ἄμι

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

ἄμμῐ (ámmĭ)

Etymology

Hemmerdinger proposes a derivation from Egyptian ꜥmꜣw (“a kind of medicinal plant”), but, as both the reading and the meaning of that word are uncertain, its status as an etymon is highly questionable.

Pronunciation

(5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /á.mi/
(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈa.mi/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈa.mi/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /ˈa.mi/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈa.mi/

Noun

ἄμῐ • (ámĭ) n (genitive ἄμεως); third declension

ajwain (Trachyspermum ammi)
bisnaga (Visnaga daucoides, syn. Ammi visnaga)

Inflection

Third declension of τὸ ᾰ̓́μῐ; τοῦ ᾰ̓́μεως (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	τὸ ᾰ̓́μῐ tò ắmĭ	τὼ ᾰ̓́μει tṑ ắmei	τᾰ̀ ᾰ̓́μη / ᾰ̓́μεᾰ tằ ắmē / ắmeă
Genitive	τοῦ ᾰ̓́μεως toû ắmeōs	τοῖν ᾰ̓μέοιν toîn ăméoin	τῶν ᾰ̓́μεων tôn ắmeōn
Dative	τῷ ᾰ̓́μει tôi ắmei	τοῖν ᾰ̓μέοιν toîn ăméoin	τοῖς ᾰ̓́μεσῐ / ᾰ̓́μεσῐν toîs ắmesĭ(n)
Accusative	τὸ ᾰ̓́μῐ tò ắmĭ	τὼ ᾰ̓́μει tṑ ắmei	τᾰ̀ ᾰ̓́μη / ᾰ̓́μεᾰ tằ ắmē / ắmeă
Vocative	ᾰ̓́μῐ ắmĭ	ᾰ̓́μει ắmei	ᾰ̓́μη / ᾰ̓́μεᾰ ắmē / ắmeă
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Descendants

→ Latin: ami
→ Translingual: Ammi

References

“ἄμι”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
ἄμι in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
ἄμι in the Diccionario Griego–Español en línea (2006–2025)

^ Hemmerdinger, Bertrand (1968) “Noms Communs Grecs d’Origine Egyptienne” in Glotta, vol. 46, issue 3/4, page 247
^ Pierce, Richard Holton (1971) “Egyptian Loan-words in Ancient Greek” in Symbolae Osloenses, fascicle 46, page 100–101

[1] Hemmerdinger, Bertrand (1968) “Noms Communs Grecs d’Origine Egyptienne” in Glotta, vol. 46, issue 3/4, page 247

[2] Pierce, Richard Holton (1971) “Egyptian Loan-words in Ancient Greek” in Symbolae Osloenses, fascicle 46, page 100–101

ἄμι