λογεῖον

Forms

λογεῖον (logeîon) n (genitive λογείου); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Ancient Greek λογεύς (logeús, “speaker, orator”), a noun of place in ⟨-εῖον⟩, the “speaking-place”.^[2][3][4] λογεύς (logeús) belongs to λόγος (lógos, “word, speech”) and λέγω (légō, “to speak”).^[4][5] The Etymologicum Magnum already explained it from the verb, comparing γραφεῖον (grapheîon) from γράφω (gráphō).^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The earliest record is an inscription from Delos of the 3rd century BC, where it means the stage of a theatre.^[2][4]

Semantic evolution

The Septuagint translators of Exodus took it for the breastpiece of the Jewish high priest, the pouch that held the means of giving oracular decisions, a consistent rendering of one Hebrew term.^[7] Philo uses it in the same sense.^[7][3][8] Montanari notes that the form λόγιον is also used for this sense.^[3]

In the theatre it meant the place in front of the stage building where the actors stood to speak, the Latin pulpitum;^[9][10] Vitruvius took it into Latin as logeum.^[2][11] Pollux lists it as a word for the mouth, and Hesychius records it also as the name of a small mixing bowl.^[2][12][3] Modern Greek has the learned λογείο (logeío), the front part of the stage of an ancient theatre.^[13][14]

Timeline

• 3rd century BC – An inscription from Delos uses it for the stage of a theatre.^[2]
• 3rd century BC – The Septuagint translation of Exodus uses it for the high priest's breastpiece.^[7][8]
• 1st century BC – Vitruvius uses the Latin form logeum for the stage.^[2][11][15]
• 1st century BC to 1st century AD – Philo uses it for the high priest's breastpiece.^[3][8][15]
• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses it for the stage in his Theseus.^[2][5][15]
• 2nd century AD – Pollux lists it as a word for the mouth.^[2][15]
• 5th century AD (probably) – Hesychius glosses it as a small mixing bowl and as the part of the stage where the actors speak.^[12][15]
• Modern Greek – The learned λογείο (logeío) names the front of the stage of an ancient theatre.^[13]

Meanings

Noun

1. A speaking-place; in a theatre, the stage where the actors spoke.^[2][5]
2. Generally, a platform or tribune.^[2][16]
3. (Septuagint) The breastpiece of the Jewish high priest, holding the means of oracular decision.^[7][3]
4. The mouth.^[2][3]
5. A kind of small mixing bowl.^[12][3]

Related words

• λογεύς (logeús)
• λόγος (lógos)
• λόγιον (lógion)
• Latin logeum

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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 g h Montanari, Franco (2015), The Brill Dictionary of Ancient Greek, ed. Madeleine Goh and Chad Schroeder, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c 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
5. ^ a b c Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
6. ^ Gaisford, Thomas, ed. (1848), Etymologicum Magnum, Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b c d Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
8. ^ a b c Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
9. ^ Pape, Wilhelm (1914), Griechisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 3rd ed., rev. Max Sengebusch, Braunschweig: Vieweg
10. ^ Дворецкий, И. Х. (1958), Древнегреческо-русский словарь, Moscow: ГИС
11. ^ a b Saalfeld, Günther Alexander (1874), Index Graecorum vocabulorum in linguam latinam translatorum, Berlin: Weidmann
12. ^ a b c Hesychius of Alexandria, Lexicon, ed. Kurt Latte (Α–Ο, Copenhagen 1953–1966) and Moritz Schmidt (Π–Ω, Jena 1858–1868)
13. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
14. ^ Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
15. ^ a b c d e Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
16. ^ Malhadas, Daisi; Dezotti, Maria Celeste C.; Neves, Maria Helena de Moura, eds. (2006–2010), Dicionário Grego-Português, São Paulo: Ateliê; digital ed. 3 (2022), UNESP Araraquara