σμύρις

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Ancient Greek

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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A Semitic borrowing, whence also comes Egyptian jsmr (emery), later smr (emery).[1] Cognate to Hebrew שָׁמִיר (šāmī́r, emery, corund), Aramaic שָׁמִירָא (šāmīrā) / ܫܡܝܪܐ (šāmīrā), Arabic سَامُور (sāmūr, corundum), possibly stemming from or at least related to Akkadian 𒉌𒌓𒌑 (NA₄U2 /⁠šammu⁠/, emery, corund, stone used to cut hard precious gems, entitled the king of the stones for its mastery over all other stones, literally herb-stone, stone-medicine).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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σμύρῐς (smúrisf (genitive σμύρῐδος); third declension

  1. emery-powder, used by lapidaries

Declension

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Latin: smyris
  • Classical Syriac: ܣܡܝܪܝܣ (*smiris)

References

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  1. ^ But the meaning “emery” has been contested on archaeological grounds by Harris, John Raymond (1961) Lexicographical Studies in Ancient Egyptian Minerals (Deutsche Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Institut für Orientforschung; 54) (in German), Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, page 16