English
Orpheus
Orpheus comes from Ancient Greek Ὀρφεύς.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὈρφεύςOrpheús
- EnglishtodayOrpheus
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEὈρφεύςOrpheús
- EnglishtodayOrpheus
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₃erbʰ- ‘to change allegiance, status, ownership’
through Proto-Indo-European *h₃órbʰos ‘orphan’
Today it means
name A Thracian musician and poet, who failed to retrieve his wife Eurydice from Hades.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek Ὀρφεύς / Orpheus