σμῆνος
Ancient Greek edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
The formation can be compared with ἔθνος (éthnos), ἔρνος (érnos) and τέμενος (témenos). An alternate spelling ζμῆνος (zmênos) is also attested in some papyri and inscriptions, possibly reflecting the voicing of initial /s/ to /z/. According to Beekes, a Pre-Greek origin is a good possibility.
The original meaning was probably swarm of bees rather than beehive.
Pronunciation edit
- (5th BCE Attic) IPA(key): /zmɛ̂ː.nos/
- (1st CE Egyptian) IPA(key): /ˈzme̝.nos/
- (4th CE Koine) IPA(key): /ˈzmi.nos/
- (10th CE Byzantine) IPA(key): /ˈzmi.nos/
- (15th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA(key): /ˈzmi.nos/
Noun edit
σμῆνος • (smênos) n (genitive σμήνους); third declension
- beehive, skep
- swarm of bees
- 472 BCE, Aeschylus, The Persians 126–129:
- πᾶς γὰρ ἱππηλάτας / καὶ πεδοστιβὴς λεὼς /
σμῆνος ὣς ἐκλέλοιπεν μελισ- / σᾶν σὺν ὀρχάμῳ στρατοῦ- pâs gàr hippēlátas / kaì pedostibḕs leṑs /
smênos hṑs ekléloipen melis- / sân sùn orkhámōi stratoû - You see, all men, the cavalry and infantry,
like a swarm of bees, have left with the leader of the army
- pâs gàr hippēlátas / kaì pedostibḕs leṑs /
- πᾶς γὰρ ἱππηλάτας / καὶ πεδοστιβὴς λεὼς /
Inflection edit
Case / # | Singular | Plural | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominative | τὸ σμῆνος tò smênos |
τᾰ̀ σμήνη tà smḗnē | |||||||||||
Genitive | τοῦ σμήνους toû smḗnous |
τῶν σμηνῶν tôn smēnôn | |||||||||||
Dative | τῷ σμήνει tôi smḗnei |
τοῖς σμήνεσῐ / σμήνεσῐν toîs smḗnesi(n) | |||||||||||
Accusative | τὸ σμῆνος tò smênos |
τᾰ̀ σμήνη tà smḗnē | |||||||||||
Vocative | σμῆνος smênos |
σμήνη smḗnē | |||||||||||
Notes: |
|
Case / # | Singular | Plural | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominative | σμῆνος smênos |
σμήνεᾰ smḗnea | |||||||||||
Genitive | σμήνεος / σμήνευς smḗneos / smḗneus |
σμηνέων smēnéōn | |||||||||||
Dative | σμήνει / σμήνεῐ̈ smḗnei / smḗneï |
σμήνεσσῐ / σμήνεσσῐν smḗnessi / smḗnessin | |||||||||||
Accusative | σμῆνος smênos |
σμήνεᾰ smḗnea | |||||||||||
Vocative | σμῆνος smênos |
σμήνεᾰ smḗnea | |||||||||||
Notes: |
|
Derived terms edit
- σμηνηδόν (smēnēdón)
- σμηνίον (smēníon)
- σμηνιών (smēniṓn)
- σμηνοδόκος (smēnodókos)
- σμηνοκόμος (smēnokómos)
- σμηνουργός (smēnourgós)
- φιλόσμηνος (philósmēnos)
Descendants edit
- Greek: σμήνος (smínos)
Further reading edit
- “σμῆνος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- σμῆνος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
- Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN
- σμῆνος - ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ (since 2011) Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch) University of Chicago.