δῖος
Ancient Greek
Etymology
From Proto-Hellenic *diyyos, from Proto-Indo-European *diwyós (“heavenly”), from *dyew- (“sky”) + *-yós. Cognate with Sanskrit दिव्य (divyá), Latin dīus, and related to Ζεύς (Zeús, “Zeus”), Latin deus (“god”), and the first element of English Tuesday. The Indo-Iranian and Greek terms (which are formally identical[1]) may alternatively be independently formed to to the root *dyew-.[2]
The feminine nominative and accusative δῖᾰ (dîa) (attested alongside the expected δῑ́ᾱ (dī́ā)), earliest used in substantive function "goddess",[1] is similar in formation and meaning to Sanskrit देवी (devī́, “goddess, celestial”), though it is likely formed independently to Proto-Indo-European *deywós (“god”),[3][4] and thus not inherited from Proto-Indo-European *déywih₂ (“goddess”).
Pronunciation
- (5th BCE Attic) IPA(key): /dîː.os/
- (1st CE Egyptian) IPA(key): /ˈdi.os/
- (4th CE Koine) IPA(key): /ˈði.os/
- (10th CE Byzantine) IPA(key): /ˈði.os/
- (15th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA(key): /ˈði.os/
Adjective
δῖος • (dîos)
- (poetic) heavenly, divine, noble (Homeric epithet of persons and gods)
- 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 1.5–7:
- Διὸς δ’ ἐτελείετο βουλή,
ἐξ οὗ δὴ τὰ πρῶτα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε
Ἀτρεΐδης τε ἄναξ ἀνδρῶν καὶ δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς.- Diòs d’ eteleíeto boulḗ,
ex hoû dḕ tà prôta diastḗtēn erísante
Atreḯdēs te ánax andrôn kaì dîos Akhilleús. - and the will of Zeus was fulfilled,
starting when they first stood apart and quarreled:
[Agamemnon] the son of Atreus, lord of men, and divine Achilles.
- Diòs d’ eteleíeto boulḗ,
- Διὸς δ’ ἐτελείετο βουλή,
Usage notes
Homer uses the set phrases ἅλα δῖαν (hála dîan) and ἠῶ δῖαν (ēô dîan) to describe the sea and the dawn. Commentators have suggested the translations "bright" and "boundless."[5]
Inflection
Number | Singular | Dual | Plural | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Case/Gender | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | |||||
Nominative | δῖος dîos |
δῖᾰ / δῑ́ᾱ dîa / dī́ā |
δῖον dîon |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῑ́ᾱ dī́ā |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῖοι dîoi |
δῖαι dîai |
δῖᾰ dîa | |||||
Genitive | δῑ́ου / δῑοῖο / δῑ́οιο / δῑόο / δῑ́οο dī́ou / dīoîo / dī́oio / dīóo / dī́oo |
δῑ́ᾱς dī́ās |
δῑ́ου / δῑοῖο / δῑ́οιο / δῑόο / δῑ́οο dī́ou / dīoîo / dī́oio / dīóo / dī́oo |
δῑ́οιῐν dī́oiin |
δῑ́αιν / δῑ́αιῐν / δῑ́ῃῐν dī́ai(i)n / dī́ēiin |
δῑ́οιῐν dī́oiin |
δῑ́ων dī́ōn |
δῑᾱ́ων / δῑέ͜ων / δῑῶν dīā́ōn / dīé͜ōn / dīôn |
δῑ́ων dī́ōn | |||||
Dative | δῑ́ῳ dī́ōi |
δῑ́ᾳ dī́āi |
δῑ́ῳ dī́ōi |
δῑ́οιῐν dī́oiin |
δῑ́αιν / δῑ́αιῐν / δῑ́ῃῐν dī́ai(i)n / dī́ēiin |
δῑ́οιῐν dī́oiin |
δῑ́οισῐ / δῑ́οισῐν / δῑ́οις dī́oisi(n) / dī́ois |
δῑ́ῃσῐ / δῑ́ῃσῐν / δῑ́ῃς / δῑ́αις dī́ēisi(n) / dī́ēis / dī́ais |
δῑ́οισῐ / δῑ́οισῐν / δῑ́οις dī́oisi(n) / dī́ois | |||||
Accusative | δῖον dîon |
δῖᾰν dîan |
δῖον dîon |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῑ́ᾱ dī́ā |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῑ́ους dī́ous |
δῑ́ᾱς dī́ās |
δῖᾰ dîa | |||||
Vocative | δῖε dîe |
δῖᾰ / δῑ́ᾱ dîa / dī́ā |
δῖον dîon |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῑ́ᾱ dī́ā |
δῑ́ω dī́ō |
δῖοι dîoi |
δῖαι dîai |
δῖᾰ dîa | |||||
Derived forms | Adverb | Comparative | Superlative | |||||||||||
δῑ́ως dī́ōs |
δῑότερος dīóteros |
δῑότᾰτος dīótatos | ||||||||||||
Notes: |
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References
- Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “δῖος”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), volume I, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 338
- Mayrhofer, Manfred (1992) “divyá-”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan] (in German), volume 1, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 727
- Mayrhofer, Manfred (1992) “devī́-”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan] (in German), volume 1, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 744
- Meier-Brügger, Michael (2002) Indogermanisches Sprachwissenschaft, 8th edition, Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter, W. 202, page 287
- Anthon, The first six books of Homer's Iliad : with English notes, critical and explanatory, a metrical index, and Homeric glossary, p. 150
- “δῖος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “δῖος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
- “δῖος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
- δῖος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
- δῖος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
- δῖος in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2024)
- “δῖος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
- Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.