ἀλφηστής

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Two possibile etymologies have been given. Traditionally it was interpreted as a derivative of ἀλφάνω (alphánō, “to produce, to earn”), therefore meaning “industrious”. After the 19th century another interpretation has been given, translating it as “bread eater”, and deriving it from ἄλφι (álphi, “flour”), with the addition of a suffix that means “to eat”.

Noun

ἀλφηστής • (alphēstḗs) m (genitive -ου); first declension

1. flour eater, bread eater.
2. that lives by toil.

Declension

• Noun masc dat pl [epic]: ἀλφηστῇσιν (Hom. Od. 1.349)
• Noun masc acc pl: ἀλφηστὰς (Hom. Od. 13.261)

Related terms

• ἄλφι (álphi, “barley flour”)
• ἀλφάνω (alphánō, “to produce, to earn”)

Further reading

• Chantraine, Pierre (1968) Dictionnaire Etymologique De La Langue Grecque pp.66-7
• DGE en línea, ἀλφηστής, -οῦ, ὁ
• "ἀλφηστής" in: The Brill Dictionary of Ancient Greek, edited by: Franco Montanari. Consulted online on 02/07/2020, First published online: July 2015.
• ἀλφηστής in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette