ἵππος

See also: ίππος

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ἴκκος (íkkos) (mentioned only in the Byzantine Etymologicum Magnum)
• ἴππος (íppos) — Aeolic

Etymology

PIE word
*h₁éḱwos

From Proto-Hellenic *íkkʷos (compare Mycenaean Greek 𐀂𐀦 (i-qo)), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁éḱwos, from *h₁oh₁ḱu- (“swift”). Unexplained is ι for ε, the word initial heavy breathing (h) and the double π (hίππος instead of expected **έπος), possibly borrowed from another Indo-European language where such a sound change is regular. Cognates include Sanskrit अश्व (áśva), Latin equus, Lithuanian ašva, Gaulish epos, Old Armenian էշ (ēš, “donkey”), Icelandic jór, and Old Irish ech.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /híp.pos/ → /ˈip.pos/ → /ˈi.pos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /híp.pos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈ(h)ip.pos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈip.pos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈip.pos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈi.pos/

Noun

ῐ̔́ππος • (hĭ́ppos) m or f (genitive ῐ̔́ππου); second declension (Epic, Attic, Ionic, Doric, Koine)

1. a horse, (feminine) a mare
   • New Testament, Revelation 6:8:

     καὶ εἶδον, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἵππος χλωρός, καὶ ὁ καθήμενος ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ ὄνομα αὐτῷ [ὁ] Θάνατος, καὶ ὁ ἅδης ἠκολούθει μετ' αὐτοῦ

     kaì eîdon, kaì idoù híppos khlōrós, kaì ho kathḗmenos epánō autoû ónoma autôi [ho] Thánatos, kaì ho hádēs ēkoloúthei met’ autoû

     And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. (KJV)

2. (feminine) cavalry, horsemen

Usage notes

• When used as a collective noun ("horse, cavalry"), this word is always feminine singular, even with numerals.

  460 BCE – 420 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 7.41:

  μετὰ δὲ ἵππος ἄλλη χιλίη ἐκ Περσέων ἀπολελεγμένη

  metà dè híppos állē khilíē ek Perséōn apolelegménē

  and after them came another thousand horsemen chosen out from the Persians

Declension

Second declension of ὁ, ἡ ῐ̔́ππος; τοῦ, τῆς ῐ̔́ππου (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ, ἡ ῐ̔́ππος ho, hē hĭ́ppos	τὼ ῐ̔́ππω tṑ hĭ́ppō	οἱ, αἱ ῐ̔́πποι hoi, hai hĭ́ppoi
Genitive	τοῦ, τῆς ῐ̔́ππου toû, tês hĭ́ppou	τοῖν ῐ̔́πποιν toîn hĭ́ppoin	τῶν ῐ̔́ππων tôn hĭ́ppōn
Dative	τῷ, τῇ ῐ̔́ππῳ tôi, têi hĭ́ppōi	τοῖν ῐ̔́πποιν toîn hĭ́ppoin	τοῖς, ταῖς ῐ̔́πποις toîs, taîs hĭ́ppois
Accusative	τὸν, τὴν ῐ̔́ππον tòn, tḕn hĭ́ppon	τὼ ῐ̔́ππω tṑ hĭ́ppō	τοὺς, τᾱ̀ς ῐ̔́ππους toùs, tā̀s hĭ́ppous
Vocative	ῐ̔́ππε hĭ́ppe	ῐ̔́ππω hĭ́ppō	ῐ̔́πποι hĭ́ppoi
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Second declension of ῐ̔́ππος; ῐ̔́ππου (Epic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ῐ̔́ππος hĭ́ppos	ῐ̔́ππω hĭ́ppō	ῐ̔́πποι hĭ́ppoi
Genitive	ῐ̔́ππου / ῐ̔πποῖο / ῐ̔́πποιο / ῐ̔ππόο / ῐ̔́πποο hĭ́ppou / hĭppoîo / hĭ́ppoio / hĭppóo / hĭ́ppoo	ῐ̔́πποιῐν hĭ́ppoiĭn	ῐ̔́ππων hĭ́ppōn
Dative	ῐ̔́ππῳ hĭ́ppōi	ῐ̔́πποιῐν hĭ́ppoiĭn	ῐ̔́πποισῐ / ῐ̔́πποισῐν / ῐ̔́πποις hĭ́ppoisĭ(n) / hĭ́ppois
Accusative	ῐ̔́ππον hĭ́ppon	ῐ̔́ππω hĭ́ppō	ῐ̔́ππους hĭ́ppous
Vocative	ῐ̔́ππε hĭ́ppe	ῐ̔́ππω hĭ́ppō	ῐ̔́πποι hĭ́ppoi
Notes:	Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Derived terms

• Ἀλέξιππος (Aléxippos)
• Ἀλκίππη (Alkíppē)
• Ἀνάξιππος (Anáxippos)
• Ᾰ̓ρῐ́στῐππος (Ărĭ́stĭppos)
• ἄφιππος (áphippos)
• Γλαυκίππη (Glaukíppē)
• Γόργιππος (Górgippos)
• Δέξῐππος (Déxĭppos)
• Ἕρμιππος (Hérmippos)
• Εὔιππος (Eúippos)
• Ἔφῐππος (Éphĭppos)
• Ζεύξῐππος (Zeúxĭppos)
• ἱππεύς (hippeús)
• ἱππιᾱτρός (hippiātrós)
• ἱππικός (hippikós)
• Ἱπποδάμεια (Hippodámeia)
• ἱππόδαμος (hippódamos), Ἱππόδαμος (Hippódamos)
• ἱππόδασυς (hippódasus)
• ἱππόδρομος (hippódromos)
• Ἱπποθόη (Hippothóē)
• Ἱππόθοος (Hippóthoos)
• Ἱπποθόων (Hippothóōn)
• ἱππόκαμπος (hippókampos)
• ἱπποκάνθαρος (hippokántharos)
• ἱπποκέλευθος (hippokéleuthos)
• Ῐ̔πποκλῆς (Hĭppoklês)
• ἱπποκορυστής (hippokorustḗs)
• Ἱπποκόων (Hippokóōn)
• Ῐ̔πποκρᾰ́της (Hĭppokrắtēs)
• ἱππόκρημνος (hippókrēmnos)
• ἱππολάπαθον (hippolápathon)
• Ἱππόλοχος (Hippólokhos)
• Ἱππόλυτος (Hippólutos)
• ἱππομάραθον (hippomárathon)
• Ἱππομέδων (Hippomédōn)
• Ἱππομένης (Hippoménēs)
• Ἱππονόμης (Hipponómēs)
• ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos)
• ἱπποσέλινον (hipposélinon)
• Ἱππόστρατος (Hippóstratos)
• ἱππότῑλος (hippótīlos)
• ἱππόφαιστον (hippóphaiston)
• ἱπποφοβᾰ́ς (hippophobắs)
• ἱπποφορβός (hippophorbós)
• Ἱππῶνᾰξ (Hippônăx)
• Κράτιππος (Krátippos)
• Κτήσῐππος (Ktḗsĭppos)
• Λεύκιππος (Leúkippos)
• Λῡ́σῐππος (Lū́sĭppos)
• Μελᾰνῐ́ππη (Melănĭ́ppē)
• Μελᾰ́νῐππος (Melắnĭppos)
• Μενίππη (Meníppē)
• Μένῐππος (Ménĭppos)
• Μνάσιππος (Mnásippos)
• Νικίππη (Nikíppē)
• Ξᾰνθῐ́ππη (Xănthĭ́ppē)
• Ξᾰ́νθῐππος (Xắnthĭppos)
• Σπεύσιππος (Speúsippos)
• ταράξιππος (taráxippos)
• τέθριππον (téthrippon)
• Φίλιππος (Phílippos)
• Χρυσίππη (Khrusíppē)
• Χρῡ́σῐππος (Khrū́sĭppos)

Descendants

• Greek: ίππος (íppos)
• → English: hippo-
• → French: hippo-
• → Italian: ippo-
• → Portuguese: hipo-
• → Spanish: hipo-

Further reading

• “ἵππος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “ἵππος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “ἵππος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891) A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• ἵππος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• Bauer, Walter et al. (2001) A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• ἵππος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “ἵππος”, in Slater, William J. (1969) Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• G2462 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • cavalry idem, page 119.
  • charger idem, page 125.
  • chivalry idem, page 131.
  • horse idem, page 406.
  • mare idem, page 514.