Hieratic professional term. Semantically related and formally comparable is νεωκόρος (neōkóros, “custodian of a temple”). Here ζα- may stand for δα-, as in ζάπεδον (zápedon) for δάπεδον (dápedon, “floor”). Then this word could be related to κορέω (koréō, “to sweep”) and thus meaning "cleaner of the house". However, this seems rather doubtful. According to Beekes, the word must in any case be Aeolic.
It is explainable as a Semitic borrowing, attested in Jewish Palestinian Aramaic זכורא / ܙܟܘܪܐ (zakkūrā, “soothsayer, necromancer”), Akkadian 𒊓𒆠𒊒 (sa-qi₂-ru /zākiru, sāqiru/, “one who invokes (names)”), which, also rendered דכורא (dakkūrā) to appear more genuinely Aramaic (Proto-Semitic *ḏ regularly gives Akkadian and Hebrew z but Aramaic d), is a reinterpretation rare in Akkadian itself after the cultically relevant root *ḏ-k-r (“recollection, commemoration”), from Akkadian 𒊓𒄭𒊒 (sa-ḫi-ru /sāḫiru/, “encircling, ensnaring; a kind of sorcerer; itinerant, tramp, peddler”), which relates to the Arabic س ح ر (s-ḥ-r) “bewitching”.
ζᾰ́κορος • (zákoros) m or f (genitive ζᾰκόρου); second declension
| Case / # | Singular | Dual | Plural | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ὁ, ἡ ζᾰ́κορος ho, hē zákoros |
τὼ ζᾰκόρω tṑ zakórō |
οἱ, αἱ ζᾰ́κοροι hoi, hai zákoroi | ||||||||||
| Genitive | τοῦ, τῆς ζᾰκόρου toû, tês zakórou |
τοῖν ζᾰκόροιν toîn zakóroin |
τῶν ζᾰκόρων tôn zakórōn | ||||||||||
| Dative | τῷ, τῇ ζᾰκόρῳ tôi, têi zakórōi |
τοῖν ζᾰκόροιν toîn zakóroin |
τοῖς, ταῖς ζᾰκόροις toîs, taîs zakórois | ||||||||||
| Accusative | τὸν, τὴν ζᾰ́κορον tòn, tḕn zákoron |
τὼ ζᾰκόρω tṑ zakórō |
τοὺς, τᾱ̀ς ζᾰκόρους toùs, tā̀s zakórous | ||||||||||
| Vocative | ζᾰ́κορε zákore |
ζᾰκόρω zakórō |
ζᾰ́κοροι zákoroi | ||||||||||
| Notes: |
| ||||||||||||