παράδοξος

Forms

πᾰρᾰ́δοξος (parádoxos) m or f (neuter πᾰρᾰ́δοξον); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound from Ancient Greek παρά (pará, “contrary to”) + δόξα (dóxa, “opinion, expectation”), from the phrase “contrary to expectation”.^[1][2] δόξα (dóxa) is here in its old sense "opinion, belief", from δοκέω (dokéō, “to seem, think”).^[3][4]

The neuter passed into Latin as paradoxum, the source of French paradoxe and English paradox.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Babiniotis dates the word to the 5th century BC, citing Xenophon's Hipparchicus, where the unexpected is said to delight people more if good and terrify them more if dreadful.^[3] Plato speaks of a παράδοξος λόγος, a statement against common opinion, in the Republic.^[5][2]

Semantic evolution

The adjective meant what happens or is said “beyond opinion”: unexpected, incredible, strange.^[3][5] Demosthenes uses ἐκ τοῦ παραδόξου “against all expectation”, and the neuter plural παράδοξα came to name the Stoic paradoxes, doctrines that seem to defy common sense.^[5][3] In the Septuagint and the New Testament the word turns to the marvellous: the crowd in Luke says “we have seen strange things today” after a healing.^[6][7] In Roman times παράδοξος was a title of outstanding athletes, musicians and performers, “the Admirable”.^[5]

Medieval vernacular Greek kept the adjective, and Modern Greek παράδοξος (parádoxos) is its learned continuation.^[8][9] English paradox (1530s) comes from it through Latin and French.^[4]

Timeline

• 5th–4th century BC – Xenophon and Plato use it of what is unexpected or against common belief.^[3][5]
• 4th century BC – Isocrates and Demosthenes use it in their speeches.^[10][5]
• 3rd century BC – Chrysippus and the Stoics call their doctrines παράδοξα.^[5][3]
• 2nd–1st century BC – The Septuagint uses it of unexpected and marvellous events.^[6]
• 1st century AD – The Gospel of Luke uses the neuter plural of wonderful things.^[7]
• 1st–3rd century AD – Inscriptions give it as a title of famous athletes and performers.^[5]
• 1530s – English takes paradox from French and Latin.^[4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Unexpected, contrary to expectation; incredible, strange.^[5][11]
2. Contrary to received opinion; as a noun, τὰ παράδοξα, the Stoic paradoxes.^[5][3]
3. (Koine) Wonderful, marvellous; τὰ παράδοξα, wonders.^[7][6]
4. (Roman period) A title of distinguished athletes and artists, “the Admirable”.^[5]

Word family

• παραδοξολογία (paradoxologíā)

Related words

• δόξα (dóxa)
• ἔνδοξος (éndoxos)
• Latin paradoxum
• English paradox

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Βασικό Λεξικό της Αρχαίας Ελληνικής, Portal for the Greek Language, https://www.greek-language.gr
3. ^ a b c d e f g Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
4. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ 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
6. ^ a b c Lust, Johan; Eynikel, Erik; Hauspie, Katrin (2003), Greek-English Lexicon of the Septuagint, rev. ed., Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft
7. ^ a b c 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
8. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
9. ^ Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
10. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
11. ^ Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press