θέμα

Forms

θέμᾰ (théma) n (genitive θέμᾰτος); third declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek τίθημι (títhēmi, “to put, place”) + -μα (-ma), a noun for “that which is put down”, built on the short stem θε- of the verb.^[2][1][3] Wiktionary also allows that it may continue a Proto-Indo-European noun *dʰéh₁mn̥, remodelled on the weak stem of the root Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to put, set”).^[1][4] The same root gives the doublets θῆμα (thêma) and θημών (thēmṓn, “heap”).^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first appears in papyri of the 3rd century BC, among them the Zenon archive, for money that has been deposited, a deposit.^[2]

Semantic evolution

The basic idea is “something laid down”.^[2] In papyri and inscriptions it is money or grain put on deposit, and in the Septuagint a treasure laid up, a pile of loaves set out before God, and a coffer.^[2][5] Inscriptions use it for the position of a piece of land and for a burial ground.^[2] It also meant a prize in money offered at games, in early Christian writers this becomes the prize of incorruption held out to believers.^[2][6]

Rhetoric and philosophy took the word for something laid down for discussion: a case set for an exercise, the theme of an argument, or a premiss.^[2] Philodemus set what is fixed “by convention” (κατὰ θέμα) against what is so by nature; astrologers used it for a person's nativity, the horoscope; the grammarian Apollonius Dyscolus used it for the primary, underived form of a word, and Stoic logic for the rules that reduce irregular syllogisms.^[2]

In Byzantine Greek the word named the great military and civil districts of the empire, the themes.^[7][8] Through Late Latin thema, a rhetorical term, it spread to other languages: French thème, German Thema and English theme, which came through Old French in the early 14th century.^[3][4][9] Modern Greek θέμα (théma) is a learned word: “subject, topic, problem” was taken back from French and German, the grammatical “stem” continues the Hellenistic term, and the historical “theme” the Byzantine one.^[8]

Timeline

• 3rd century BC – Papyri of the Zenon archive use it for a sum of money on deposit.^[2]
• 3rd–2nd century BC – The Septuagint uses it for a pile of loaves, a coffer and a treasure laid up.^[5][2][10]
• 1st century BC – Philodemus contrasts what holds by convention with what holds by nature.^[2][11]
• 1st century AD – The treatise On the Sublime uses it for an agreed premiss.^[2][10]
• 2nd century AD – Vettius Valens uses it for a horoscope, and Apollonius Dyscolus for the primary form of a word.^[2][11]
• 3rd century AD – Diogenes Laertius uses it for a theme proposed for discussion.^[2][11]
• 1100–1669 – Medieval vernacular texts use it for the military and administrative districts of the Byzantine state.^[7]
• Early 14th century – English borrows theme, “subject of discourse”, through Old French and Latin.^[4]
• Modern Greek – θέμα (théma) means “subject, topic” and, in grammar, the stem of a word.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. Something laid down: money put on deposit, a store of grain or treasure.^[2][5]
2. A pile (of loaves); a coffer.^[2][5]
3. The position or situation of a piece of land; a burial ground.^[2]
4. A prize in money offered to competitors.^[2][6]
5. (rhetoric, logic) A case proposed for discussion, the theme of an argument; a premiss.^[2]
6. Arbitrary convention, as opposed to nature.^[2]
7. (astrology) A nativity, a horoscope.^[2]
8. (grammar) The primary, underived form of a word.^[2]
9. (Byzantine) A military and administrative district of the empire.^[7][8]

Related words

• τίθημι (títhēmi)
• θῆμα (thêma)
• θημών (thēmṓn)
• Latin thema
• English theme

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
6. ^ a b Bauer, Walter; Danker, Frederick W., et al. (2000), A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press
7. ^ a b c Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
8. ^ a b c d Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
9. ^ Saalfeld, Günther Alexander (1874), Index Graecorum vocabulorum in linguam latinam translatorum, Berlin: Weidmann
10. ^ a b Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
11. ^ a b c Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge