Ἑλλάς
Hellás
G1671 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Hellas; the land or region inhabited by Greeks, especially in contrast to non-Greeks. In the context of the Hellenistic and Roman periods, 'Hellas' may refer narrowly to mainland Greece (the southern Balkan Peninsula including cities such as Athens and Corinth) or more broadly to any territory identified with Greek-speaking peoples and culture. Occasionally, 'Hellas' serves as a metonym for Hellenic civilization or cultural identity.
Semantic Range
the territory of Greece proper, regions inhabited by Greeks, the collective Greek world, Hellenic civilization or culture
Root / Etymology
Root: Ἑλλάς (Hellas) is of ancient origin, first appearing in Homer but with uncertain ultimate etymology. It is not transparently derived from other Greek words, and its connection to any pre-Greek or Indo-European root remains debated among scholars.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In earlier Greek literature, 'Hellas' originally denoted a small region in Thessaly but gradually expanded to refer to the whole area inhabited by Greeks. By the classical period, it commonly referred to the territory of the Greeks in distinction from non-Greeks ('barbarians'). In Hellenistic and Roman times, as seen in the New Testament and contemporaneous literature, 'Hellas' generally meant Greece or the Greek homeland, but the boundaries could be fluid depending on the context—sometimes it specifically excluded regions like Macedonia, sometimes it included all Greek-speaking territories. In the LXX and New Testament, 'Hellas' appears notably in contrast with Judea or other regions, marking a division between Greek and non-Greek worlds. Modern English translations usually render Ἑλλάς as 'Greece,' but in ancient texts the cultural and geographic implications could be more nuanced, often signifying a cultural territory as much as a political-geographic one.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
of uncertain affinity; Hellas (or Greece), a country of Europe:--Greece.
Root Family
Ἑλλάς (Hellas) — Greek land, Greek homeland, territory of Greeks
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G1671-01 |
Ἑλλάδα | ellada | N ACC F SG |
Greece | Hellas | Hellas | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G1671-01 |
Acts 20:2 | Ἑλλάδα | ellada | N ACC F SG |
Greece | Hellas | Hellas |