Order and interpretation of knowledge in Greek and Byzantine lexica up into the Renaissance
Etymologika is a long-term project within the within the framework of the Academies Program jointly funded by the German federal and state governments and coordinated by the Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities. The project is carried out by the Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Hamburg in cooperation with the University of Hamburg.
Greek etymological lexica (“Etymologika”) are among the most important lexicographic achievements pertaining to the history of ancient and medieval knowledge in Europe. They continued to be produced, used and extended even into the Renaissance and the early modern period. The term used for these lexica is derived from Classical Antiquity’s philosophical and grammatical analysis of language in search of the étymon, i.e. the ‘true meaning’ and essence of a word. The knowledge preserved in the Etymologika is an important heritage of ancient and Byzantine Greek culture that has not received sufficient scholarly attention as yet.
