τέλειος

Forms

τέλειος (téleios) m (feminine τελείᾱ, neuter τέλειον); first/second declension^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek τέλος (télos, “end, fulfilment”) + -ιος (-ios).^[1][2] How the suffix was added is much discussed: Beekes considers *τελεσ-ος (*teles-os), *τελεσ-ϝος (*teles-wos) and *τελε-ιος (*tele-ios).^[2] The Πάπυρος dictionary derives it from the stem *τελεσ- (*teles-) of the neuter in -s with the suffix *-yo- (*-yo-), with loss of the /s/, and Babiniotis allows either that suffix or *-ϝο- (*-wo-).^[3][4] Homer has only this form; τέλεος (téleos) is the only form in Herodotus, and there are Cretan τέληος (télēos) and Coan τέλεως (téleōs).^[5][2]

Beekes thinks that the noun has a double origin: in the sense “end, goal” it comes from τέλομαι (télomai), the by-form of πέλομαι (pélomai, “to come to be”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- (“to turn”), and first meant a turning point.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Homer uses it of sacrificial goats, “perfect, without blemish”, and the superlative of the eagle, the bird whose omen is surest to be fulfilled.^[6][5]

Semantic evolution

Of animals and people it means full-grown: Herodotus distinguishes full-grown victims from sucklings, and the grammarian Pausanias says that married people were called τέλειοι, the explanation given for the Hera Teleia of Stymphalus.^[5][7] Of persons it means accomplished, perfect in their kind (Isocrates, Plato), and Aristotle speaks of perfect virtue and friendship and calls the syllogism of the first figure perfect, the others imperfect.^[5][7] In dialect inscriptions it means fully constituted and valid, of an assembly, and authoritative or final.^[5]

In Attic inscriptions only τέλεος is found until the end of the 3rd century BC; τέλειος appears there in the early 2nd century BC, and the papyri use it often.^[5] In the New Testament it means perfect in goodness, of a work, a gift, love, the law, and of people mature in faith.^[8][7] It was borrowed as Coptic ⲧⲉⲗⲉⲓⲟⲥ (teleios), found in manuscripts from 264 AD on in all the main dialects.^[9]

Modern Greek uses τέλειος (téleios), “perfect”, as a learned word; the sense “without defects” was already ancient.^[10][4]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad uses it of unblemished goats and of the eagle as the surest omen.^[6][5]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it of full-grown sacrificial animals.^[5][7]
• 5th–4th century BC – Isocrates and Plato use it of persons perfect in their kind.^[5][7]
• 4th century BC – Aristotle speaks of perfect virtue and of the perfect syllogism.^[5]
• 4th century BC – A Delphic inscription uses it of an assembly with full powers.^[5]
• 2nd century BC – The spelling τέλειος appears in Attic inscriptions.^[5]
• 1st century AD – The New Testament uses it of perfect goodness and of those mature in faith.^[8]
• 3rd century AD – A manuscript of 264 AD is the earliest to have the borrowed Coptic ⲧⲉⲗⲓⲟⲥ (telios).^[9]
• Modern Greek – τέλειος (téleios) is a learned word for “perfect”.^[10][4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Of sacrificial animals, unblemished, perfect.^[6][7]
2. Of omens, sure to be fulfilled (in the superlative).^[6]
3. Of animals and persons, full-grown, adult, mature.^[7][5]
4. Of persons, married.^[5]
5. Complete, accomplished, perfect in kind or quality.^[5][7]
6. (dialects, inscriptions) Fully constituted, valid; authoritative, final.^[5]
7. (New Testament) Perfect in goodness; mature in faith.^[8][7]

Word family

• τελειόω (teleióō)
• τελειότης (teleiótēs)

Related words

• τέλος (télos)
• τελέω (teléō)
• τελήεις (telḗeis)

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d 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
3. ^ Πάπυρος–Larousse–Britannica, Μέγα Λεξικό της Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Athens: Πάπυρος
4. ^ a b c Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d Cunliffe, Richard John (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, London: Blackie and Son
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
8. ^ 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
9. ^ a b Database and Dictionary of Greek Loanwords in Coptic (DDGLC), Freie Universität Berlin and Universität Leipzig
10. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki