σίλφη

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

τῐ́λφη (tĭ́lphē)

Etymology

The variant could be an artificial Atticism or show a Pre-Greek alternation σ-/τ-. The form semantically and formally resembles σέρφος (sérphos, “small winged insect”), while Furnée connects Latin delpa (“kind of insect”).

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /síl.pʰɛː/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈsil.pʰe̝/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈsil.ɸi/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈsil.fi/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈsil.fi/

Noun

σῐ́λφη • (sĭ́lphē) f (genitive σῐ́λφης); first declension

cockroach (Blattella germanica)

Inflection

First declension of ἡ σῐ́λφη; τῆς σῐ́λφης (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ σῐ́λφη hē sĭ́lphē	τὼ σῐ́λφᾱ tṑ sĭ́lphā	αἱ σῐ́λφαι hai sĭ́lphai
Genitive	τῆς σῐ́λφης tês sĭ́lphēs	τοῖν σῐ́λφαιν toîn sĭ́lphain	τῶν σῐλφῶν tôn sĭlphôn
Dative	τῇ σῐ́λφῃ têi sĭ́lphēi	τοῖν σῐ́λφαιν toîn sĭ́lphain	ταῖς σῐ́λφαις taîs sĭ́lphais
Accusative	τὴν σῐ́λφην tḕn sĭ́lphēn	τὼ σῐ́λφᾱ tṑ sĭ́lphā	τᾱ̀ς σῐ́λφᾱς tā̀s sĭ́lphās
Vocative	σῐ́λφη sĭ́lphē	σῐ́λφᾱ sĭ́lphā	σῐ́λφαι sĭ́lphai
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Descendants

→ Translingual: Silpha

“σίλφη”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
σίλφη in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010) “σίλφη”, in Etymological Dictionary of Greek (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 10), with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 1332