τέττιξ

See also: Τέττιξ

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Onomatopoeic of the cicada's chirping noises, like τιτίζω (titízō).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /tét.tiːks/ → /ˈtet.tiks/ → /ˈte.tiks/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /tét.tiːks/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈtet.tiks/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈtet.tiks/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈtet.tiks/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈte.tiks/

Noun

τέττῑξ • (téttīx) m (genitive τέττῑγος or τέττῑκος); third declension

1. cicada (Cicada plebeia or allied species; a winged insect fond of basking on trees, when the male makes a chirping or clicking noise by means of certain drums or “tymbals” underneath its wings)

   Synonym: λᾱκέτᾱς (lākétās)

   • Choerob., in Theod. 1.292.H.
   • Xenarch. 14
   • 680 BCE – 645 BCE, Archilochus, Collected Works 143
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 3.151
   • 750 BCE – 650 BCE, Hesiod, Works and Days 582
   • 750 BCE – 650 BCE, Hesiod, The Shield of Heracles 393
   • 556 BCE – 468 BCE, Simonides, Fragmenta 173–174
   • 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, Phaedrus 262d
   • Aristopho 10.7
   • 371 BCE – 287 BCE, Theophrastus, On Weather Signs 54
   • 423 BCE, Aristophanes, The Clouds 1360
   • 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, Phaedrus 259c
   • 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, History of Animals 532b.13
   • 300 BCE – 200 BCE, Theocritus, Collected Works 4.16
   • Palatine Anthology 6.120.Leon.
   • Anacreont. 32
   • 46 CE – 120 CE, Plutarch, Moralia 2.660f
   • 250 CE – 350 CE, Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 4.133b
   • 446 BCE – 386 BCE, Aristophanes, Frr. 51
   • 446 BCE – 386 BCE, Aristophanes, Frr. 569.4
   • 375 BCE – 275 BCE, Alexis 162.13
   • Anaxandr. 41.59
   • 40 CE – 90 CE, Dioscorides, Materia medica 2.51
   • 320 CE – 403 CE, Oribasius, Fragmenta 64
2. a gold ornament worn in the hair, especially in early Attica
   • Asius, Fr.Ep. 13.5
   • 460 BCE – 395 BCE, Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War 1.6
   • 250 CE – 350 CE, Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 12.512c
   • 423 BCE, Aristophanes, The Clouds 984
   • 423 BCE, Aristophanes, The Clouds 980
   • Michel 832.51
3. a part of the ear
   • ante 177 CE, Pollux, Onomasticon 2.86

Declension

Third declension of ὁ τέττῑξ; τοῦ τέττῑγος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ τέττῑξ ho téttīx	τὼ τέττῑγε tṑ téttīge	οἱ τέττῑγες hoi téttīges
Genitive	τοῦ τέττῑγος toû téttīgos	τοῖν τεττῑ́γοιν toîn tettī́goin	τῶν τεττῑ́γων tôn tettī́gōn
Dative	τῷ τέττῑγῐ tôi téttīgi	τοῖν τεττῑ́γοιν toîn tettī́goin	τοῖς τέττῑξῐ / τέττῑξῐν toîs téttīxi(n)
Accusative	τὸν τέττῑγᾰ tòn téttīga	τὼ τέττῑγε tṑ téttīge	τοὺς τέττῑγᾰς toùs téttīgas
Vocative	τέττῑξ téttīx	τέττῑγε téttīge	τέττῑγες téttīges
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Third declension of ὁ τέττῑξ; τοῦ τέττῑκος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ τέττῑξ ho téttīx	τὼ τέττῑκε tṑ téttīke	οἱ τέττῑκες hoi téttīkes
Genitive	τοῦ τέττῑκος toû téttīkos	τοῖν τεττῑ́κοιν toîn tettī́koin	τῶν τεττῑ́κων tôn tettī́kōn
Dative	τῷ τέττῑκῐ tôi téttīki	τοῖν τεττῑ́κοιν toîn tettī́koin	τοῖς τέττῑξῐ / τέττῑξῐν toîs téttīxi(n)
Accusative	τὸν τέττῑκᾰ tòn téttīka	τὼ τέττῑκε tṑ téttīke	τοὺς τέττῑκᾰς toùs téttīkas
Vocative	τέττῑξ téttīx	τέττῑκε téttīke	τέττῑκες téttīkes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• Ἀκάνθιος τέττῑξ (Akánthios téttīx)
• τέττῑξ ἐνάλιος (téttīx enálios)
• Τέττῑξ (Téttīx)

Descendants

• English: tettix
• Greek: τζίτζικας (tzítzikas)

Further reading

• “τέττιξ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press