The Homer Reader The Iliad & Odyssey · Greek and English

τέμενος

temenos

a piece of land cut off and assigned as an official domain

Appears 13 times across Homer's epics.

Frequency by work

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Dictionary (LSJ)

τέμενος, εος, τό, Arc. nom. and acc. sg. τέμενες IG 5(2).432.31,42 (Megalop., ii B.C.); Aeol. gen. sg. τεμένηος Alc. 152: (τέμνω):—A. a piece of land cut off and assigned as an official domain, esp. to kings and chiefs, καὶ μέν οἱ [Βελλεροφόντῃ] Λύκιοι τ. τάμον ἔξοχον ἄλλων καλὸν φυταλιῆς καὶ ἀρούρης, ὄφρα νέμοιτο Il. 6.194, cf. 20.184,391; τ. περικαλλὲς . . πεντηκοντόγυον 9.578, cf. 12.313; τ. βασιλήϊον 18.550; δμῶες Ὀδυσσῆος τ. μέγα κοπρίσσοντες Od. 17.299, cf. 6.293: in pl., τεμένεα 11.185; τεμένη, μέρος τιμῆς Arist. Rh. 1361a35. II. a piece of land marked off from common uses and dedicated to a god, precinct, ἔνθα τέ οἱ τ. βωμός τε θυήεις Il. 8.48, cf. 2.696, al., Pi. N. 10.19, IG 12.94.29, etc.; τὸ τ. τῶν ἡρῴων Test.Epict. 2.13; in it stood the temple or shrine, Hdt. 2.112, 155, 3.142; Πρωτεσίλεω τάφος τε καὶ τ. περὶ αὐτόν Id. 9.116: hence the Pythian race-course is called a τέμενος, Pi. P. 5.33; Syracuse is the τ. Ἄρεος ib.2.2; the sacred valley of the Nile is the Νείλοιο πῖον τ. Κρονίδα ib. 4.56; the lake formed by the Cephisus is the τ. Καφισίδος ib.12.27; the Acropolis is the ἱερὸν τ. (of Pallas), Ar. Lys. 483 (lyr.): poet. also, τέμενος αἰθέρος A. Pers. 365; ἀνέμων Philet. 13; Μαραθὼν σῆς ἀρετῆς τ. IG 14.1185 (Rome); τρόπαια στησάμενοι Διὸς . . τέμενος to be a grove of Zeus, Tim. Pers. 211; of sacred grones, h.Ven. 267. III. temple, ἄγαμαι τοῦ τ. τῆς ὀροφῆς Chor.p.88 B., cf. p.116 B.
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