ἀρτηρία

See also: αρτηρία

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́η (artēríē) — Ionic

Etymology

Supposed contraction of *ᾰ̓ορτηρῐ́ᾱ (*aortēríā) (cf. ᾰ̓ορτήρ (aortḗr)), from ᾰ̓είρω (aeírō, “to bind, hang up”).[1]

It was assumed that all blood vessels transported both blood and πνεῦμα (pneûma, “breathe, spirit”), in a similar way as how the latter is transported through the τραχεῖα ἀρτηρία (trakheîa artēría, literally “rough artery”).[2] This might explain why windpipe and artery share the same name.

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /ar.tɛː.rí.aː/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ar.te̝ˈri.a/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ar.tiˈri.a/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ar.tiˈri.a/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ar.tiˈri.a/

Noun

ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ • (artēríā) f (genitive ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱς); first declension

(anatomy)
1. windpipe, trachea
  Synonyms: τραχεῖα ἀρτηρία (trakheîa artēría), βρόγχος (brónkhos), γαργαρεών (gargareṓn)
2. artery (as distinct from a vein)
3. aorta
  Synonym: ᾰ̓ορτή (aortḗ)
4. (in the plural) ureters
5. (in the plural) bronchi
  Synonym: βρόγχια (brónkhia)

Inflection

First declension of ἡ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ; τῆς ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱς (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ hē artēríā	τὼ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ tṑ artēríā	αἱ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́αι hai artēríai
Genitive	τῆς ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱς tês artēríās	τοῖν ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́αιν toîn artēríain	τῶν ᾰ̓ρτηρῐῶν tôn artēriôn
Dative	τῇ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾳ têi artēríāi	τοῖν ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́αιν toîn artēríain	ταῖς ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́αις taîs artēríais
Accusative	τὴν ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱν tḕn artēríān	τὼ ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ tṑ artēríā	τᾱ̀ς ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱς tā̀s artēríās
Vocative	ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ artēríā	ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ artēríā	ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́αι artēríai
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

ᾰ̓ρτηρῐοτομέω (artēriotoméō)
ᾰ̓ρτηρῐοτομῐ́ᾱ (artēriotomíā)
ᾰ̓ρτηρῐώδης (artēriṓdēs)
ᾰ̓ρτηρῐᾰκός (artēriakós)
ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ ἡ τρᾱχεῖᾰ (artēríā hē trākheîa)
ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱσῐς (artēríāsis)

Descendants

→ Latin: artēria (see there for further descendants)
→ Russian: арте́рия (artérija)

References

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

Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “ἀρτηρία”, 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 143
Farnebo, Lars-Ove (2023-06-02), chapter 4, in On the Greek Physician Praxagoras from Kos and the Development of Medicαl Thinking in Antiquity (Thesis), Lund University, pages 8-9, 20, 48-49