Etymologically
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μυριάς

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Pronunciation

  • IPA (5th-century BC Attic): /myː.ri.ás/[1]
  • IPA (4th-century AD Koine): /my.riˈas/[1]
  • IPA (10th-century Byzantine): /my.riˈas/[1]

Forms

μῡρῐᾰ́ς (mūriás) f (genitive μῡρῐᾰ́δος); third declension[1] Boeotian μουριάς.[2]

Etymology

It is derived from μυρίος (muríos, “countless; ten thousand”) with the suffix -άς.[1][3][4] μυρίος has no etymology, according to Beekes.[5] Wiktionary mentions links with a root for “damp”, as of the countless waves, or with μύρμηξ (múrmēx, “ant”), and Etymonline a root for “abundant”.[5][1][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Simonides and Herodotus use it for the number ten thousand.[6][2]

Semantic evolution

It was used in counting men, money (drachmas), and measures of corn.[6][2] From Euripides on it also meant a countless multitude, and as an adjective “innumerable”.[6][2] Archimedes and Diophantus used it as a unit of large numbers, with the “second myriad” for ten thousand times ten thousand.[6][3]

The Septuagint and the New Testament use it for ten thousand and for countless hosts, especially of angels, with the apocalyptic “myriads of myriads” in Revelation.[7][3] Through Late Latin myrias and French it gave English myriad (1550s).[4]

Timeline

  • 6th–5th century BC – Simonides uses it for ten thousand.[6][8]
  • 5th century BC – Herodotus counts men and corn in myriads.[6][2][8]
  • 5th century BC – Euripides uses it of a countless multitude.[6][2][8]
  • 3rd century BC – Archimedes uses it in calculating large numbers.[6][3][8]
  • 1st century AD – Revelation has “myriads of myriads”.[3]
  • 1550s – English myriad.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The number ten thousand, a myriad; of money, ten thousand drachmas.[6][2]
  2. (mathematics) A unit of ten thousand; the second myriad, a hundred million.[6]
  3. A countless number, a multitude.[6][2][3]
  4. (as adjective) Innumerable.[6][2]

Word family

  • μυριάκις (muriákis)
  • μυριακισμυριοστός (muriakismuriostós)
  • μυριάομαι (muriáomai)
  • μυρίος (mūríos)
  • μυριάκις (muriákis)

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 i Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f 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
  4. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b 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
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
  8. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge