ἐπίσκοπος

See also: επίσκοπος

Ancient Greek

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /e.pís.ko.pos/ → /eˈpis.ko.pos/ → /eˈpis.ko.pos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /e.pís.ko.pos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /eˈpis.ko.pos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /eˈpis.ko.pos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /eˈpis.ko.pos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /eˈpis.ko.pos/

Etymology 1

From ἐπι- (epi-, “upon”) +‎ σκοπός (skopós, “watcher, lookout, guardian”).

Noun

ἐπίσκοπος • (epískopos) m (genitive ἐπισκόπου); second declension

1. watcher, guardian
2. scout, watch
3. overseer, supervisor, inspector
4. (Christianity) an ecclesiastical superintendent, bishop

Inflection

Second declension of ὁ ἐπῐ́σκοπος; τοῦ ἐπῐσκόπου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ ἐπῐ́σκοπος ho epískopos	τὼ ἐπῐσκόπω tṑ episkópō	οἱ ἐπῐ́σκοποι hoi epískopoi
Genitive	τοῦ ἐπῐσκόπου toû episkópou	τοῖν ἐπῐσκόποιν toîn episkópoin	τῶν ἐπῐσκόπων tôn episkópōn
Dative	τῷ ἐπῐσκόπῳ tôi episkópōi	τοῖν ἐπῐσκόποιν toîn episkópoin	τοῖς ἐπῐσκόποις toîs episkópois
Accusative	τὸν ἐπῐ́σκοπον tòn epískopon	τὼ ἐπῐσκόπω tṑ episkópō	τοὺς ἐπῐσκόπους toùs episkópous
Vocative	ἐπῐ́σκοπε epískope	ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō	ἐπῐ́σκοποι epískopoi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Descendants

• Greek: επίσκοπος (epískopos)
  • → Ottoman Turkish: پسقپوس (piskopos), փիսգօփօս (piskopos) — Armeno-Turkish
    • Turkish: piskopos
  • → Romanian: episcop
• → Aghwan: 𐔼𐕚𐕄𐔰𐕗𐕒𐕚 (isḳaṗos)
• → Arabic: أسقف (osqof) (see there for further descendants)
• → Aramaic: אפיסקופא

  Classical Syriac: ܐܦܝܣܩܘܦܐ

• → Bulgarian: епископ (episkop)
• → Coptic: ⲉⲡⲓⲥⲕⲟⲡⲟⲥ (episkopos) (see there for further descendants)
• → Georgian: ეპისკოპოსი (eṗisḳoṗosi), ეპისკოპოზი (eṗisḳoṗozi)
• → Gothic: 𐌰𐌹𐍀𐌹𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌿𐍀𐌿𐍃 (aipiskaupus)
• → Latin: episcopus, *ebiscopus, *biscopus, *biscopo (see there for further descendants)
• → Macedonian: епископ (episkop)
• → Middle Persian: *uskōpā
  • Persian: سکوبا (sokubâ)
• → Old Armenian: եպիսկոպոս (episkopos) (see there for further descendants)
• → Old Church Slavonic: ѥпискоупъ (jepiskupŭ)
• → Old East Slavic: епископъ (episkopŭ), епискꙋпъ (episkupŭ), ѥпископъ (jepiskopŭ)
  • Belarusian: епіскап (jepiskap)
  • Russian: епи́скоп (jepískop) (see there for further descendants)
  • Ukrainian: єпископ (jepyskop)
• → Old Novgorodian: ѥпископъ (jepiskopŭ)
• → Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic script: ѐпископ

  Latin script: èpiskop

Etymology 2

From ἐπι- (epi-, “upon”) +‎ σκοπός (skopós, “aim, target”).

Adjective

ἐπίσκοπος • (epískopos) m or f (neuter ἐπίσκοπον); second declension

1. hitting the mark, target
2. successful

Inflection

Second declension of ἐπῐ́σκοπος; ἐπῐ́σκοπον (Attic)

Number		Singular			Dual			Plural
Case/Gender		Masculine / Feminine	Neuter		Masculine / Feminine	Neuter		Masculine / Feminine	Neuter
Nominative		ἐπῐ́σκοπος epískopos	ἐπῐ́σκοπον epískopon		ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō	ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō		ἐπῐ́σκοποι epískopoi	ἐπῐ́σκοπᾰ epískopa
Genitive		ἐπῐσκόπου episkópou	ἐπῐσκόπου episkópou		ἐπῐσκόποιν episkópoin	ἐπῐσκόποιν episkópoin		ἐπῐσκόπων episkópōn	ἐπῐσκόπων episkópōn
Dative		ἐπῐσκόπῳ episkópōi	ἐπῐσκόπῳ episkópōi		ἐπῐσκόποιν episkópoin	ἐπῐσκόποιν episkópoin		ἐπῐσκόποις episkópois	ἐπῐσκόποις episkópois
Accusative		ἐπῐ́σκοπον epískopon	ἐπῐ́σκοπον epískopon		ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō	ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō		ἐπῐσκόπους episkópous	ἐπῐ́σκοπᾰ epískopa
Vocative		ἐπῐ́σκοπε epískope	ἐπῐ́σκοπον epískopon		ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō	ἐπῐσκόπω episkópō		ἐπῐ́σκοποι epískopoi	ἐπῐ́σκοπᾰ epískopa
Derived forms		Adverb			Comparative			Superlative
		ἐπῐσκόπως episkópōs			ἐπῐσκοπώτερος episkopṓteros			ἐπῐσκοπώτᾰτος episkopṓtatos
Notes:		This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Further reading

• “ἐπίσκοπος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ἐπίσκοπος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “ἐπίσκοπος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• ἐπίσκοπος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Bauer, Walter et al. (2001) A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• ἐπίσκοπος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “ἐπίσκοπος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G1985 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • guard idem, page 376.
  • guardian idem, page 377.
  • inspector idem, page 445.
  • overseer idem, page 586.
  • protector idem, page 653.
  • steward idem, page 816.
  • superintendent idem, page 839.
  • supervisor idem, page 840.
  • tutelary idem, page 903.
  • warder idem, page 964.
  • watcher idem, page 967.