ἴμβηρις

Ancient Greek

Etymology

The ending is reminiscent of λεβηρίς (lebērís, “snake skin, slough”). The word resembles some Balto-Slavic words for "eel", like Lithuanian ungurỹs and Russian у́горь (úgorʹ). However, the ending rather points to a Pre-Greek word. The relation to ἔγχελυς (énkhelus, “eel”) and Latin anguilla (“eel”) is unclear.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ˈim.bi.ris/ → /ˈim.bi.ris/

• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈim.bi.ris/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈim.bi.ris/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈim.bi.ris/

Noun

ἴμβηρις • (ímbēris)

1. Hesychius' gives the definition as: ἔγχελυς (énkhelus, “eel”).

References

• “ἴμβηρις”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• 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
• Hesychius' Lexicon: ι