How would one say "Pot-plants" in Greek?

Semantic Range, Lexicography, and other approaches to word meaning - in general, or for particular words.
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Stephen Hughes
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Joined: February 26th, 2013, 7:12 am

How would one say "Pot-plants" in Greek?

Post by Stephen Hughes »

I want to describe a patio. It has pot-plants. The two most logical choices for pots are are ἀγγεῖον and δοχεῖον.

μετάρσιος might do as an adjective for raised and ὑποτίθημι βάσεις ὑπό might be good for supporting legs. Hanging would be κρεμαστός. Since the Modern Greek word for fern is φτέρη, the most logical choice for the declension of πτέρις is εως, ἡ.

Any suggestions?
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
Jonathan Robie
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Re: How would one say "Pot-plants" in Greek?

Post by Jonathan Robie »

I assume you mean potted plants? Are you looking for a historically attested term? Did they have potted plants in ancient Greece? I have no idea.
ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ διηποροῦντο, ἄλλος πρὸς ἄλλον λέγοντες, τί θέλει τοῦτο εἶναι;
http://jonathanrobie.biblicalhumanities.org/
Stephen Hughes
Posts: 3323
Joined: February 26th, 2013, 7:12 am

Re: How would one say "Pot-plants" in Greek?

Post by Stephen Hughes »

Jonathan Robie wrote:I assume you mean potted plants? Are you looking for a historically attested term? Did they have potted plants in ancient Greece? I have no idea.
Wiki makes this statement:
[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowerpot]Flowerpot[/url] (Wiki article) wrote:In Athens, earthenware flowerpots were thrown into the sea during the festival of the Gardens of Adonis. Theophrastus, c. 371 – c. 287 BC, mentions that a plant called southern-wood was raised and propagated in pots because it was difficult to grow
The reference quoted says this...
Samuel Birch, History of ancient pottery, Volume 1, pages 202-203 (Available on Google Books) wrote:The ancients also appear to have used flower-pots of earthenware, especially in the festival of the Gardens of Adonis celebrated at Athens, in which flowers were suddenly elevated in earthen pots (ἀγγεῖα κεράμεια, -- ὄστρακα -- χύτραι), and then cast into the sea, apparently as a type of the premature death of Adonis.
...
The use use of flower-pots placed at the windows to form an artificial garden was also known.
κεράμειος (ἐπίῤῥημα) - κατεσκευασμένος κεράμου (made of potter's earth / clay), πήλινος (made of clay), ὀστρακινός (earthen, made of clay).
ὄστρακον (ὄνομα) - ἀγγεῖον πήλινον (vessel made of clay) [there are other meanings of this word]
χύτρα (ὄνομα) - ἀγγεῖον πήλινον (vessel made of clay)
Γελᾷ δ' ὁ μωρός, κἄν τι μὴ γέλοιον ᾖ
(Menander, Γνῶμαι μονόστιχοι 108)
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