οἶκος

See also: οίκος and ϝοῖκος

Ancient Greek

Alternative forms

• ϝοῖκος (woîkos)
• ͷοῖκυ (woîku, acc.sg.) — Pamphylian

Etymology

From ϝοῖκος (woîkos), from Proto-Hellenic *wóikos, from Proto-Indo-European *wóyḱos (“settlement”). Cognates include Mycenaean Greek 𐀺𐀒 (wo-ko /⁠wojkos⁠/, “home”), Latin vīcus (whence English wick (“village”)), Proto-Slavic *vьsь (“village”), Sanskrit विश् (víś) and वे॒श (veśá), Gothic 𐍅𐌴𐌹𐌷𐍃 (weihs, “village”), and Albanian vis.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ôi̯.kos/ → /ˈy.kos/ → /ˈi.kos/

• (5^th BCE Attic) IPA^(key): /ôi̯.kos/
• (1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /ˈy.kos/
• (4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /ˈy.kos/
• (10^th CE Medieval) IPA^(key): /ˈy.kos/
• (15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /ˈi.kos/

Noun

οἶκος • (oîkos) m (genitive οἴκου); second declension

1. dwelling place, settlement, house
   • c. 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Iliad 24.471:

     γέρων δ’ ἰθὺς κίεν οἴκου

     gérōn d’ ithùs kíen oíkou

     but the old man went straight toward the house

   • c. 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 23.7:

     ἦλθ’ Ὀδυσεὺς καὶ οἶκον ἱκάνεται

     êlth’ Oduseùs kaì oîkon hikánetai

     Odysseus is here, and has come home

2. room, chamber
   • c. 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 1.356:

     ἀλλ’ εἰς οἶκον ἰοῦσα τὰ σ’ αὐτῆς ἔργα κόμιζε

     all’ eis oîkon ioûsa tà s’ autês érga kómize

     But go to thy chamber, and busy thyself with thine own tasks

3. meeting tent, meeting house, hall, monument
   • 460 BCE – 430 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 8.143
   • 408 BCE, Euripides, The Phoenician Women 1373
   • 423 BCE, Aristophanes, The Clouds 600
   • 70 CE – 90 CE, The Gospel of Matthew 21:13
   • 36 BCE – 30 BCE, Diodorus Siculus, Historical Library 1.51
4. birdcage
   • 36 BCE – 30 BCE, Diodorus Siculus, Historical Library 13.82
   • 175 CE – 235 CE, Claudius Aelianus, On the Nature of Animals 12.7
   • 120 CE – 175 CE, Vettius Valens, Anthology 7.25
   • 300 CE – 500 CE, Book of Sothis 2.141
   • 1115 – 1195, Eustathius Thessalonicensis 162.2
5. estate, inheritance
   • c. 800 BCE – 600 BCE, Homer, Odyssey 2.64:

     οὐδ’ ἔτι καλῶς οἶκος ἐμὸς διόλωλε

     oud’ éti kalôs oîkos emòs diólōle

     and past all that is seemly has my estate been destroyed

6. reigning family
   • 460 BCE – 430 BCE, Herodotus, Histories 5.31.4:

     σὺ ἐς οἶκον τὸν βασιλέος ἐξηγητὴς γίνεαι πρηγμάτων ἀγαθῶν

     sù es oîkon tòn basiléos exēgētḕs gíneai prēgmátōn agathôn

     This plan which you set forth is profitable for the king's house

Usage notes

In Attic law, οἶκος (oîkos, “house”) was all the property left by a person, while οἰκία (oikía, “house”) was the house on that property.

Inflection

Second declension of ὁ οἶκος; τοῦ οἴκου (Attic)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	ὁ οἶκοςho oîkos	τὼ οἴκωtṑ oíkō	οἱ οἶκοιhoi oîkoi
genitive	τοῦ οἴκουtoû oíkou	τοῖν οἴκοινtoîn oíkoin	τῶν οἴκωνtôn oíkōn
dative	τῷ οἴκῳtōî oíkōi	τοῖν οἴκοινtoîn oíkoin	τοῖς οἴκοιςtoîs oíkois
accusative	τὸν οἶκονtòn oîkon	τὼ οἴκωtṑ oíkō	τοὺς οἴκουςtoùs oíkous
vocative	οἶκεoîke	οἴκωoíkō	οἶκοιoîkoi

• This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Second declension of οἶκος; οἴκοιο / οἴκου (Epic)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	οἶκοςoîkos	οἴκωoíkō	οἶκοιoîkoi
genitive	οἴκοιο / οἴκουoíkoio / oíkou	οἴκοιῐ̈νoíkoiĭ̈n	οἴκωνoíkōn
dative	οἴκῳoíkōi	οἴκοιῐ̈νoíkoiĭ̈n	οἴκοισῐ / οἴκοισῐν / οἴκοιςoíkoisĭ(n) / oíkois
accusative	οἶκονoîkon	οἴκωoíkō	οἴκουςoíkous
vocative	οἶκεoîke	οἴκωoíkō	οἶκοιoîkoi

• Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Second declension of ὁ ϝοῖκος; τοῦ ϝοίκω (Laconian)

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	ὁ ϝοῖκοςho woîkos	τὼ ϝοίκωtṑ woíkō	τοὶ ϝοῖκοιtoì woîkoi
genitive	τοῦ ϝοίκωtoû woíkō	τοῖν ϝοίκοινtoîn woíkoin	τῶν ϝοίκωνtôn woíkōn
dative	τῷ ϝοίκῳtōî woíkōi	τοῖν ϝοίκοινtoîn woíkoin	τοῖς ϝοίκοιςtoîs woíkois
accusative	τὸν ϝοῖκονtòn woîkon	τὼ ϝοίκωtṑ woíkō	τὼς ϝοίκωςtṑs woíkōs
vocative	ϝοῖκεwoîke	ϝοίκωwoíkō	ϝοῖκοιwoîkoi

• Dialects other than Attic are not well attested. Some forms may be based on conjecture. Use with caution.

Synonyms

• Synonyms: τέμενος (témenos), δόμος (dómos)

Derived terms

• κάτοικος (kátoikos)
• Μενοικεύς (Menoikeús)
• μύλοικος (múloikos)
• οἰκοβᾰσῐλικόν (oikobăsĭlikón)
• οἰκόβῐος (oikóbĭos)
• οἰκογενής (oikogenḗs)
• οἰκοδέγμων (oikodégmōn)
• οἰκοδέκτωρ (oikodéktōr)
• οἰκοδεσπόζω (oikodespózō)
• οἰκοδέσποινᾰ (oikodéspoină)
• οἰκοδεσπότης (oikodespótēs)
• οἰκοδῐ́αιτος (oikodĭ́aitos)
• οἰκοδομέω (oikodoméō)
• οἰκοδομίᾱ (oikodomíā)
• οἰκοδοχεύς (oikodokheús)
• οἰκόθετος (oikóthetos)
• οἰκόθρεπτος (oikóthreptos)
• οἰκοκερδής (oikokerdḗs)
• οἰκοκρᾰτέομαι (oikokrătéomai)
• οἰκομᾰχῐ́ᾱ (oikomăkhĭ́ā)
• οἰκονομέω (oikonoméō)
• οἰκονόμος (oikonómos)
• οἰκοποιός (oikopoiós)
• οἰκόσῑτος (oikósītos)
• οἰκοσκευή (oikoskeuḗ)
• οἰκοσκοπικόν (oikoskopikón)
• οἰκοσόος (oikosóos)
• οἰκοτρᾰφής (oikotrăphḗs)
• οἴκοτριψ (oíkotrips)
• οἰκότροφος (oikótrophos)
• οἰκοτῠ́ραννος (oikotŭ́rannos)
• οἰκουργός (oikourgós)
• οἰκουρός (oikourós)
• οἰκόφθορος (oikóphthoros)
• οἰκοφόρος (oikophóros)
• οἰκοφῠ́λαξ (oikophŭ́lax)
• οἰκῶνᾰξ (oikônăx)
• οἰκωφελής (oikōphelḗs)
• πᾰ́ροικος (pắroikos)

Related terms

• οἴκᾰδε (oíkăde)
• οἰκᾰ́ρῐον (oikắrĭon)
• οἴκει (oíkei)
• οἰκεῖος (oikeîos)
• οἰκέτης (oikétēs)
• οἰκεύς (oikeús)
• οἰκέω (oikéō)
• οἰκῐ́ᾱ (oikĭ́ā)
• οἰκῐ́δῐος (oikĭ́dĭos)
• οἰκῐ́ζω (oikĭ́zō)
• οἰκῐ́ον (oikĭ́on)
• οἴκισῐς (oíkisĭs)
• οἰκῐ́σκος (oikĭ́skos)
• οἴκοθεν (oíkothen)
• οἴκοι (oíkoi)
• οἶκόνδε (oîkónde)
• οἴκοσε (oíkose)

Descendants

• Greek: οίκος (oíkos)

Further reading

• “οἶκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1940), A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “οἶκος”, in Liddell & Scott (1889), An Intermediate Greek–English Lexicon, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “οἶκος”, in Autenrieth, Georg (1891), A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges, New York: Harper and Brothers
• “οἶκος” in Bailly, Anatole (1935), Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette
• οἶκος in Cunliffe, Richard J. (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect: Expanded Edition, Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, published 1963
• “οἶκος”, in Slater, William J. (1969), Lexicon to Pindar, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter
• Strong, James (1979), “G3624”, in Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• οἶκος in Trapp, Erich, et al. (1994–2007), Lexikon zur byzantinischen Gräzität besonders des 9.-12. Jahrhunderts [the Lexicon of Byzantine Hellenism, Particularly the 9th–12th Centuries], Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften
• Woodhouse, S. C. (1910), English–Greek Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Attic Language‎^[1], London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Limited.
  • abode idem, page 2.
  • apartment idem, page 33.
  • cabinet idem, page 108.
  • chamber idem, page 123.
  • domicile idem, page 247.
  • dwelling idem, page 257.
  • establishment idem, page 283.
  • estate idem, page 283.
  • family idem, page 305.
  • govern idem, page 367.
  • habitation idem, page 380.
  • home idem, page 403.
  • house idem, page 408.
  • household idem, page 408.
  • residence idem, page 701.
  • room idem, page 721.
  • saloon idem, page 732.
• BDAG