ἀηδών

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ᾰ̓ηδώ (ăēdṓ) — poetic

Etymology

From an earlier *ᾰ̓ϝηδών (*ăwēdṓn), and traditionally considered related to ᾰ̓είδω (ăeídō, “to sing; to chant; to praise”) and αὐδή (audḗ, “voice; sound”), though Beekes considers the lengthened-grade formation required to be unlikely and tentatively prefers a derivation from Pre-Greek. The suffix is also found in χελῑδών (khelīdṓn, “swallow (bird)”), τενθρηδών (tenthrēdṓn, “earth wasp”).

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /a.ɛː.dɔ̌ːn/ → /a.iˈðon/ → /a.iˈðon/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /a.ɛː.dɔ̌ːn/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /a.e̝ˈdon/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /a.iˈðon/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /a.iˈðon/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /a.iˈðon/

Noun

ᾰ̓ηδών • (ăēdṓn) f (genitive ᾰ̓ηδόνος); third declension

1. nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos)
2. (figuratively) poet; songster
3. (in the plural) poet's songs
4. (figuratively) cicada
5. (music) mouthpiece of a flute

Declension

Third declension of ἡ ᾰ̓ηδών; τῆς ᾰ̓ηδόνος (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ ᾰ̓ηδών hē ăēdṓn	τὼ ᾰ̓ηδόνε tṑ ăēdóne	αἱ ᾰ̓ηδόνες hai ăēdónes
Genitive	τῆς ᾰ̓ηδόνος tês ăēdónos	τοῖν ᾰ̓ηδόνοιν toîn ăēdónoin	τῶν ᾰ̓ηδόνων tôn ăēdónōn
Dative	τῇ ᾰ̓ηδόνῐ tēî ăēdónĭ	τοῖν ᾰ̓ηδόνοιν toîn ăēdónoin	ταῖς ᾰ̓ηδόσῐ / ᾰ̓ηδόσῐν taîs ăēdósĭ(n)
Accusative	τὴν ᾰ̓ηδόνᾰ tḕn ăēdónă	τὼ ᾰ̓ηδόνε tṑ ăēdóne	τᾱ̀ς ᾰ̓ηδόνᾰς tā̀s ăēdónăs
Vocative	ᾰ̓ηδών ăēdṓn	ᾰ̓ηδόνε ăēdóne	ᾰ̓ηδόνες ăēdónes
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Derived terms

• ᾰ̓ηδονῐδεύς (ăēdonĭdeús)
• ᾰ̓ηδόνῐον (ăēdónĭon)
• ᾰ̓ηδόνῐος (ăēdónĭos)
• ᾰ̓ηδονῐ́ς (ăēdonĭ́s)

Descendants

• > Koine Greek: ἀηδόνιον (aēdónion) (inherited)
  • > Medieval Greek: ἀηδόνιον (aēdónion), ἀηδόνιν (aēdónin), ἀηδόνι (aēdóni), ἀδόνι (adóni), ἀδόνιν (adónin) (inherited)
    • > Greek: αηδόνι (aïdóni) (inherited)
  • Mariupol Greek: айдъо́н (ajðón)
• → Old Georgian: აედონი (aedoni), იადონი (iadoni)
• → Mingrelian: იადონი (iadoni)

Further reading

• “ἀηδών”, in Liddell & Scott (1940), A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ἀηδών” in Bailly, Anatole (1935), Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• “ἀηδών” in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2026)
• ἀηδών, in ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ [Logeion] Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch and Chinese), University of Chicago, since 2011