ἀριστοκράτης

Ancient Greek

Etymology

ᾰ̓́ρῐστος (áristos) +‎ κρᾰ́τος (krátos) +‎ -ης (-ēs)

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /a.ris.to.krá.tɛːs/ → /a.ris.toˈkra.tis/ → /a.ris.toˈkra.tis/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /a.ris.to.krá.tɛːs/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /a.ris.toˈkra.te̝s/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /a.ris.toˈkra.tis/
• (10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /a.ris.toˈkra.tis/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /a.ris.toˈkra.tis/

Noun

ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́της • (aristokrátēs) m (genitive ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́του); first declension

1. aristocrat
   • circa AD 110, Aspasius, in Ethica Nicomachea commentaria 182.6–9:^[1]

     Καθ’ ἑκάστην δὲ τῶν πολιτειῶν. τρία εἴδη πολιτείας εἰπὼν καθ’ ἕκαστόν φησι φιλίαν εἶναι ἐφ’ ὅσον καὶ τὸ δίκαιον. εἰ γὰρ μεῖξον τὸ δίκαιον τὸ τοῦ βασιλέως πρὸς τοὺς ὑπ’ αὐτόν, παρὰ τῶν ἀριστοκρατῶν καὶ τιμοκρατῶν πρὸς τοὺς ὑπὸ χεῖρα, καὶ ἡ φιλία καλλίων.

     Kath’ hekástēn dè tôn politeiôn. tría eídē politeías eipṑn kath’ hékastón phēsi philían eînai eph’ hóson kaì tò díkaion. ei gàr meîxon tò díkaion tò toû basiléōs pròs toùs hup’ autón, parà tôn aristokratôn kaì timokratôn pròs toùs hupò kheîra, kaì hē philía kallíōn.

     • 2001 translation by David Konstan

       ‘In each of the governments’: mentioning three kinds of government, he says that there is love in each ‘in the amount in which there is also what is just’. For if there is more of what is just on the part of a king in regard to those beneath him, and on the part of aristocrats and ‘timocrats’ in regard to those under their control, the love too will be better.

Declension

First declension of ὁ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́της; τοῦ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́του (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́της ho aristokrátēs	τὼ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τᾱ tṑ aristokrátā	οἱ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́ται hoi aristokrátai
Genitive	τοῦ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́του toû aristokrátou	τοῖν ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́ταιν toîn aristokrátain	τῶν ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰτῶν tôn aristokratôn
Dative	τῷ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τῃ tôi aristokrátēi	τοῖν ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́ταιν toîn aristokrátain	τοῖς ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́ταις toîs aristokrátais
Accusative	τὸν ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́την tòn aristokrátēn	τὼ ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τᾱ tṑ aristokrátā	τοὺς ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τᾱς toùs aristokrátās
Vocative	ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τᾰ aristokráta	ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́τᾱ aristokrátā	ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́ται aristokrátai
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Related terms

• ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰτέομαι (aristokratéomai)
• Ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰ́της (Aristokrátēs)
• ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (aristokratíā)
• ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰτῐκός (aristokratikós)
• ᾰ̓ρῐστοκρᾰτῐκῶς (aristokratikôs)

 

Descendants

• Greek: αριστοκράτης (aristokrátis)

Further reading

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