σῖτος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Of uncertain origin, though probably of Indo-European origin. Similar words in other languages include Proto-Balto-Slavic *géiˀta (“grain, corn”), Proto-Germanic *hwaitijaz (“wheat”), Basque zitu (“corn, harvest”), and Sumerian [script needed] (zid, “flour”), which are often taken as donor languages to Greek.

A more recent theory by Janda has explained it as the substantivization of an adjective *σῑτό- (*sītó-, “threshed”), derived from Proto-Indo-European *tih₂-tó- (“struck”), a participle from the newly suggested verbal root *tyeh₂- (“to strike, hit”), which is apparently also seen in Hittite [script needed] (zāḫ-ᶦ, “to hit, beat”). Then σῆμα (sêma, “sign, mark”) (< *tiéh₂-mn (“what is carved”)), σῶμα (sôma, “corpse”) (< *tióh₂-mn (“the killed one”)), and σῑμός (sīmós, “snub-nosed”) (< *tih₂-mó- (“flattened”)) could be related. Beekes is doubtful of Janda's derivation, due to the wide range of supposed meanings within only one language (Greek) and the lack of a direct "strike" meaning within Greek.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /sîː.tos/ → /ˈsi.tos/ → /ˈsi.tos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /sîː.tos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈsi.tos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈsi.tos/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈsi.tos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈsi.tos/

Noun

σῖτος • (sîtos) m (genitive σῑ́του); second declension

1. grain, corn (in the British sense, encompassing wheat and barley, the cereal grains used by the ancient Greeks)
2. grains and lentils
3. bread (as opposed to meat)
4. food (as opposed to drink)

Usage notes

This noun is neuter in the plural.

Inflection

Singular (masculine):

Second declension of ὁ σῖτος; τοῦ σῑ́του (Attic)

Case / #	Singular
Nominative	ὁ σῖτος ho sîtos
Genitive	τοῦ σῑ́του toû sī́tou
Dative	τῷ σῑ́τῳ tôi sī́tōi
Accusative	τὸν σῖτον tòn sîton
Vocative	σῖτε sîte
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Plural (neuter):

Second declension of τᾰ̀ σῖτᾰ; τῶν σῑ́των (Attic)

Case / #	Plural
Nominative	τᾰ̀ σῖτᾰ tà sîta
Genitive	τῶν σῑ́των tôn sī́tōn
Dative	τοῖς σῑ́τοις toîs sī́tois
Accusative	τᾰ̀ σῖτᾰ tà sîta
Vocative	σῖτᾰ sîta
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Synonyms

• (bread): ἄρτος (ártos)

Hyponyms

• (grains and lentils): πῡρός (pūrós), κρῑθή (krīthḗ), ὄλῡρᾰ (ólūra), φᾰκός (phakós)

Derived terms

• ἄσῑτος (ásītos)
• παράσῑτος (parásītos)
• Σιτάλκης (Sitálkēs)
• σιτάριον (sitárion)
• σιτικός (sitikós)
• σίτινος (sítinos)
• σιτίον (sitíon)
• σιτοποιία (sitopoiía)
• σιτοφάγος (sitophágos)

 

Descendants

• → English: sito-
• Greek: σίτος (sítos)
• → Italian: sito-

Further reading

• “σῖτος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• σῖτος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• σῖτος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• G4621 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.
  • aliment idem, page 22.
  • bread idem, page 94.
  • cereals idem, page 122.
  • commissariat idem, page 148.
  • corn idem, page 174.
  • eatables idem, page 260.
  • fare idem, page 307.
  • food idem, page 333.
  • forage idem, page 334.
  • fruit idem, page 347.
  • grain idem, page 369.
  • grist idem, page 374.
  • meal idem, page 519.
  • meat idem, page 521.
  • produce idem, page 644.
  • provender idem, page 654.
  • provision idem, page 654.
  • refection idem, page 684.
  • refreshment idem, page 685.
  • supplies idem, page 840.
  • sustenance idem, page 846.
  • viands idem, page 950.
  • victuals idem, page 951.