γένος

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From Proto-Hellenic *génos, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os (“genus, clan, family”), from *ǵenh₁- (“to give birth”) (whence γίγνομαι (gígnomai)). Cognate with Latin genus, Sanskrit जनस् (jánas), Old Armenian ծին (cin) and others.

Pronunciation

Noun

γένος • (génos) n (genitive γένεος or γένους); third declension

1. race, stock, kin
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 13.354:

     ἀμφοτέροισιν ὁμὸν γένος ἠδ᾽ ἴα πάτρη

     amphotéroisin homòn génos ēd᾽ ía pátrē

   1. direct descent, as opposed to collateral relationship
      • 4th century BC, Isaeus, Ciron 33:

        γένος γὰρ ἀλλ᾽ οὐχὶ συγγένεια τοῦτ᾽ ἐστίν

        génos gàr all᾽ oukhì sungéneia toût᾽ estín

2. offspring, descendant
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 6.180:

     ἣ δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἔην θεῖον γένος οὐδ᾽ ἀνθρώπων

     hḕ d᾽ ár᾽ éēn theîon génos oud᾽ anthrṓpōn

   1. (collective) offspring, posterity
      • 460 BCE – 395 BCE, Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War 1.126.11:

        ἐκεῖνοί τε ἐκαλοῦντο καὶ τὸ γένος τὸ ἀπ᾽ ἐκείνων

        ekeînoí te ekaloûnto kaì tò génos tò ap᾽ ekeínōn

3. (in general) race of beings
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 12.23:

     ἡμιθέων γένος ἀνδρῶν

     hēmithéōn génos andrôn

   1. family, clan, house
      • 460 BCE – 420 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 1.35.1:

        Φρὺξ μὲν γενεῇ, γένεος δὲ τοῦ βασιληΐου

        Phrùx mèn geneêi, géneos dè toû basilēḯou

   2. tribe, nation, race, as a subdivision of ἔθνος (éthnos)
      • 460 BCE – 420 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 1.56.1
   3. caste
      • 460 BCE – 420 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 2.164.1:

        ἔστι δὲ Αἰγυπτίων ἑπτὰ γένεα

        ésti dè Aiguptíōn heptà génea

        The Egyptians are divided into seven classes

   4. breed of animals
      • 460 BCE – 420 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 4.29
4. age, generation, time of life
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 3.215:

     γένει ὕστερος

     génei hústeros

5. sex, gender
   • 385 BCE – 380 BCE, Plato, Symposium 189d
   1. (grammar) grammatical gender
6. class, sort, kind
   • 430 BCE – 354 BCE, Xenophon, Cynegeticus 3.1:

     Τὰ δὲ γένη τῶν κυνῶν διττά

     Tà dè génē tôn kunôn dittá

     The hounds used are of two kinds

   1. (logic) the opposite of εἶδος (eîdos, “species”)
      • 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, Metaphysics 1059β.36:

        τὰ γένη δ᾽ εἰς εἴδη πλείω καὶ διαφέροντα διαιρεῖται

        tà génē d᾽ eis eídē pleíō kaì diaphéronta diaireîtai

   2. (taxonomy) class
      • 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, History of Animals 1.6.490b.7
      1. (taxonomy) genus
         • 384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, History of Animals 1.1.487b.17:

           τὸ τῶν καρκίνων γένος

           tò tôn karkínōn génos

      2. species of plant; crop, produce; material
         • 371 BCE – 287 BCE, Theophrastus, Enquiry into Plants 4.8.13
         • PTeb. 66.43:

           ἄλλοις γένεσι τοῖς πρὸς πυρὸν διοικουμένοις

           állois génesi toîs pròs puròn dioikouménois

   3. element
      • 360 BCE, Plato, Timaeus 54b

Declension

Related terms

Descendants

• → Aramaic: גניסא, גנסא
• Greek: γένος (génos)

References

• “γένος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “γένος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889) An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• γένος in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• γένος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• Bauer lexicon
• G1085 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible

Greek

Etymology

From Ancient Greek γένος (génos). Also see γίγνομαι (gígnomai, “I am born”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʝenos/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: γέ‧νος

Noun

γένος • (génos) n (plural γένη)

1. family
2. nation
3. (taxonomy, biology) genus
4. (grammar) gender (masculine, feminine, etc)
5. maiden name, née

   Η Ελένη Παπαδοπούλου, το γένος Μενεγάκη.

   I Eléni Papadopoúlou, to génos Menegáki.

   Eleni Papadopoulou née Menegaki.

Declension

Coordinate terms

Related terms

• -γενής (-genís)
• γενεά f (geneá, “generation”)
• γενεαλογία f (genealogía, “genealogy”)
• γένεση f (génesi, “birth, beginning”)
• γενέσθαι (genésthai)
• γενεσιουργός (genesiourgós)
• γενετικός (genetikós, “genetic”)
• γενιά f (geniá, “generation”)
• γόνος m (gónos, “offspring”)

and see

• γέννα f (génna, “birth”)
• γεννάω (gennáo, “I give birth”)
• γέννηση f (génnisi, “birth”)
• γίνομαι (gínomai, “Ι become”)

Further reading

• Γένος (βιολογία) on the Greek Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^el