ψαλτήριον

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From ψάλλω (psállō, “to touch sharply, to pluck, to pull, to twitch”) +‎ -τήριον (-tḗrion), from ψάω (psáō, “to touch lightly, to rub”), which acquired the meaning of plucking a harp, and later making music in general.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /psal.tɛ̌ː.ri.on/ → /psalˈti.ri.on/ → /psalˈti.ri.on/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /psal.tɛ̌ː.ri.on/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /psalˈte̝.ri.on/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /psalˈti.ri.on/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /psalˈti.ri.on/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /psalˈti.ri.on/

Noun

ψᾰλτήρῐον • (psaltḗrion) n (genitive ψᾰλτηρῐ́ου); second declension

1. stringed instrument, harp

Inflection

Second declension of τὸ ψᾰλτήρῐον; τοῦ ψᾰλτηρῐ́ου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	τὸ ψᾰλτήρῐον tò psaltḗrion	τὼ ψᾰλτηρῐ́ω tṑ psaltēríō	τᾰ̀ ψᾰλτήρῐᾰ tà psaltḗria
Genitive	τοῦ ψᾰλτηρῐ́ου toû psaltēríou	τοῖν ψᾰλτηρῐ́οιν toîn psaltēríoin	τῶν ψᾰλτηρῐ́ων tôn psaltēríōn
Dative	τῷ ψᾰλτηρῐ́ῳ tôi psaltēríōi	τοῖν ψᾰλτηρῐ́οιν toîn psaltēríoin	τοῖς ψᾰλτηρῐ́οις toîs psaltēríois
Accusative	τὸ ψᾰλτήρῐον tò psaltḗrion	τὼ ψᾰλτηρῐ́ω tṑ psaltēríō	τᾰ̀ ψᾰλτήρῐᾰ tà psaltḗria
Vocative	ψᾰλτήρῐον psaltḗrion	ψᾰλτηρῐ́ω psaltēríō	ψᾰλτήρῐᾰ psaltḗria
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Descendants

• → Aramaic: פְּסַנְתֵּרִין (psanterín)
  • →? Persian: سنتور (santur)
    • → Armenian: սանթուր (santʻur), սանթուռ (santʻuṙ)
    • → English: santur, santūr, santour, santouri, santoor, santir
    • → Ottoman Turkish: سانطور (santur)
      • Turkish: santur
• → Greek: ψαλτήριο (psaltírio)
• → Latin: psaltērium (see there for further descendants)

Further reading

• “ψαλτήριον”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• ψαλτήριον in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette