συγκρητισμός

Forms

συγκρητισμός (sunkrētismós) m (genitive συγκρητισμοῦ); second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Ancient Greek συγκρητίζω (sunkrētízō), “of two parties, to unite against a common enemy”, with the suffix -μός (-mós).^[1][2][3] The verb is made of συν- (sun-) “together” and the name of the Cretans, Κρής (Krḗs), plural Κρῆτες, with the verbal suffix -ίζω (-ízō).^[1][2][4] Plutarch, the only ancient author who uses the noun, explains it from the habit of the Cretans, who often quarrelled and fought among themselves but made peace and joined together whenever an enemy attacked from outside.^[5][6] Wiktionary allows that the verb may be a back-formation, with the noun formed directly from the prefix, the name and -ισμός (-ismós).^[1]

Etymonline reports two other proposals for the second element: a link with κρητίζω (krētízō) “to behave like a Cretan, to lie”, or with the stem of κεράννυμι (keránnumi) “to mix” and κρᾶσις (krâsis) “mixture”.^[7][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Its only ancient record is in Plutarch's essay On Brotherly Love, where it means the union of the Cretan communities, which set aside their feuds to face a common enemy, and Plutarch recommends the same to quarrelling brothers.^[2][5][8]

Semantic evolution

In Plutarch the word means a coalition of two adversaries against a third, named after the Cretans.^[4][6] The verb συγκρητίζω is recorded only in the Etymologicum Magnum.^[2]

The modern sense comes from the 17th century, when German Protestant theologians who tried to reconcile the rival Protestant churches revived the word as Modern Latin syncretismus; it soon took on a contemptuous meaning.^[7] English syncretism (1610s) comes from French syncrétisme and Modern Latin.^[7] Modern Greek took συγκρητισμός (synkritismós) back as a learned word from the French, in the new senses: the blending of religions and cults (especially in the Hellenistic and Roman world), the combining of unlike doctrines in one philosophical system, and, in linguistics, the merger of several case endings in one form.^[9][10]

Timeline

• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses it of the alliance of Cretan communities against a common enemy.^[2][4][11]
• 12th century – The Etymologicum Magnum records the verb συγκρητίζω.^[2]
• 17th century – German Protestant theologians revive it as Modern Latin syncretismus, and English syncretism is recorded from the 1610s.^[7]
• Modern Greek – The word returns as a learned borrowing of French syncrétisme, meaning the blending of religions or doctrines.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. A union or federation of the Cretan communities.^[2][3][12]
2. A coalition of two opponents against a common enemy.^[4][6]

Related words

• συγκρητίζω (sunkrētízō)
• Κρής (Krḗs)
• κρητίζω (krētízō)
• Κρήτη (Krḗtē)
• English syncretism

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 Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
3. ^ a b 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
4. ^ a b c d Bailly, Anatole (2020), Dictionnaire grec-français, Bailly 2020 Hugo Chávez ed., ed. Gérard Gréco et al.
5. ^ a b Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
6. ^ a b c Pape, Wilhelm (1914), Griechisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 3rd ed., rev. Max Sengebusch, Braunschweig: Vieweg
7. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
8. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
9. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
10. ^ Πάπυρος–Larousse–Britannica, Μέγα Λεξικό της Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Athens: Πάπυρος
11. ^ Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
12. ^ Korinthios, J. (2025), Grande Dizionario Greco Classico: Greco–Italiano, digital ed., Milan: Hoepli