ἐγείρω

Forms

ἐγείρω (egeírō) ^[1] Future ἐγερῶ (egerô), aorist ἤγειρα (ḗgeira) (epic ἔγειρα (égeira)), passive aorist ἠγέρθην (ēgérthēn); intransitive perfect ἐγρήγορα (egrḗgora) “be awake”, and the poetic middle aorist ἔγρετο (égreto), infinitive ἐγρέσθαι (egrésthai).^[2][3] Aeolic infinitive ἐγέρρην (egérrēn).^[3][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Proto-Hellenic *egéřřō, inherited from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ger- (“to wake up”).^[1][4][5] The old part of the verb is the perfect ἐγρήγορα (egrḗgora) “I am awake”, which matches the perfect of Sanskrit जागृ (jāgṛ, “to be awake”) and goes back to a reduplicated *h₁ge-h₁gor-.^[4][6][7] The /r/ of its first syllable probably came from the aorist ἐγρέσθαι (egrésthai).^[4][7][6] Chantraine thinks the present ἐγείρω was made on the aorist ἔγρετο (égreto), and he holds a link with Latin expergīscor (“to wake up”) probable, while Beekes calls it uncertain.^[7][4] The verb has also been compared with Albanian ngre (“to raise”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Homer uses it for to wake someone from sleep, in the middle and passive for to wake up, as when a man rose from his sleep in the Iliad, and for to rouse warriors and stir up battle.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

In Homer, Hesiod and Herodotus it also means to rouse, stir up: the fighting spirit, a battle, war.^[3][2] In the passive Herodotus uses it of storms and wars that arise.^[2] Poets use it to waken the lyre and a song, to raise a lament or a shout, and to rekindle torches or ancient glory, and Theocritus says poverty awakens the crafts.^[2][3] Hyperides and Callimachus use it to raise a building.^[3][2]

In the New Testament it has the senses to wake, to raise up a person who is sitting or has fallen, to rebuild the temple, and above all to raise from the dead, with the passive “be raised, rise again”.^[8][3][2] Plotinus uses it of waking out of the body into oneself.^[3] The derived γρηγορέω (grēgoréō) “to watch”, made from the perfect, is the source of the name Γρηγόριος (Grēgórios).^[1] Modern Greek εγείρω (egíro) is a learned verb in fixed legal and formal expressions, such as to raise claims or bring a lawsuit, and the military command “rise!”.^[9]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad uses it for waking from sleep and for rousing the battle.^[3][2]
• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod uses it for rousing and stirring up.^[10][2]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus uses it in the passive for waking and of wars that arise.^[2][3]
• 4th century BC – Hyperides uses it for raising a building.^[3]
• 1st century AD – The New Testament uses it for raising the dead.^[8][3]
• 3rd century AD – Plotinus uses it for waking out of the body into oneself.^[3]
• Modern Greek – Modern Greek εγείρω (egíro) survives in legal expressions such as bringing a lawsuit.^[9]

Meanings

Verb

1. To awaken, rouse from sleep.^[3][2]
2. (middle and passive) To wake up;^[3][2] (perfect ἐγρήγορα) to be awake, be watchful.^[3][2]
3. To stir up, rouse to action: a person, courage, battle or war;^[3][2] (passive) to arise, break out.^[3][2]
4. To raise or start a sound: a song, a lament, a shout.^[2]
5. To revive, rekindle: a fire, a torch, old glory.^[2]
6. To raise, erect a building.^[3][2]
7. To raise up a person who is sitting, lying or fallen.^[8]
8. (New Testament) To raise from the dead;^[8] (passive) to rise again.^[8][2]

Word family

• ἀνεγείρω (anegeírō)
• γρηγορέω (grēgoréō)
• διεγείρω (diegeírō)
• ἐξεγείρω (exegeírō)
• ἐπεγείρω (epegeírō)
• ἐγρήγορος (egrḗgoros)

Related words

• Γρηγόριος (Grēgórios)
• ἔγερσις (égersis)
• ἐγερτικός (egertikós)
• ἐγρήγορσις (egrḗgorsis)
• Latin expergīscor

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 j k l m n o p q r s t Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c d e 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. ^ Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert
6. ^ a b Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
7. ^ a b c Chantraine, Pierre (2009), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: histoire des mots, new ed. with a supplement (Chroniques d'étymologie grecque 1–10), Paris: Klincksieck
8. ^ a b c d e 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 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