σωτηρία

Forms

σωτηρῐ́ᾱ (sōtēríā) f (genitive σωτηρῐ́ᾱς); first declension^[1] Ionic σωτηρίη.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek σωτήρ (sōtḗr, “saviour”) + -ία (-ía, “abstract noun suffix”).^[1][4] The agent noun σωτήρ (sōtḗr) belongs to the verb σῴζω (sṓizō, “to save”), which is derived from the adjective σῶς (sôs, “safe, sound”), epic σάος (sáos).^[4]

Beekes traces all these forms to Proto-Greek *σάϝος (*sáwos), seen in the Cypriot name Σαϝοκλέϝης (Sawokléwēs); it is probably a thematized Proto-Indo-European *tuéh₂-u-s, from a root meaning “to be strong”, but the link with σῶμα (sôma) is quite uncertain.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Aeschylus, in the sense of deliverance, safety: in the Persians and the Seven against Thebes it is rescue from danger in war.^[2][5][3]

Semantic evolution

In Classical Greek it is safety and rescue, the means of being saved, a safe return home, and the preservation of something: of buildings, cities, laws and constitutions in Herodotus, Plato and Aristotle.^[3][2] In Ptolemaic papyri people swore by a person's safety, and in imperial Egypt ὑπὲρ σωτηρίας rendered the Latin “for the welfare of the Emperor”.^[2]

In the Septuagint and the New Testament it became “salvation”: God is “the God of my salvation”, and the gospel is “the gospel of salvation”, deliverance from sin and eternal death.^[2][6][3] Modern Greek keeps the learned σωτηρία (sotiría), both rescue from danger and salvation of the soul.^[7]

Timeline

• 6th–5th century BC – Aeschylus uses it for deliverance and for a safe return home.^[2][8]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it for preservation, and Thucydides for a safe return.^[2][3]
• 5th–4th century BC – Plato uses it for the preservation of laws and life.^[3]
• 3rd century BC – Zenon papyri record oaths by a person's safety.^[2]
• 3rd–2nd century BC – The Septuagint uses it for salvation by God.^[2]
• 1st century AD – The New Testament uses it for salvation from sin and death.^[6][2]
• Modern Greek – The learned σωτηρία (sotiría) continues both senses.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. Deliverance, rescue; safety.^[2][3]
2. A way or means of safety.^[2][3]
3. A safe return, home or to a place.^[2][3]
4. Keeping safe, preservation (of buildings, cities, laws); a safeguard.^[2][3]
5. (Septuagint, New Testament) Salvation, deliverance from sin and eternal death.^[2][6][3]

Related words

• σωτήρ (sōtḗr)
• σῴζω (sṓizō)
• σῶς (sôs)

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o 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 i j k Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
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. ^ Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
6. ^ 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
7. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
8. ^ Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge