ἆθλον

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ἄεθλον (áethlon) — Epic, uncontracted

Etymology

From an earlier *ἄϝεθλον (*áwethlon), traditionally derived from Proto-Indo-European *h₂weh₁- (“to blow (of wind)”) + *-dʰlom (forms nouns denoting tool or instrument), as if "gasp, pant, wheeze", if not from a similar root meaning "to strive". (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?) Other theories compare the word to Sanskrit वायति (vāyati, “to be tired”), the latter from Proto-Indo-European *h₁weh₂- (“to leave, abandon”).

However, Beekes dismisses the connection with the Sanskrit and does not mention the *h₂weh₁- derivation, instead deriving the Greek from a Proto-Indo-European *h₂wedʰ- (“to contest, compete”), albeit with no known cognates outside of Greek.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /âː.tʰlon/ → /ˈa.θlon/ → /ˈa.θlon/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /âː.tʰlon/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈa.tʰlon/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈa.θlon/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈa.θlon/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈa.θlon/

Noun

ἆθλον • (âthlon) n (genitive ἄθλου); second declension (Attic, contracted)

1. prize of a contest
2. contest
3. place of combat, arena

Inflection

Second declension of τὸ ἆθλον; τοῦ ᾱ̓́θλου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	τὸ ἆθλον tò âthlon	τὼ ᾱ̓́θλω tṑ ā́thlō	τᾰ̀ ἆθλᾰ tà âthla
Genitive	τοῦ ᾱ̓́θλου toû ā́thlou	τοῖν ᾱ̓́θλοιν toîn ā́thloin	τῶν ᾱ̓́θλων tôn ā́thlōn
Dative	τῷ ᾱ̓́θλῳ tôi ā́thlōi	τοῖν ᾱ̓́θλοιν toîn ā́thloin	τοῖς ᾱ̓́θλοις toîs ā́thlois
Accusative	τὸ ἆθλον tò âthlon	τὼ ᾱ̓́θλω tṑ ā́thlō	τᾰ̀ ἆθλᾰ tà âthla
Vocative	ἆθλον âthlon	ᾱ̓́θλω ā́thlō	ἆθλᾰ âthla
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Second declension of ἄεθλον; ἀέθλου (Epic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἄεθλον áethlon	ἀέθλω aéthlō	ἄεθλᾰ áethla
Genitive	ἀέθλου / ἀεθλοῖο / ἀέθλοιο / ἀεθλόο / ἀέθλοο aéthlou / aethloîo / aéthloio / aethlóo / aéthloo	ἀέθλοιῐν aéthloiin	ἀέθλων aéthlōn
Dative	ἀέθλῳ aéthlōi	ἀέθλοιῐν aéthloiin	ἀέθλοισῐ / ἀέθλοισῐν / ἀέθλοις aéthloisi(n) / aéthlois
Accusative	ἄεθλον áethlon	ἀέθλω aéthlō	ἄεθλᾰ áethla
Vocative	ἄεθλον áethlon	ἀέθλω aéthlō	ἄεθλᾰ áethla
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Derived terms

• ἀθλέω (athléō)

Related terms

• ἆθλος (âthlos)

Noun

ἆθλον • (âthlon)

1. accusative singular of ἆθλος (âthlos)

Further reading

• “ἆθλον”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ἆθλον”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• ἆθλον in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• ἆθλον in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2024)
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • prize idem, page 642.
  • reward idem, page 711.
• Clackson, James, Indo-European Word Formation: Proceedings from the International Conference, 2002
• Julius Pokorny (1959), Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, in 3 vols, Bern, München: Francke Verlag