Etymologically
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chiro

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Forms

chiro m (definite articulation chirolu)[1]

  • Masculine, without a plural.[2][3]
  • Other spellings: kiro and chero in Wiktionary;[1] KIRÓ in Papahagi's dictionary, with the older kiróŭ from the Dimonie codex;[3][4] chiro in Dalametra's Romanian-based spelling;[5] κιρό and καιρό (kiró, kairó) in the Greek script of Nikolaidis;[6] Pascu has chero from Boiagi and chiroù from Pericle Papahagi.[7]
  • Regional forms: ḱi'ro in the Ohrid–Struga area.[8]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Modern Greek καιρός (kairós, “time; weather”).[3][7][1] The Modern Greek word means both the weather and time,[9] and continues Ancient Greek καιρός (kairós, “right measure; decisive moment; season”), found from Hesiod on.[10][11]

Its origin is uncertain: Beekes lists connections with κείρω (keírō, “to cut”), the word then meaning a decisive moment, with κεράννυμι (keránnumi, “to mix”), as an atmospheric mixture, and with κύρω (kúrō, “to meet”), which is phonetically difficult.[11] Babiniotis gives the same proposals.[12] Pascu compares Albanian kero,[7] and Wiktionary notes an archaic qëro (“time”) that may be related to the Greek word or borrowed from it.[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The oldest dated forms are in Boiagi's grammar of 1813, as Pascu cites it: chero "time", with the adverb unu chero "once, formerly".[7]

Semantic evolution

In Ancient Greek the word meant the right measure and the decisive moment, then a season and time in general.[11][12] Medieval Greek used it for the right moment and an appointed time,[13] and in Modern Greek it means the weather.[9] Aromanian has both: time, the time something takes, and the state of the weather;[14][3] also an era and a moment.[1] Papahagi quotes nu-i kirólu di 'nă-oáră "it is not the time it once was".[4] Figuratively it also means a long time, and a state of things.[2]

Timeline

  • 1813 – chero “time” and unu chero “formerly” in Boiagi's grammar, as Pascu cites them.[7]
  • 1906 – chiro “time, weather” in Dalametra's dictionary.[5]
  • 1909 – κιρό “time” in Nikolaidis's dictionary.[6]
  • 1925 – Pascu derives it from Greek καιρός.[7]

Meanings

Noun

  1. time; the time something takes.[1][14][3]
  2. The weather.[1][14][3]
  3. An era, epoch; a moment.[1][3]
  4. (figurative) A long time; a state of things.[2]
  • Modern Greek καιρός (kairós)

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c Cunia, Tiberius (2008), Dictsiunar a limbãljei armãneascã, Editsii Timpurarã (after T. Papahagi, Ș. Mihăileanu and I. Dalametra; online at dixionline.net), p. 296
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Papahagi, Tache (1974), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, 2nd augmented ed., București: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, p. 716
  4. ^ a b Papahagi, Tache (1963), Dicționarul dialectului aromân, general și etimologic, București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare Romîne, p. 608
  5. ^ a b Dalametra, I. (1906), Dicționar macedo-român, București: Academia Română, p. 53
  6. ^ a b Νικολαΐδης, Κωνσταντίνος (1909), Ετυμολογικόν λεξικόν της κουτσοβλαχικής γλώσσης, Αθήνα, p. 184
  7. ^ a b c d e f Pascu, Giorge (1925), Dictionnaire étymologique macédoroumain, 2 vols. (I: Les éléments latins et romans; II: Les éléments grecs, turcs, slaves, albanais, germaniques, magyars, néologismes, créations immédiates, obscurs), Iași: Cultura Națională, p. 2, 27
  8. ^ Марковиќ, Марјан (2007), Ароманскиот и македонскиот говор од охридско-струшкиот регион (во балкански контекст), Скопје, p. 53
  9. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
  10. ^ Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
  11. ^ 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
  12. ^ a b Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας, p. 610
  13. ^ Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
  14. ^ a b c Cunia, Tiberius (2008), Dictsiunar a limbãljei armãneascã, Editsii Timpurarã (after T. Papahagi, Ș. Mihăileanu and I. Dalametra; online at dixionline.net)