Greek Personal Names Research Articles

A COMPARATIVE LENS ON ΚΡΑΤΥΣ ΑΡΓΕΪΦΟΝΤΗΣ: MEANING, ETYMOLOGY AND PHRASEOLOGY

AbstractGreek κρατύς and cognates (κράτος, κρατερός, etc.) are related to Vedic krátu- ‘resolve’ and Avestan xratu- ‘[guiding] intellect’. The cumulative phraseological evidence supports this etymological proposal: in at least ten cases, Greek personal names and phrasemes exhibiting a cognate of κρατύς (that is, κράτος and compounds with first member κρατ[α]ι-) combine with terms whose Indo-Iranian linguistic cognates are joined with Vedic krátu- and Avestan xratu-. Furthermore, Indo-Iranian expressions, in which Vedic krátu- and its compounds are referred to a god as attributes, are structurally comparable to Greek κρατὺς Ἀργεϊφόντης. Since Ἀργεϊφόντης is likely to reflect ‘shining (cf. Greek φαίνω) with whiteness/brightness (ἀργει-)’, it is possible to identify Vedic phraseological matches for the Greek formula, namely expressions in which Vedic krátu- and its derivative krátumant- combine with the notion of ‘shining widely’, Vedic ví-bhā (Vedic bhā being a linguistic congener of φαίνω). The phraseological correspondence between Vedic krátu- … agní- ‘Agni, [endowed with] resolve’, and κρατὺς Ἀργεϊφόντης ‘Argeiphontes, endowed with superior might (κράτος)’ may be added to the dossier of common phraseology which the Greek god shares with the Old Indic fire-deity.

Greek Personal Names and the Question of Personal Identification in the Late Ottoman Empire: a Social Historical Approach

Abstract The Ottoman state, Greek communal authorities and Greek individuals used various forms and renditions of Greek personal names across imperial and communal spaces, sometimes simultaneously. Based on how these names were written in Ottoman and Greek documentation, this article focuses on the implications of the variations in personal names to explore Greek personal identification in the late Ottoman Empire. Concentrating on Istanbul and its environs in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the article is concerned with one of the results of increasing literacy and formal education, the growing dominance of modern bureaucracies and efforts for national linguistic formalization. It examines the Ottoman usage of colloquial Greek, practices of linguistic standardization by Greek administrative/literate circles and the intersection of the two practices. The article demonstrates how variations in personal names reflected and also contributed to the shaping of a multiplicity of forms of personal identification for Ottoman Greeks.

Greek History

This is the first review of books in Greek history after a year, as the Coronavirus crisis last spring made it impossible to submit a review for the G&R volume of autumn 2020. I apologize to readers and editors for the resulting delay in reviewing two books published in 2018. The multi-volume Lexicon of Greek Personal Names has been a tremendous tool of research that one day could hopefully revolutionize the study of Greek history. The volume under review is the eighth in the series; edited by Jean-Sébastien Balzat, Richard Catling, Édouard Chiricat, and Thomas Corsten, it is devoted to inland Asia Minor, covering Pisidia, Lycaonia, Phrygia, Galatia, Paphlagonia, Cappadocia, Pontus, and Armenia. The onomastics of these areas are complex owing to the various historical processes in which they were enmeshed: centuries of migration, conquest, and cultural change meant that, in addition to the ‘native’ cultural traditions of inland Asia Minor, the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman empires, as well as migratory movements like that of the Celts, left a deep onomastic impact. The issue is further complicated because the majority of the evidence comes from the Roman Imperial period, making diachronic comparison more difficult. This excellent volume offers a new documentary basis for studying social, cultural, and economic processes of change in these important areas of the ancient world: the full collection of the evidence makes it easier to classify names into different linguistic groups, an issue that has bedevilled the study of onomastics in Asia Minor for a very long time; it will also be possible to study regional divergences in the onomastics of different areas.

Onomastic interferences in Lycia: Greek reinterpretation of Lycian personal names

As is well known, Lycia, located on the south-western coast of Asia Minor, was a multicultural and polyglossian area, especially during the second half of the Ist millennium B.C. From the 4th century B.C. onwards — that is before Alexander’s conquests — Greek writing and language became more and more predominant in that region, as a language of prestige, to the detriment of Lycian, which is an Anatolian language related to Luwian and Hittite.
 Although most of the indigenous personal names persisted in Lycia until the first centuries A.D., as evidenced by their large number found in Greek inscriptions from the Hellenistic and Roman periods, some of them underwent a little transformation in order to look like Greek names. This process, which is common in a context of language contact, consists in adopting a homophonic or phonetically similar name or element of the name, called “cover name” or, in French, “nom d’assonance” (see Dondin-Payre and Raepsaet-Charlier 2001; Coşkun and Zeidler 2005). One famous example of this type of onomastic adaptation from one language to another is the name of the Mede general who invaded Asia Minor, known in the Greek sources as Ἅρπαγος (Harpagos): the underlying Iranian name is derived from the adjective arba- “small, young” (cf. Sanskrit arbha-) with the hypocoristic suffix -ka-, but it has been slightly modified in its Greek adaptation in order to get it closer to the Greek substantive ἁρπαγή (harpagē) “pillaging”, so the enemy conqueror is reduced to a simple plunderer. I intend to present and discuss some Lycian names adapted as cover names in Greek, like Purihimeti ⁓ Πυριβάτης, with a second element -βάτης (-batēs), cf. verb βαίνω (bainō) “to walk”, and well attested in typical Greek personal names (Bechtel 1917: 92). The other names that will be interpreted are Kuprlle/i- ⁓ Κοπριλις (Koprilis), cf. Κοπρύλος (Koprulos), but also Κύβερνις (Kubernis), Mizu- ⁓ Μεσος (Mesos), cf. μέσος (mesos) “middle”, and Xddazada- ⁓ Κτασασας (Ktasadas), cf. Κτᾱσι- / Κτησι- (Ktāsi- / Ktēsi-).

고트어의 헬라어 인명(人名) 처리 방법에 대한 소고 - 바울 서신을 중심으로

This article examines how the Gothic New Testament translated the personal names of the Greek New Testament(a Greek Vorlage). Having analysed all personal names in Paul’s letters, I show the following facts to be some characteristics of the Gothic translation of Greek proper names. First, in terms of gender, the Gothic translation followed gender of Greek names, which might have been attributed to the gender-distinction in personal names. Second, in terms of declension, the Gothic word-forms did not always correspond to Greek. Although both Greek and Gothic have five categories of declension, i.e., the 1st, 2nd and 3rd declensions, irregular declensions and non-declensions, the Gothic manner of treating declensions of Greek personal names was independent from Greek. This indicates that Gothic maintained its own system of declension in translating Greek personal names. Finally, in terms of pronunciation and orthography, Gothic translation was almost faithful to Greek pronunciation. However, several personal names show a clear difference between Greek and Gothic, for example, Lwij< Laudijai and Silouanoj, Silbanus. Lwij< may be transliterated into Lauis, and Silouanoj, into Siluanos. But Gothic simply did not stick to Greek pronunciation. Instead, such forms, i.e., Loide and Silvanus, are found in Latin translation(the Vulgata) even if there are some differences. This reveals that Gothic translation of Greek personal names was never a blind imitation, but a considerate translation for the receptor language.

Tartışmalı Bir Yazıt İçin Getrude Bell’in Çözümü

One inscribed tombstone was placed at Appa station on the Ottoman Railway line from İzmir to Dinar. The inscription was published by three different copyists in the course of eleven years. Each person who transcribed the inscription, Georg Weber, William Mitchell Ramsay and Georges Cousin, made no acknowledgement of each other. Moreover, each transcription and reconstruction differed from the other in more lines than the number of lines in which they were in agreement; the provenance for the stone was credited to different locations and the minimal description of the form of the stone left considerable doubt as to the tombstone’s design. No sketch or photograph was provided. The names on the epitaph have been harnessed by the Lexicon of Greek Personal Names to a site (Sanaos) to which none of the three published editions actually tied the inscription. The dispute may have been left unresolved, but for a photograph taken by Gertrude Bell in 1907. She never published it, but, for her, it was the fitting compensation for a failed visit to the site of Colossae. By careful enhancement of the photograph and close study of its contents, the three disputed elements — the form of the tombstone, its original location and the wording of the inscription — can be resolved to a high degree of probability. The restored inscription becomes particularly valuable for a name that may connect with one of the (in)famous features of Colossian religious life — the worship of angels.

LGPN-Ling: Etymological and Semantic analysis of ancient Greek Personal Names.

LGPN-Ling: Etymological and Semantic analysis of ancient Greek Personal Names.

Eros dans l’anthroponymie grecque

Abstract The history of Greek personal names (PN) related to the theonym Eros is striking.1 Despite being one of the most important gods, Eros, along with Aphrodite, is largely absent from Greek proper names in the archaic and classical periods. Later, however, and especially under Rome, there is a remarkable increase in PN at Rome and Pompeii, as well as in Hispania. The reason for the absence of Eros in early Greek names is most likely the sense of the Greek term ἔρως as ‘passionate love’, whereas its increased popularity in Hellenistic and Roman times reflects the more genial representation of the god of love in statues and reliefs.

The Tradition and Ideology of Naming Seleukid Queens

This article examines the traditions and ideology which guide the Seleukid dynasty’s faithful repetition of female names over various generations as a case study for better understanding Hellenistic royal onomastics. Beginning with a review of the function of Greek personal names more generally, the article then examines the mechanics behind repeating royal female names. The name Laodike is then taken as a case study, and is examined in relation to Seleukid mythology, royal cult, and the longer literary tradition stretching back to Homer. A reconstruction is then proposed, in which it is argued that female names functioned as quasi- titles.

Los antropónimos femeninos latinos de origen griego de la Península Ibérica

The presence of Greek Personal Names in the Latin inscriptions coming from the Iberian Peninsula is considerable. Furthermore, from the evidence found in religious centres it is clear that these inscriptions comprise a broad chronological period reaching to Medieval times. This paper shows that the Phonetic and Morphological adaptation of these names was very limited in Latin. Consequently, the fact that the various forms of these Greek names did not expand outside the closed community which bore them is justified.

I nomi di persona in -ᾱ(ϝ)ον- nella poesia epica arcaica

This article provides a morphological analysis of all Greek personal names containing the suffix ᾱ(ϝ)ον and highlights the fact that, in archaic epic poetry, it designates either Greek heroes from mainland Greece, especially from Thessaly, or Trojans and their allies. This distribution was likely influenced by the fact that the old Greek suffix ᾱ(ϝ)ον was employed to approximate the Luwian ethnic suffix -wanni- or its later development *-unni-.

(P.M.) Fraser Greek Ethnic Terminology (Lexicon of Greek Personal Names. Supplementary Volume. Revised for publication after the author's death by S. Hornblower). Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press for the British Academy, 2009. Pp. xxi + 424. £50. 9780197264287.

(P.M.) Fraser Greek Ethnic Terminology (Lexicon of Greek Personal Names. Supplementary Volume. Revised for publication after the author's death by S. Hornblower). Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press for the British Academy, 2009. Pp. xxi + 424. £50. 9780197264287.

Elijah’s Cave on Mount Carmel and its Inscriptions. Part III

The epigraphic corpus comprises a rich and impressive onomasticon, most of it consisting of Greek personal names well known throughout the Greek, Roman and Byzantine worlds. The 148 Greek inscriptions in Elijah’s Cave, discussed in the present article, have yielded an onomasticon of 59 additional Greek, Latin and Semitic proper names. Together with those 30 names that were engraved in the 22 inscriptions discussed in the previous article, the total number is 89 masculine and feminine proper names, some of which are unfamiliar. Some of the Greek inscriptions can be attributed to the Roman era, when the Cave was used as a pagan cult place or shrine to the god Ba‘al Carmel, with Pan and Eros as secondary deities, and others to the early Byzantine period, being a pilgrimage site dedicated to the Prophet Elijah (Elias). The large number of personal names engraved on the walls of the Cave, attest to the many visitors/ pilgrims to the Cave during the Roman and early Byzantine periods. They also indicate the socio-cultural and religious aspects of the people, whether pagans, Jews or Christians, who visited the Cave and engraved their names and other personal details in the hope of commemoration, prosperity and good fortune.

Sôtélès l'Athénien

A second Greek-inscribed sherd mentioning Soteles the Athenian was discovered in stratified context during the excavations at Failaka (ancient Ikaros), Kuwait. It gives a short list of three Greek personal names, Soteles, Dionysios and Agatharchos. It also provides a secure date for the activity of this Seleucid officer in the first half of the third century BC. The other sherd pertaining to Soteles is re-examined. Both were parts of inscribed vases offered to the deities of the temples inside and outside the fortress, during the process of settlement of the first Greek garrison.

The Sea as a Factor for the Formation of Greek Personal Names

The imposing presence of the sea and the admiration for it is reflected in Greek mythology, visual arts and literature; the relation of many Greek gods to the sea has been expressed with a long series of epithets that emphasize this connection as weIl as with the formation of many personal names derived from their names, the numerous theophoric names easily recognizable.

Σάων, Αθαμος and Other Names from LGPN III.B

The publication of volume III.B of the Lexicon of Greek Personal Names naturally will bring fresh attention to the rich variety of epichoric names preserved in the areas covered by it, namely central Greece from the Megarid to Thessaly.

A Lexicon of Greek Personal Names, I : The Aegean Islands, Cyprus, Cyrenaica. Edited by P. M. Fraser and E. Matthews. Pp. xxxv + 489. Oxford: Clarendon Press (for the British Academy), 1987. £60.00. 0 19 86422 9

A Lexicon of Greek Personal Names, I : The Aegean Islands, Cyprus, Cyrenaica. Edited by P. M. Fraser and E. Matthews. Pp. xxxv + 489. Oxford: Clarendon Press (for the British Academy), 1987. £60.00. 0 19 86422 9 - Volume 40 Issue 1

The lexicon of Greek personal names; a Sophoclean repertorium criticum; bibliography of the history of classical scholarship

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The Significance of Greek Personal Names

The Significance of Greek Personal Names

The Significance of Greek Personal Names

The Significance of Greek Personal Names