κόλαξ

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• κόραξ (kórax)

Etymology

A word without established etymology. According to Beekes, it could be of Pre-Greek origin, due to the suffix "-ακ-".

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /kó.laks/ → /ˈko.laks/ → /ˈko.laks/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /kó.laks/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈko.laks/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈko.laks/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈko.laks/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈko.laks/

Noun

κόλᾰξ • (kólax) m (genitive κόλᾰκος); third declension (Attic)

1. flatterer, fawner
   • 421 BCE, Aristophanes, Peace 756:

     ἑκατὸν δὲ κύκλῳ κεφαλαὶ κολάκων οἰμωξομένων ἐλιχμῶντο / περὶ τὴν κεφαλήν

     hekatòn dè kúklōi kephalaì kolákōn oimōxoménōn elikhmônto / perì tḕn kephalḗn

   • 445 BCE – 380 BCE, Lysias, Against Ergocles 4
   • 428 BCE – 347 BCE, Plato, Phaedrus 240b

Declension

Third declension of ὁ κόλᾰξ; τοῦ κόλᾰκος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ κόλᾰξ ho kólax	τὼ κόλᾰκε tṑ kólake	οἱ κόλᾰκες hoi kólakes
Genitive	τοῦ κόλᾰκος toû kólakos	τοῖν κολᾰ́κοιν toîn kolákoin	τῶν κολᾰ́κων tôn kolákōn
Dative	τῷ κόλᾰκῐ tôi kólaki	τοῖν κολᾰ́κοιν toîn kolákoin	τοῖς κόλᾰξῐ / κόλᾰξῐν toîs kólaxi(n)
Accusative	τὸν κόλᾰκᾰ tòn kólaka	τὼ κόλᾰκε tṑ kólake	τοὺς κόλᾰκᾰς toùs kólakas
Vocative	κόλᾰξ kólax	κόλᾰκε kólake	κόλᾰκες kólakes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• δημοκόλᾰξ (dēmokólax)
• κολᾰκείᾱ (kolakeíā)
• κολᾰκεύω (kolakeúō)
• Κολᾰκώνῠμος (Kolakṓnumos)
• κολᾰκῐκός (kolakikós)

 

Further reading

• “κόλαξ”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• κόλαξ in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN