σέλας

Ancient Greek

Etymology

Uncertain. Possibly from Pre-Greek with other derivative σελήνη (selḗnē).

Pronunciation

Noun

σέλᾰς • (sélas) n (genitive σέλᾰος); third declension

1. light, brightness, the bright flame or blaze of fire
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 19.366
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 19.375
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 8.563
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 17.739
   • 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 18.353
   • 750 BCE – 650 BCE, Hesiod, The Shield of Heracles 275
   • 522 BCE – 443 BCE, Pindar, Pythian Ode 3.69
   • 458 BCE, Aeschylus, Agamemnon 281
2. shine

Inflection

References

• “σέλας”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• σέλας in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• σέλας in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924) A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910) English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • beam idem, page 66.
  • blaze idem, page 82.
  • brightness idem, page 98.
  • coruscation idem, page 176.
  • flame idem, page 325.
  • flash idem, page 326.
  • glare idem, page 361.
  • gleam idem, page 361.
  • glimmer idem, page 362.
  • glitter idem, page 362.
  • light idem, page 490.
  • lustre idem, page 505.
  • resplendence idem, page 704.
  • sunbeam idem, page 838.

Greek

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈse.las/
• Hyphenation: σέ‧λας

Noun

σέλας • (sélas) n (plural σέλατα) or σέλαα (sélaa): see the ancient declension of σέλας (sélas)

1. lights, aurora

   βόρειο σέλας ― vóreio sélas ― northern lights, aurora borealis

   νότιο σέλας ― nótio sélas ― southern lights, aurora australis

2. shine

Declension

Noun

σέλας • (sélas) f

1. Genitive singular form of σέλα (séla).

Further reading

• σέλας - Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής , 1998, by the "Triantafyllidis" Foundation.