Etymologically
Log in

καλός

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 29 October 2026 at 06:18. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • 5th-century BC Attic: /kaː.lós/[1]
  • 4th-century AD Koine: /kaˈlos/[1]
  • 10th-century Byzantine: /kaˈlos/[1]

Forms

κᾰλός (kalós) m (feminine κᾰλή, neuter κᾰλόν); first/second declension[1] Boeotian καλϝός (kalwós) (6th century BC); Aeolic κάλος.[2]

Etymology

The Attic form, with a short α, and the Ionic one, with a long α, both go back to καλϝός (kalwós), which is attested in Boeotian.[3][2] Wiktionary considers it probably from Proto-Indo-European *kal-wo-s, formed from *kal- (“beautiful”).[1] Wackernagel saw an older first member *καλι- (*kali-) in Sanskrit कल्याण (kalyā́ṇa, “beautiful”), while Beekes leaves the origin open.[3]

The geminate -λλ- of κάλλος (kállos), καλλίων (kallíōn), κάλλιστος (kállistos) and the first member of compounds is unexplained.[3][4] Schwyzer derived it from a form before a vowel,[3][4] and Risch and Seiler proposed that a neuter comparative *κάλλον (*kállon) was taken for a positive and gave a new comparative and the noun.[3][4] Chantraine finds this more plausible, while Beekes rejects the idea of expressive gemination as ad hoc.[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Homer uses it for beautiful persons, often in the phrase καλός τε μέγας τε “handsome and tall”, and for fine clothes, arms and places.[2][5][6]

Semantic evolution

It was a general word of praise: beautiful in appearance, then good in quality, useful or pleasing; a favourable wind, auspicious sacrifices, genuine coin.[5] In Homer the neuter already has a moral sense, “fitting, honourable”, and later τὸ καλόν is moral beauty, the noble.[2] The phrase καλὸς κἀγαθός became καλοκἀγαθός (kalokagathós), the ideal of the gentleman.[7][1]

Medieval Greek used it for good, virtuous and honest, and the modern Modern Greek καλός (kalós) still means beautiful, of good quality and morally good.[8][9]

Timeline

  • Homer – The Iliad and the Odyssey use it of beautiful persons and things, and the neuter of what is fitting.[2][5]
  • 6th century BC – A Boeotian inscription has καλϝός.[2]
  • 6th–5th century BC – Aeschylus uses it of auspicious sacrifices.[5][10]
  • 5th–4th century BC – Xenophon uses it of genuine coin.[5][10]
  • Modern Greek – Modern Greek καλός (kalós) means beautiful, good and morally good.[9]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Beautiful, handsome, of persons, gods and animals.[5][2]
  2. Beautiful, fine, of places, created things and voices.[5]
  3. Good, excellent, fine, in quality or usefulness.[5]
  4. Of a wind, favourable; of sacrifices, auspicious; of coin, genuine.[5]
  5. In a moral sense, noble, honourable, and as a noun, τὸ καλόν, moral beauty, virtue.[2]
  6. (neuter, impersonal) It is a good time to do something.[5]

Word family

  • κάλλιστος (kállistos)
  • καλλίων (kallíōn)
  • καλόγηρος (kalógēros)
  • καλόπους (kalópous)
  • καλοκἀγαθός (kalokagathós)
  • κάλλος (kállos)

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  4. ^ a b c d Chantraine, Pierre (2009), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: histoire des mots, new ed. with a supplement (Chroniques d'étymologie grecque 1–10), Paris: Klincksieck
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  6. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
  7. ^ Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
  8. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
  9. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
  10. ^ a b Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge