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ἱερός (v. sub fin.), ά, όν, also ός, όν in the phrase
A.“ἱερὸς ἀκτή” Hes. Op.597, 805, Orac. ap. Hdt.8.77: Ion. and poet. ἱρός , ή, όν (v. sub fin.): Dor. and N. Greek ἱα^ρός IG22.1126.20, etc.: Aeol. ἶρος Sapph.Supp.23.25, Alc.Supp.8.4, but ἴαρος (corr. from ἴερ-) Sapph. Supp.20a.6: Sup. “ἱερώτατος” Ar.Eq.582 (lyr.), Pl.Lg.755e.
I. filled with or manifesting divine power, supernatural, “ἱ. ἲς Τηλεμάχοιο” Od.2.409, al.; “ἱ. μένος Ἀλκινόοιο” 8.421, etc.; ἄλφιτον, ἀλωαί, Il.11.631, 5.499; “Δημήτερος ἱερὸς ἀκτή” Hes.Op.Il.c.; of natural objects or phenomena, rivers, Od.10.351, Il.11.726, E.Med.410 (lyr.); λιβάς, of the Spercheus, S.Ph.1215 (lyr.); ἱεραὶ βῆσσαι Κίρκης 'faery', Od.10.275; ἱ. ἦμαρ, κνέφας, Il.8.66, 11.194; “φάος” Hes.Op. 339; ἱερὸς δίφρος (where δ. perh.= ἵπποι) Il.17.464; after Hom., “ἱ. χεῦμα θαλάσσης” A.Fr.192 (anap.); “ἱ. κῦμα” E.Hipp.1206, cf. Cyc. 265; “ὄμβρος” S.OT1428; “δρόσοι” E.Ion117 (lyr.); ὕπνος, of death, Call.Epigr.11; ἔστι μὲν οὐδὲν ἱ. no great matter, Theoc.5.22.
II. of divine things, holy, “ἱεροῖς ἐν δώμασι Κίρκης” Od.10.426; “ἱ. γένος ἀθανάτων” Hes.Th.21; λέχος, of Zeus, ib.57; δόσις the gift of God, ib. 93; πόλεμος holy war, 'crusade', Ar.Av.556, etc.
2. of earthly things, hallowed, consecrated, “βωμοί” Il.2.305; ἱ. δόμος, of the temple of Athena, 6.89; “ἱ. ἑκατόμβη” 1.99,431, etc.; “ἐλαίη” Od.13.372; “χοαί” S.OC469, etc.; ἱρὰ γράμματα hieroglyphics, Hdt.2.36; but ἱ. γράμματα of the Holy Scriptures, 2 Ep.Tim.3.15; “ἱ. βύβλοι” OGI56.70 (Canopus, iii B.C.); ἱ. ἄγαλμα, τρίπους, S.OT1379, E.Ion512, etc.; “χρήματα” Pl.R.568d, etc.; “ἱ. τὸ σῶμα τῷ θεῷ δίδωμ᾽ ἔχειν” E.Ion 1285; ἱ. σώματα, of ἱερόδουλοι, Str.6.2.6; “χῆνες” Plu.2.325c; of animals regarded as 'taboo', [“κριοί] εἰσί σφι ἱ. διὰ τοῦτο” Hdt.2.42; so perh. “ἱ. ἰχθύς” Il.16.407; of the Roman Tribunes,= Lat. sacrosanctus, “ἱ. καὶ ἄσυλος” Plu.TG15, etc.; of Augustus, Mon.Anc.Gr. 5.17; ἱ. νόμος law of sacrifice, D.21.35, cf. SIG685.81 (ii B.C.); ἱ. λόγος legend, Hdt.2.81, etc.; “οἱ παλαιοὶ καὶ ἱ. λόγοι” Pl.Ep.335a; ἱ. γάμος mystical marriage, a religious ceremony, Men.320, Phot. s.v.; opp. βέβηλος, as sacred to profane, D.H.7.8, AB223; but more freq. “ἱ. καὶ ὅσιος” Th.2.52, X.Vect.5.4, etc.; cf. ὅσιος.
3. under divine protection, freq. of places, “Ἴλιος” Il.5.648, Alc.Supp.8.4; “Πύλος” Od. 21.108; “Θήβη” Sapph.Supp.20a.6; Τροίης ἱερὸν πτολίεθρον, Τροίης ἱερὰ κρήδεμνα, Od.1.2, Il.16.100; “Ἀθῆναι” Od.11.323, cf. Pi.Fr.75, S. Aj.1221 (lyr.), Ps.-Orac. ap. Ar.Eq.1037; “Σούνιον ἱρόν” Od.3.278; ἱ. κύκλος the judge's seat under the protection of Zeus, Il.18.504: with gen. of the divinity, ἄλσος ἱρὸν Ἀθηναίης, ἄντρον ἱρὸν νυμφάων, Od.6.322, 13.104, cf. Hdt.1.80,2.41, Ar.Pl.937, X.An.5.3.13, etc.; “γῆ καὶ ἑστία ἱερὰ πᾶσι πάντων θεῶν” Pl.Lg.955e; χωρίον ὡς -ώτατον ib.755e, cf. Ti.45a; with gen. of a human being, “Γναθίου . . ἱ. εἰμι” IG12.920.
b. of persons, “φυλάκων ἱ. τέλος” Il.10.56; “ἱ. πυλαωροί” 24.681; “στρατός” Od.24.81; “βασιλέες” Pi.P.5.97; ἱ. εὐσεβής τε, of Oedipus, S.OC287; ἅνθρωπος ἱ. initiated, Ar.Ra.652; c. gen. of a divinity, deuoted, dedicated, E.Alc.75, Pl.Phd.85b.
c. under the Roman Empire,= sacer, imperial, “ἐκ τῶν ἱερῶν τοῦ Καίσαρος γραμμάτων” IGRom.4.571 (Aezani, ii A.D.); ὁ -ώτατος φίσκος, τὸ -ώτατον ταμιεῖον, ib.3.727 (Lycia), SIG888.10 (Scaptopara, iii A.D.), etc.; τὸ -ώτατον βῆμα (of the praefectus Aegypti), PHamb.4.8 (i A.D.): generally, worshipful, “ἱ. σύνοδος” OGI713.9 (Egypt, iii A.D.), etc.
III. as Subst.,
1. ἱερά , Ion. ἱρά , τά, offerings, victims, “ἱερὰ ῥέξας” Il.1.147, etc.; “ἔρδειν” Hes.Op.336; “διδόναι” Od.16.184; “ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γε δέκτο μὲν ἱρά” Il.2.420, cf. 23.207: less freq. in sg., “ὄφρ᾽ ἱρὸν ἑτοιμασσαίατ᾽ Ἀθήνῃ” 10.571; “θῦσαι ἱρά” Hdt.1.59, 8.54, etc.; “θυσίας καὶ ἱρὰ ποιέειν” Id.2.63; “αἴθειν” S. Ph.1033; “ἱ. πατρῷα” A.Th.1015; “ἱ. ἐπιχώρια” Democr.259.
b. after Hom., omens afforded by sacrifice, “τὰ ἱρὰ οὐ προεχώρεε χρηστά” Hdt. 5.44; τὰ ἱερὰ καλὰ [ἦν] X.An.1.8.15; simply οὐκ ἐγίγνετο τὰ ἱ. ib. 2.2.3.
c. generally, sacred objects or rites, Hdt.1.172,4.33; “τῶν ὑμετέρων ἱ. καὶ κοινῶν μετεῖχον” D.57.3; of cult-images, IG Rom.3.800 (syllium).
2. after Hom., ἱερόν , Ion. ἱρόν , τό, holy place, Hdt.5.119,al.; opp. νηός, Id.2.170, cf. Th.4.90,5.18; freq. of a temple, ἔστι δὲ ἐν τῷ τεμένεϊ . . ἱρόν κτλ. Hdt.2.112; of the Jewish temple, LXX 1 Ch.29.4, Plb.16.39.4, Str.16.2.34, Ev.Matt.24.1.
3. ἱερὸν τῆς δίκης a sacred principle of right, E.Hel.1002.
4. ἱερός , ὁ (sc. μήν), name of month at Delos, IG12.377.22, 11(2).203A31 (iii B.C.).
5. ἱεροί, οἱ, members of a religious college or guild, ib.5(1).1390.1, al. (Andania, i B.C.), prob. in SIG1010.7 (Chalcedon), etc.; also of women, ἱεραί , αἱ, IG5(1). l.c., cf. 1511 (Sparta).
b. = ἱερόδουλος, ib. 1356 (Messenia, V B.C.), Inscr.Perg.572, GDI5702.39 (Samos).
IV. special phrases, post-Hom.,
1. prov., ἱ. ἄγκυρα one's last hope, Plu. 2.815d, Luc.JTr.51, Fug.13, Poll.1.93, Gal.11.182.
2. ἱ. βόλος, name of a throw at dice, Eub.57.1.
3. ἱ. βοτάνη, v. βοτάνη.
4. ἱ. (sc. γραμμή) (cf. “γραμμή” 111.1), last line of draught-board, “κινήσαις τὸν ἀπ᾽ ἴρας . . λίθον” Alc.82, cf. Epich.225, Sophr.127; τὴν ἀφ᾽ ἱερᾶς (v.l. τὴν ἱεράν) Plu.Cor.32.
5. ἱ. ἰχθύς,= ἀνθίας, Arist.HA 620b35, cf. Ath.7.282e, Plu.2.981d.
6. ἱ. λόχος, v. λόχος.
7. ἱερά (sc. νίκη), ἡ, drawn contest, dead heat (because the prize was assigned to the god), SIG1073.48 (Olymp.); ποιῆσαι ἱεράν, of the competitor, Wood Ephesus, App.vi p.70; so “ἱ. ἀθλήματα” Inscr.Olymp.56; “ἱερὸς ὁ στέφανος ἐκρίθη” IG9(2).525 (Larissa); τὸ παγκράτιον ἱ. ἐγένετο ib.527 (ibid.); ἱερός (sc. ἀγών) ib.7.2727.19, 24 (Acraeph.): metaph., ἱερὸν ποιῆσαι τὸν στέφανον 'divide the honours', Plb.1.58.5, 29.8.9.
8. ἱ. νόσος epilepsy, Hdt.3.33, Hp.Morb. Sacr.tit., Thphr.HP9.11.3, etc., cf. Call.Aet.3.1.14: metaph., “τὴν οἴησιν ἱ. νόσον ἔλεγε” Heraclit.46 ( = Epicur.Fr.224).
9. ἡ ἱ. ὁδός the sacred road to Delphi, Hdt.6.34; also, from Athens to Eleusis, Cratin. 61, Paus.1.36.3, Harp. s.v.; and that from Elis to Olympia, Paus. 5.25.7.
10. ἱ. ὀστέον, os sacrum, the last bone of the spine, Hp. Art.45, Plu.2.981d, Gal.UP5.8, etc.
11. ἱ. συμβουλή sacred duty of an adviser, Pl.Ep.321c, X.An.5.6.4, cf. Pl.Thg.122b, Luc.Rh.Pr. 1.
12. ἱ. σῦριγξ spinal canal, Poll.2.180.
13. ἱερὰ τριήρης, of the Delian ship, or one of the state-ships (Salaminia or Paralos), D.4.34.
14. freq. in geographical names, e.g. ἱ ἄκρα, in Lycia, Str. 14.3.8; ἱ. ἀκρωτήριον, in Spain, Cape St. Vincent, Id.2.4.3; ἱ. κώμη, in Lydia, Plb.16.1.8; ἱ. νῆσος, one of the Liparean group, Th.3.88; one of the insulae Aegates, Plb.1.60.3.
V. Adv. -ρῶς holily, ἀποθανεῖν v.l. in Plu.Lyc.27. [ι^ by nature, but sts. ι_ in Ep., esp. in endings of hexameters, ἱ. ἰχθύς, ἱ. ἦμαρ, ἱερὰ ῥέξας, ἀλφίτου ἱεροῦ ἀκτή, Il.16.407, 8.66, 1.147, 11.631; ι_ερόν in the first foot of a hex., Theoc.5.22; also in compds. ἱεραγωγός, ἱεροθαλλής, ἱερόφωνος: ι_ always in contr. form ἱρός wh. is used in Ep., Hdt., and some Ion. inscrr., as IG12(8).265.9 (Thasos), cf. Semon.7.56, Herod.4.79, al., but is rarely found in codd. of Hp. (never in Heraclit. or Democr.); also in Trag., A.Th.268, etc., but never required by metre in lyr. of Com.]
Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott. A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by. Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1940.

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  • Cross-references in general dictionaries from this page (119):
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