κίρκος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Likely from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to bend; to turn”), compare κρέξ (kréx, “crane; crex”) and κρῐ́κος (krĭ́kos, “ring”) for the “hawk” and “circle” meanings respectively (the different senses may well be of different origin). See also Georgian კირკიტა (ḳirḳiṭa, “kestrel”) for a similar formation.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /kír.kos/ → /ˈcir.kos/ → /ˈcir.kos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /kír.kos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈkir.kos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈcir.kos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈcir.kos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈcir.kos/

Noun

κῐ́ρκος • (kĭ́rkos) m (genitive κῐ́ρκου); second declension

1. a type of hawk or falcon
2. a type of wolf
3. circle; ring

   Alternative form: κρῐ́κος (krĭ́kos)

4. racecourse; circus
5. a type of stone
6. (Hesychius) κωπηλάτης (kōpēlátēs, “rower”)
7. (Hesychius) ἡ τοῦ αἰγείρου βλάστησις (hē toû aigeírou blástēsis, “sprouting of the black poplar”)

Declension

Second declension of ὁ κῐ́ρκος; τοῦ κῐ́ρκου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ κῐ́ρκος ho kĭ́rkos	τὼ κῐ́ρκω tṑ kĭ́rkō	οἱ κῐ́ρκοι hoi kĭ́rkoi
Genitive	τοῦ κῐ́ρκου toû kĭ́rkou	τοῖν κῐ́ρκοιν toîn kĭ́rkoin	τῶν κῐ́ρκων tôn kĭ́rkōn
Dative	τῷ κῐ́ρκῳ tōî kĭ́rkōi	τοῖν κῐ́ρκοιν toîn kĭ́rkoin	τοῖς κῐ́ρκοις toîs kĭ́rkois
Accusative	τὸν κῐ́ρκον tòn kĭ́rkon	τὼ κῐ́ρκω tṑ kĭ́rkō	τοὺς κῐ́ρκους toùs kĭ́rkous
Vocative	κῐ́ρκε kĭ́rke	κῐ́ρκω kĭ́rkō	κῐ́ρκοι kĭ́rkoi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Second declension of κῐ́ρκος; κῐ́ρκοιο / κῐ́ρκοο / κῐ́ρκου (Epic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	κῐ́ρκος kĭ́rkos	κῐ́ρκω kĭ́rkō	κῐ́ρκοι kĭ́rkoi
Genitive	κῐ́ρκοιο / κῐ́ρκοο / κῐ́ρκου kĭ́rkoio / kĭ́rkoo / kĭ́rkou	κῐ́ρκοιῐ̈ν kĭ́rkoiĭ̈n	κῐ́ρκων kĭ́rkōn
Dative	κῐ́ρκῳ kĭ́rkōi	κῐ́ρκοιῐ̈ν kĭ́rkoiĭ̈n	κῐ́ρκοισῐ / κῐ́ρκοισῐν / κῐ́ρκοις kĭ́rkoisĭ(n) / kĭ́rkois
Accusative	κῐ́ρκον kĭ́rkon	κῐ́ρκω kĭ́rkō	κῐ́ρκους kĭ́rkous
Vocative	κῐ́ρκε kĭ́rke	κῐ́ρκω kĭ́rkō	κῐ́ρκοι kĭ́rkoi
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Second declension of ὁ κῐ́ρκος; τοῦ κῐ́ρκου (Ionic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ κῐ́ρκος ho kĭ́rkos	τὼ κῐ́ρκω tṑ kĭ́rkō	οἱ κῐ́ρκοι hoi kĭ́rkoi
Genitive	τοῦ κῐ́ρκου toû kĭ́rkou	τοῖν κῐ́ρκοιν toîn kĭ́rkoin	τῶν κῐ́ρκων tôn kĭ́rkōn
Dative	τῷ κῐ́ρκῳ tōî kĭ́rkōi	τοῖν κῐ́ρκοιν toîn kĭ́rkoin	τοῖσῐ / τοῖσῐν κῐ́ρκοισῐ / κῐ́ρκοισῐν toîsĭ(n) kĭ́rkoisĭ(n)
Accusative	τὸν κῐ́ρκον tòn kĭ́rkon	τὼ κῐ́ρκω tṑ kĭ́rkō	τοὺς κῐ́ρκους toùs kĭ́rkous
Vocative	κῐ́ρκε kĭ́rke	κῐ́ρκω kĭ́rkō	κῐ́ρκοι kĭ́rkoi
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Descendants

• → Latin: circus
  • → Translingual: Circus, Circaetus

Further reading

• “κίρκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940), A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “κίρκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889), An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “κίρκος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891), A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• κίρκος in Bailly, Anatole (1935), Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• κίρκος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910), English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • falcon idem, page 303.
  • hawk idem, page 389.
  • vulture idem, page 958.
• 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