cimelia

English

Alternative forms

• cimilia

Etymology

From Medieval Latin cimelia, cimilia, from Ancient Greek κειμήλῐᾰ (keimḗlĭă), plural of κειμήλῐον (keimḗlĭon, “something stored or saved up; treasure; heirloom”), from κεῖμαι (keîmai, “to lie; to be laid up”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɪˈmiːlɪə/
• Rhymes: -iːliə

Noun

cimelia pl (plural only)

1. (rare) Treasures; things considered valuable.
   • 1996, “Introduction: Thanks and Acknowledgements”, in Manfred Pfister, editor, The Fatal Gift of Beauty: The Italies of British Travellers: An Annotated Anthology, Amsterdam: Rodopi, →ISBN, page 20:

     My sincere thanks are due […] to dott.essa Laura Desideri of the Gabinetto Scientifico Vieusseux/Florence (cf. note on Henry Crabb Robinson in the "Gazetteer of Travellers") for opening up to me the riches of this library, including the cimelia of the Fondo "Fiametta Olschki"; […]

Further reading

• “cimelia”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.