	ἄλλοτε
exact time	πηνίκα		†τηνίκα, τηνικαῦτα	τηνικάδε		ἡνίκα	ὁπηνίκα	αὐτίκα
duration of time			τέως			ἕως
size, age	πηλίκος	πηλίκος	†τηλίκος, τηλικοῦτος	τηλικόσδε		ἡλίκος	ὁπηλίκος	ὁμῆλιξ
repetition	ποσάκις, ποσίνδα	ποσάκις	τουτάκις, τοσάκις			†ὁσάκις ὁποσάκις	ὁποσάκις
multiplication	ποσαπλάσιος					ὁσαπλάσιος, ὁσαπλασίων
order	πόστος	ποστός					ὁπόστος
† Forms rarely or never used in Classical Attic prose Relative also used in exclamations; either relative or indefinite relative used in indirect questions.

Interjection

δεῦρο • (deûro) (dual & plural δεῦτε or δεῦρο)

(with 2nd person singular imperative) come on!
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 3.130
  - Homer, Iliad 7.75
  - Homer, Iliad 11.314
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 8.145
  - Homer, Odyssey 22.395
- 458 BCE, Aeschylus, The Eumenides 1041
- 416 BCE, Euripides, Herakles 724
(with 1st person plural subjunctive) come let us...
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 8.292
(without a verb) come here!
- 630 BCE – 570 BCE, Sappho, Collected Works 84
- 421 BCE, Aristophanes, Peace 881
- 366 BCE – 348 BCE, Plato, Theaetetus 144d
- c. 380 BC, Plato (aut.), J. Burnet (ed.), Πολιτεία in Platonis Opera IV (1905), St. II Respublica V 477 d, ll. 7–8:
  Δεῦρο δὴ πάλιν, ἦν δ’ ἐγώ, ὦ ἄριστε. ἐπιστήμην πότερον δύναμίν τινα φῂς εἶναι αὐτήν, ἢ εἰς τί γένος τιθεῖς;
(later) go away!
- 300 BCE – 200 BCE, Septuagint, 2 Kings 3.13

Descendants

Latin: deurodē

Noun

δεῦρο • (deûro) n pl (indeclinable)

sensible objects
- 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, Metaphysics 991b.30
- 350 BCE, Aristotle, On the Heavens 1.2
- 100 CE – 200 CE, Maximus of Tyre, Collected Works 14.7

Declension

Declension of τᾰ̀ δεῦρο; τῶν δεῦρο (Attic)

Case / #	Plural
Nominative	τᾰ̀ δεῦρο tằ deûro
Genitive	τῶν δεῦρο tôn deûro
Dative	τοῖς δεῦρο toîs deûro
Accusative	τᾰ̀ δεῦρο tằ deûro
Vocative	δεῦρο deûro
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

References

^ Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “δεῦρο”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), volume I, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 319